What I enjoy most about these food blogs is that they encourage me to try new places and cuisines. Going with that approach, we ventured out to try the much talked about Bengali Joint – Bhojohori Manna.
When we walked in for lunch on a Saturday, the place had a lot of vacant seats and we chose to sit on the first floor. The interiors are simple and nothing Bengali about them. The AC was not working due to a power cut and we seated ourselves next to an open window. I needed to make myself familiar with the Bengali menu. Though in English, it was hard to comprehend. I was smart I had taken a Bengali translator friend along to help me.
So until she explained the menu and the specialties of ‘Bong’ cuisine, I ordered the only thing I knew – Misti Doi. Mildly chilled sweetened yogurt filled all my senses as I too a spoonful. This was absolutely fantastic. This was followed by a second, third and fourth helping.
Today we were all set to eat what Neha (my friend) chose to order for us. First on it was Luchi-Alur Dom – a home favourite in the Bengal region. This can apparently be eaten at any time of the day and why not. Luchi is similar to poori and the other is ofcourse Aloo dum. Potatoes looked in delicate spices with peas had a sweetish tinge to it while the luchi was soft and fresh.
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| Luchi Alur Dum
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The Bengalis love their fish and this forms an integral part of the Bengali meal. At Bhojohori, we ordered for the famous fried Hilsa (also known as Ilish). What I realized is that each dish serves only one. So be it a fry or gravy, the menu indicates one piece, so if you are two of you, you would have to ask for a second piece. The price doubles ofcourse. On the recommendation of my friend and the waiter, I ordered for a Mini Jumbo Ilish fried fish. There was no masala but plain salted fish. The size of the piece was extremely disappointing for the price and to my bad luck, my piece was not well fried.
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| Fried Hilsa |
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| Parathas |
We met more challenges along the meal. We had to restrict our orders as the hotel ran out of LPG. Never heard of that before! I understand power cuts, but LPG??? And that too at opening time on Saturday afternoon!
So for mains we chose steamed rice and parathas along with Parshe Shorshe, a thin gravy with generous turmeric and mustard. The fish was better than the Ilish and as again a native fish of the Bengalis. The gravy again was juSst enough to finish the rice.
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| Parshe Shorshe |
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| Mutton Dakbangla |
Just to put aside the taste of fish, we ordered for a Mutton Dakbangla which was a thick gravy, well spiced and cooked to perfection. This dish and the Mishti Doi saved the afternoon for us. We could not order any desserts as they apparently had no stock of any, though the menu had an entire write up on Bengali sweets. We ordered the last of the Mishti Doi that was there.
Truly expected better out of this place, but I have my hopes still high on Bengali Cuisine. I hope to have better luck next time.
Pay by : Cash or Credit Card
Restroom : Decent and manageable
Average meal for two : Rs 850
Mel’s overall rating : 1.5 out of 5
Location : No 668/b, 6th block, Koramangala Club Road, Bangalore 560095. Ph : 080 25503666
i just cant forget the expression we had when we took the first scoop of the mishti doi :)
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