By Alokeparna | September 17, 2019

By Alokeparna | September 17, 2019
Honestly, I am not a Summer-friendly person at all. I avoid all kind of outdoor or non-AC activities including food adventures during the very inconveniently long summer in Kolkata. But pice hotels had certain attractions for me. I had been hearing about them for some time now and never had the chance to visit one. So when a lunch opportunity at one such place opened up with fellow foodies in mid-March, I couldn’t resist.
For 2 years, my office was somewhere between Rashbehari crossing and Kalighat. I used to carry lunch from home. However, 4 pm was a crime time when mind would demand a snack bribe and a short break to carry on for two more hours (often more). Now the South peeps know that there is no dearth of ‘cheap n cheerful’ food in Rashbehari-Kalighat area. Shingara, Kochuri, porota, roll, chowmein, chop, phuchka – you name it and the place has it….and to top it all, Apanjon was just a stone’s throw away. My go-to place was, however, a hand-cart manned by a Bihari Mashie in her 50s. She used to sell muri, peanuts, chana etc and you could customize the mix as per your requirement. She was quite a Lalu, albeit in a bright printed saree. Over the months she grew accustomed to my order and from then on I just needed to come to her cart and she would prepare the perfect peanuts mix with tiny slices of cucumber, onion, green chilies, tomatoes, a dash of lime juice and a few drops of mustard oil. She would put the mix in a paper cone and would say ‘Shpecial – 20 taka’.
I had passed by Macazzo at least a few hundred times since its inception in September 2016, but never made it inside till a few weeks back. It was partly because of the lack of meat-loving company and partly because of the wrought iron furniture that I could see through the glass door. I do not regard wrought iron furniture as very ergonomic. Nevertheless, the good reviews I had been receiving from trusted food enthusiasts, had made me decide to visit the restaurant. The opportunity came all of a sudden one evening, when an adda at Macazzo was hurriedly planned.
The Food Storey – A Unit of Café 23
P 241, Lake Road, Kolkata 700029 (Diagonally opposite CCD Lake Road) Phone: 09051584272, 09830640404
Cuisine type: Thai, Continental