Typically, herbivores (a.k.a us) and Bengali food are considered antipodes. However, our love for regional cuisine got the better of us and we went to 6 Ballygunge Place for dinner tonight.
Food: I have to admit that there is enough variety for vegetarians to visit the place at least twice. We started off with the assorted Bhaaja. There was one with a filling, one with shredded potatoes and one with aubergine. The first 'bhaaja' was too salty for me but overall, it was pretty good. For something deep fried, it was not too greasy. For the main course, we had the Begun Basanti, Phulkopir Kasundi, paranthas, a kachori, rice and a Radhaballavi. The Begun Basanti had a yogurt based gravy with a sweet note (due to cardamom, I think) and a nice flavor to it. The eggplants were fried well and the preparation was pretty good. The Kasundi on the other hand was on the savory side. The mustard flavor was quite prominent. The cauliflower florets could have been a touch crisper. But the two preparations were very different in their flavor profiles. The paranthas were alright. The kachori wasn't what I had imagined. It was more like a large 'puri' with some green chutney like filling inside it. The Radhaballavi was supposed to have lentils stuffed in it but it looked like a large puri with virtually little lentils. i'm not sure if that is how they're supposed to be. But overall, the food was certainly flavorful and we did get to taste a spectrum of flavors. We were too full for dessert.
Portion size: The stuff we ordered was enough to feed two hungry people.
Cost: I'd say moderate. It cost us Rs. 600 for 2 people, which is not bad, given the location.
Ambiance: It had a 'old-school' feeling to it. The hall we were seated in had a large black and white picture. The decor was simple. The only thing we didn't appreciate was a little cockroach crawling on a wall close to us. So that needs to be taken care of.
Service: Our server dissuaded us from ordering the Shuktoni without the rice. hence we ordered the Basanti and the Kasundi with paranthas initially. We ordered rice later on to finish the entrees.
Bottom line: I'm going to visit this place again to have the Shuktoni, Mochar Ghonto and the Daber Payash. I'd say this place is worth a visit...even for herbivores!
Overall rating: 3 out of 5. I would have given this 3.5 if it weren't for the little cockroach.
delectablyyours
