Call of Bengal started its journey at a food court in Madhapur (Same Place). They got their own property about a year ago. The new place is simple and homely, with icons of Bengali culture tucked into every wall and table. CoB’s menu is inspired by the different flavours of Kolkata, and attempts to provide a taste of the diverse cuisines that have been a part of Bengali food culture for decades. You will find Kolkata Biryani and Rezala of Park Circus, Noodles and Dragon Chicken of Tangda, and Chicken Ala Kiev and Fish Florentine of Park Street. Last weekend, Foodies in Hyderabad – Reloaded organised an event featuring the Anglo Indian cuisine of Park Street.
We started off with Mulligatawny soup, which was served in a traditional pot, and homely garlic breads. Now, the traditional recipe of this soup calls for infusion of the broth of some form of meat (chicken, mutton, as well as beef is used), but CoB prepared a vegetarian version of it. It’s not easy to substitute meat, but the soup was delicious and perfectly enjoyable with a rich taste of pulse coming through in the final gulp.
The buffet had a very respectable number of options. Unfortunately, my tiny appetite didn’t allow me to taste all of them. However, I did try most of the non-vegeterian dishes. The Vegetable Cutlet and Chicken Chop were both good. I initially missed the trusty Bengali sidekick – Kasundi (strong mustard sauce), but I really enjoyed pairing both the starters with hung curd, as suggested by the owner.
In the mains, I started off with Shepherd’s Pie and Fish Florentine. The Shepherd’s Pie was savoury and comforting, but I couldn’t help but feel that using a different meat would have increased the flavour profile. The Fish Florentine was baked perfectly, and the bits of fish were amazing. Unfortunately, there was just way too much spinach in the dish, so you had to hunt around a bit to make sure you didn’t just end up with a whole lot of greens on your plate.
The next item to go on my plate was Captain’s Country Chicken. This was the first time I tried this dish, and the taste reminded me of the starters popular in this part of the country. I tried a little bit of the Au Gratin and found it to be decent but not memorable. The vegetarian version of the Moussaka on offer didn’t appeal to me so I restricted myself to just tasting a little bit of the crust.
The final dish in the main course was Railway Mutton Curry, which I tried with a little bit of Saffron Rice and Butter Rice. The mutton was cooked just right, and the meat was tender and juicy. The curry was a bit richer than what you would expect in a traditional preparation of this dish, but I happily overlooked that as the dish tasted really great. Having already overstuffed myself, I wrapped up my “Happy Meal” with minuscule servings of the caramel custard, cup-cakes, and ice cream with mangoes, all of which were decent.
Call of Bengal has disappointed me in the past with its inconsistency. But, I was both pleased and intrigued by this visit, and look forward to going back to try more of their menu.
