Heritage glory of Raajkutir

Bringing alive the days of Zamindars and Raj rule

For high-end luxury tourists contemplating to imbibe in the old-world charm of Kolkata’s heritage that dates back to 1857, there is Raajkutir from the house of Ambuja-Neotia hospitality that forms the newest heritage property to open its doors sometime on December 18, 2018. Nestling in the heart of the city, the sprawling heritage mansion spreads over 15 acres of land area and provides the perfect opportunity to soak into the bygone grandeur of Zamindars of Bengal. Having said this, Raajkutir has been created around an imaginative story of Zamindars of Bengal and their lavish lifestyle.

 An outer facade of Raajkutir

 

 

 The front view of the heritage property

I was really thrilled by the opportunity to have a heritage walk around the stunning boutique hotel sometime in the New Year and with heightened anticipation, I reached the property. The welcome was quite grand with guests smeared with chandan tikka on the forehead, garlands were offered and there were welcome drinks. One should devote some time for the heritage walk to have a complete view of the property. The luxury set-up has 33 well-furnished rooms decked up with antiques from Zamindar era. 

Rooms done up in Zamindar style

 

 Interiors of the room

Besides, there are large glittering indoor and outdoor banquets with live counters, an all-day dining food outlet- East India Room sprawling over 2,000 sq.ft area that churns out platters from Colonial era. 

The Banquet

 The embellished chandeliers

I settled in at East India Room that promises to tickle one’s taste buds with tantalizing menu from the days of Portuguese and British rule as well as the dishes rustled up in the kitchens of Zamindars of Bengal.

 A view of East India Room

At East India Room, we had a lunch date and started off with Mulligatawny that was a favourite soup of British soldiers made of yellow lentil and white rice balls. There was Elliot Road cutlet, a vegetarian delight of beet, carrots, potatoes flavoured with tangy sauce and the yummy Raja Nrisingh Pratap’s Mochar chop made from banana blossom and done up with mustard sauce from Bikrampur on the other side of Bengal.

An array of starters

 I was served Tetrazinni- the baked sphagetti done up with butter, cream and parmesan. I switched on to the main course that had yellow coconut rice with capsicum brinjal potato curry- a vegetarian speciality from the British Indian kitchen spiced up with coconut paste and tamarind. To round off our meal, we were offered black forest pastry and caramel pudding that had a lingering taste.

 Sphagetti

 Yellow rice with capsicum brinjal potato curry

 Black forest pastry

Besides, the heritage haunt has Outpost that promises to rejuvenate one’s body and mind with traditional massages from the hoary past. One should not forget to drop in at the exhibition counter- Colonnade, the shopping arcade called Arcadia, Loafer’s Cafe offering bakery stuff with a whiff of Victorian flavours and Swig is for wine aficionados.