Swadhin Bharat Hindu Hotel — Restaurant in Kolkata

This 112 year old pice hotel offers lip smacking food with a mix of old world charm and nostalgia! At first known as only the Bharat Hindu Hotel, it was renamed as Swadhin Bharat Hindu Hotel in 1947 and has been known as such ever since. Legend goes the place was a hub a Swadeshi (Indian independence movement) meetings and eminent personalities like Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose hav dined here. Thus the place has a lot of history in its bag to offer for anyone willing to walk through its doors. Now keeping aside history for a moment, the current restaurant/pice hotel has neat seating capacity for about 20 to 25 people. Keeping in line with traditions of a true pice hotels, the menu is written each day on a whiteboard based on the vegetables/fish/chicken available in the market that same morning. I had the pleasure of visiting here recently for lunch, and ordered the following food items,

1. Bhat (One serving of steamed white rice, Rs 35 first serve, Rs 15 henceforth)
2. Begun bhaja (Eggplant fries, Rs 30, 2 piece)
3. muro muger daal (lentil soup with fried Katla fish head, Rs 35)
4. pui shaker chochhocri (A mixed Veg dish consisting of Malabar Spinach, fish heads and other veggies, Rs 35)
5. Katla kalia ( Katla fish curry, Rs 120)
6. kacha amer chatni ( Chutney of Raw mangoes, Rs 30) Overall, all the items were super tasty and fresh. The wait time for such a large order was also minimum, which is a big thumbs up for the service. However, this can slightly increase during rush hours. The prices are however a bit on the higher side as compared to other pice hotels in Central Kolkata. However, that part has been aptly compensated with the old world charm, prompt service and obviously a feast for the taste buds! Surely looking forward to visit again. P. S Foods served on Banana leaves and water in earthen cups are the cherries...

This pice hotel is amongst the most popular pice hotels in Kolkata and originally began as the Hindu Hotel, then on the day of India’s independence, it was renamed Swadhin Bharat Hindu Hotel. More than a century old, it has continued to serve authentic Bengali cuisine for generations, becoming both a culinary and historical landmark of Kolkata.

What makes this place truly special is the role it played during India’s freedom struggle and Bengal Famine. Many freedom fighters used to dine here in hiding during the British Raj. When raids happened, the owner would bravely confront the British officers at the entrance while secretly leaving the back gate open, giving revolutionaries a chance to escape. Acts like these made the hotel a silent ally of India’s independence movement. Not a lot of people would know about contributions like this.

Another unforgettable chapter in its history came during the Great Bengal Famine, when the hotel served free khichdi to hundreds of starving people every single day. Few eateries can claim to have fed both the leaders of the freedom struggle and the masses in their hour of need.

The food here is still rooted in tradition simple, light, and reminiscent of home cooked Bengali meals. Fish items like pabda Jhaal, daal, fish egg pakoda, seasonal vegetables, and fried items like jhuri alu bhaja are delicious, and not overly spicy. The staff are warm, courteous, and reflect the same legacy of care. However I felt that the price is a little on the higher side for a pice hotel for the portion they serve. Overall, it's a true history...

A very local pice hotel. Beautiful and warm experience. We told the server that we wanted hot food as we didn't like pre-prepared cold servings...and he very willingly obliged. I guess when you ask with a smile...and the server is fabulous, then it's a start of a beautiful meal! 😀

We left our server to decide for us. Poor guy was left wondering, but he served us a delicious non-veg thali. We had Mutton Kosha (a nice mutton chop in a spiced curry), Chingri Malai Curry (tiger prawns in a creamy masala curry), a Aloo-Saag preparation (pieces of potato with spinach), salad, homemade sweet mango chutney, crunchy Aloo Bhaja (slivers of potato goodness) and rice. We didn't speak because the food was so good and didn't need any disturbance.

I had asked for Begun Bhaja (nice Chunky pieces of eggplant, roasted) which the Bengalis so well on how to respect this vegetable. I was in heaven!

Because I was relishing the food, the server asked if he could bring a fish dish....I hardly had any space left in my stomach, but when I looked at his face I felt that he was hinting of something really special.....and then he brought Bhetki Paturi (a delicately prepared steamed fish dish where the fish fillet is slathered with a delicate mustard paste, then wrapped in a banana leaf; and steamed to nirvana land).

Caution: you may not be able to walk out of Swadheen Bharath as the food will fill your tummy and waddling like a duck is a more apt way to explain how we walked out of there. I also had a big satiated smile on my face (which seemed like I had just sinned......the sin...