Chinese people came to Calcutta from the late eighteenth century, first as sugar planters and then as tanners, carpenters, dentists and shoemakers. Two Chinatowns formed: the older one at Territti Bazar in central Kolkata, and the larger one at Tangra, where the tanneries were. At its peak the community numbered over twenty thousand; it is now a few thousand, and shrinking.
Indian Chinese food — chilli chicken, Manchurian, Hakka noodles, chimney soup — was invented in these kitchens, mostly by Hakka families. It is now eaten across India and abroad, and Tangra is where it comes from.
East Kolkata
Salt Lake · Sector V · New Town · Rajarhat · Tangra| Name | Where | What it is known for |
|---|---|---|
| Beijing Restaurant1980s | Tangra | One of the best-known Tangra kitchens; chimney soup and Hakka dishes. |
| Kim Ling1980s | Tangra | A long-running Tangra family restaurant. |
| Golden Joy | Tangra | Hakka Chinese, large portions. |
| Kafulok | Tangra | Another of the established Tangra houses. |
| Big Boss | Tangra | Tangra Chinese in the modern style. |
| Sin Fa | Tangra | Long-running, family-run. |
| Hakka Restaurant | Tangra | Hakka cooking under its own name. |
Central Kolkata
BBD Bagh · Esplanade · New Market · Park Street · College Street · Bowbazar · Burrabazar| Name | Where | What it is known for |
|---|---|---|
| Eau Chew1927 | Ganesh Chandra Avenue | Run by the Huang family for four generations; possibly the oldest Chinese family restaurant in India. Josephine noodles and chimney soup. |
| Chung Wah1930s | Chittaranjan Avenue | An old central Kolkata Chinese room. |
| Territti Bazar morning market | Territti Bazar, off Rabindra Sarani | Chinese breakfast sold on the street from about 6am — pork buns, fish ball soup, momo. Over by eight. |
| Tung Nam | Chatawala Gully, Territti Bazar | A small old Chinatown kitchen. |
| Sei Vui Church and the old Chinatown1905 | Territti Bazar | The Chinese temples and clan associations that anchor the old quarter. |
South Kolkata
Bhowanipore · Kalighat · Gariahat · Ballygunge · Lake Market · Jadavpur · Tollygunge| Name | Where | What it is known for |
|---|---|---|
| Mainland China1994 | Gariahat and city-wide | Founded in Kolkata by the Speciality Restaurants group; the polished version of the same cooking. |
| Chinoiserie | Taj Bengal, Alipore | Hotel Chinese. |
| Gariahat and Park Street Chinese rooms | Gariahat, Park Street | The mainstream Indian-Chinese restaurants. |
What to order
- Chilli chicken and Hakka noodles, at their source
- Chimney soup — a hotpot cooked at the table — which few places outside Tangra do
- Territti Bazar for Chinese breakfast, from about 6am and finished by 8
- Sunday morning at Territti Bazar is when the old community still gathers
- Prawn wafers and the fried fish, which are Tangra specialities rather than menu filler
Other kinds of eating
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