kolkata hasn’t the choice or the variety of goods found in Bombay or Delhi, but there are some nice general buys to be found in the huge, covered New Market, behind Chowringhee. New Market is certainly the cheapest place in kolkata to buy presents and souvenirs—silks, cottons, handwoven fabrics and silver in particular. You should also visit out 
the market’s famous Chinese shoe-makers. Leather shoes, bags, belts and briefcases are cheaper in kolkata than anywhere else in the country, and the quality is generally superb. Porters are available, as at all markets, for a couple of rupees.For exclusive shopping, try Bengal Home Industries Association (BHI), 57 Jawaharlal Nehru Rd (tel 441562).This sells stylish Bengal-style cotton (cant) saris, silk /cotton combination saris.
the market’s famous Chinese shoe-makers. Leather shoes, bags, belts and briefcases are cheaper in kolkata than anywhere else in the country, and the quality is generally superb. Porters are available, as at all markets, for a couple of rupees.For exclusive shopping, try Bengal Home Industries Association (BHI), 57 Jawaharlal Nehru Rd (tel 441562).This sells stylish Bengal-style cotton (cant) saris, silk /cotton combination saris.Also a wide range of traditional Bengal crafts, like terracotta toys, bright jute furnishings (wall-hangings, pot-holders, bags and mats), conch-shell bangles and leather goods. For high-class menswear and fashion tailors, check out places like Yak’s in Grand Hotel Arcade, or the clothing shops round New Market. Tailoring is extremely cheap in kolkata, and again the quality of workmanship is high. If you’re looking for silk by the metre, Mayur on Rafi Ahmed Kidwai Rd and Indian Textiles in the Great Eastern Hotel arcade have a large selection. Prices are high, but you’re paying for class.Two good fixed-price emporia, which are always useful if you don’t know where to start and what’s available, are Central Cottage Industries Emporium, 7 Jawaharlal Nehru Rd (tel 284139) and West Bengal Government Sales Emporium, 7/1D Lindsay St (tel 243990). Both places have a large stock of attractive handloom fabrics, textiles, silks and jewellery.
EATING OUT
Because kolkata families tend to eat in, there is a great shortage of restaurants serving typical Bengali cuisine: only Suruchi at 89 Elliot Rd (tel 291783) specialises in it. Suruchi closes on Saturdays at 5 pm and Sundays at 3 pm. Try its famous fish dishes (particularly the tasty smoked hilsa) and its sweets. Princess Anne visited on one of her Save the Children Fund trips,
and tucked into pati shapta, a delicious coconut pancake from East Bengal. For the ordinary diner, Suruchi offers a daily choice of vegetarian, fish or meat meals. These are Rs25-35 standard meals inclusive of dal, vegetables, papadums and a sweet. Bengali sweets are famous—go to Ganguram’s, 46c Chowringhee Rd (Everest House) for milk and curd-based rosogolla, niishti doi, ingrain and sandesh, all made to melt in your mouth.The Oberoi’s Mughal Room restaurant does the best Mughlai /North-West Frontier food in kolkata. Good-value Rs150 buffets at lunchtime, authentic Bengali-style atmosphere (packed with locals, great live entertainment) in the evening. The Grand also has an exclusive French restaurant, La Rotisserie, with select continental food and an impressive array of wines. This is where kolkata’s hardworked businessmen come for a Rs175-225 ‘express’ lunch: you can be in and out in under an hour.The Taj Bengal has developed a good reputation for its Szechwan restaurant, The Chinoiserie, and its Indian restaurant, the Sonargaon where meals would be from Rs250 per person. The Taj also has a very popular 24-hour coffee shop. Outside the hotels many locals go to the old Chinese restaurants in South Tangra Street (off the Eastern Metropolitan bypass).The area is a bit rough but the food is excellent; try the Sin Fa or the Blue Diamond. kolkata used to have a large Chinese community and was famous for its restaurants. The meals at Fairlawn Hotel are exceedingly popular with travellers. Over at Sagar Hotel’s Amber Bar & Restaurant, you can enjoy a lunch or dinner of Tandoori/Indian cuisine. Park Street has a number of good multi-cuisine restaurants serving meals from Rs125, including The Skyroom (tel 294362), The Blue Fox with a popular bar, Waldorf excellent for Chinese, Vineet for vegetarian specialities, Kwality and Trinca’s. For tasty no-nonsense Indian meals, try Mughal Durbar in Free School St, or Fiesta in Hardford Lane, off Sudder St. An excellent bakery and fiercely air-conditioned restaurant is Kathleen’s on Free School St.
Because kolkata families tend to eat in, there is a great shortage of restaurants serving typical Bengali cuisine: only Suruchi at 89 Elliot Rd (tel 291783) specialises in it. Suruchi closes on Saturdays at 5 pm and Sundays at 3 pm. Try its famous fish dishes (particularly the tasty smoked hilsa) and its sweets. Princess Anne visited on one of her Save the Children Fund trips,
and tucked into pati shapta, a delicious coconut pancake from East Bengal. For the ordinary diner, Suruchi offers a daily choice of vegetarian, fish or meat meals. These are Rs25-35 standard meals inclusive of dal, vegetables, papadums and a sweet. Bengali sweets are famous—go to Ganguram’s, 46c Chowringhee Rd (Everest House) for milk and curd-based rosogolla, niishti doi, ingrain and sandesh, all made to melt in your mouth.The Oberoi’s Mughal Room restaurant does the best Mughlai /North-West Frontier food in kolkata. Good-value Rs150 buffets at lunchtime, authentic Bengali-style atmosphere (packed with locals, great live entertainment) in the evening. The Grand also has an exclusive French restaurant, La Rotisserie, with select continental food and an impressive array of wines. This is where kolkata’s hardworked businessmen come for a Rs175-225 ‘express’ lunch: you can be in and out in under an hour.The Taj Bengal has developed a good reputation for its Szechwan restaurant, The Chinoiserie, and its Indian restaurant, the Sonargaon where meals would be from Rs250 per person. The Taj also has a very popular 24-hour coffee shop. Outside the hotels many locals go to the old Chinese restaurants in South Tangra Street (off the Eastern Metropolitan bypass).The area is a bit rough but the food is excellent; try the Sin Fa or the Blue Diamond. kolkata used to have a large Chinese community and was famous for its restaurants. The meals at Fairlawn Hotel are exceedingly popular with travellers. Over at Sagar Hotel’s Amber Bar & Restaurant, you can enjoy a lunch or dinner of Tandoori/Indian cuisine. Park Street has a number of good multi-cuisine restaurants serving meals from Rs125, including The Skyroom (tel 294362), The Blue Fox with a popular bar, Waldorf excellent for Chinese, Vineet for vegetarian specialities, Kwality and Trinca’s. For tasty no-nonsense Indian meals, try Mughal Durbar in Free School St, or Fiesta in Hardford Lane, off Sudder St. An excellent bakery and fiercely air-conditioned restaurant is Kathleen’s on Free School St.
