Nizam's Restaurant (New Market Esplanade)

Nizam's Main Entrance

Nizam’s was started in early 1900 by Sk. Hasan Reza by the blessings of a Sufi Saint Hazrat Hasan Waris Shah of Lucknow. Reza who came to Kolkata from Benaras, started as a peon at the Corporation, then decided he would be better off feeding hungry office workers and shoppers and so he started making Kathi Kababs and Parathas from a very small stall. Just because the Englishmen did’nt like the oil to touch their hands, so he stuck upon a novel idea of wrapping up the Kathi Kabab and Parathas into a fine piece of Paper and that’s how rolls came into existence. Reza shifted his stall to a bigger place in 1932 in front of Calcutta Municipal Corporation where the present day Nizam’s lies. It was named after Reza’s son Sk. Nizamuddin; now the restaurant is run by Mr. Irshad Alam & Sons with the blessing of Hazarat Shorab Ali Shah.

A Kathi Kabab roll is so called because the meat (or paneer in the veggie version) is first grilled on a skewer (kathi) until it is soft, then wrapped, along with spices, onions, green chillies, salt and a splash of lime juice, in a fried, crisp and light paratha. The meat could be chicken, mutton or beef; traditionally it was the beef roll that made Nizam’s a name. The whole is wrapped neatly in a square of greyish paper and there you have it, Kolkata’s answer to the sandwich. Made in a jiffy while you wait and watch, easily eaten on the run, this is Mughlai-a-go-go.

Preparing kathi kabab rolls at Nizams

Nizam’s are the inventors of Kathi Kabab Rolls. Ultimately in a roll you should get the taste of kababs and after eating one, you should get the feeling of having another. Nizam’s was the first to introduce bamboo sticks (Kathis) because it was hygienic and good for health instead of iron skewers which get rusted. The kababs are maintained in secret herbs and spices and goes through three levels of processing before coming on to your plate. Living testimony bears that Nizam’s is the only exponent of the art of the roll and fast food.

From fashionable ladies shopping at New Market, cinemagoers and tourists to office-workers and students, Nizam’s welcomes them all. Even today, with prices starting at Rs 20 for a basic egg or aloo roll, there is a large-hearted hospitality to diners of every budget. And the factor that really makes the difference at Nizam’s is the attitude of the staff. Neatly dressed in green shalwar kurtas, they will guide you through the menu and talk at length about Nizam’s with the magisterial air of chhota Nizams. They will introduce you to the delights of ‘tumtum biryani’ (biryani with tomatoes in it), reputedly created in the 1970s to please the manager of Elite.

Chicken Roll served on table

The restaurant was closed for 29 months and re-opened in 2006; with its new plaster-moulded ceiling, tiger-stripe sofas and prolapsed LED lights isn’t exactly stylish, although everything is spotlessly clean and the marble underfoot is spectacular. The list of rolls that they sell includes Chicken Roll (Rs. 30), Mutton Roll (Rs. 32), Egg Roll (Rs. 20), Aloo Roll (Rs. 20), Paneer Roll (Rs. 25), Paneer Aloo Roll (Rs. 30), Egg Chicken Roll (Rs. 35), Egg Mutton Roll (Rs. 37), Egg Aloo Roll (Rs. 25), Double Chicken Roll (Rs. 53), Double Mutton Roll (Rs. 56), Double Egg Roll (Rs. 30), Double Egg Single Chicken Roll (Rs. 40), Double Egg Single Mutton Roll (Rs. 42), Double Egg Double Chicken Roll (Rs. 63), Double Egg Double Mutton Roll (Rs. 66), Single Egg Double Chicken Roll (Rs. 58), Single Egg Double Mutton Roll (Rs. 60), Egg Chicken Aloo Roll (Rs. 40), Egg Mutton Aloo Roll (Rs. 42). The main restaurant now is ‘no beef’, while the Nizam’s Mughal Gardens next door is the ‘beef’ section. The Tandoori / Kabab menu serves Tandoori Chicken, Chicken Reshmi Kabab, Chicken Tangri Kabab, Chicken Boti Kabab, Mutton Bara Kabab, Mutton Seekh Kabab, Paneer Tikka Kabab, Murg Harli Kabab, Kathi Kabab. Don’t forget to try firni from the dessert section. The cost for a complete meal for two persons is Rs. 250.

Must eat dessert - FIRNI

Perhaps due to competition from KFC & McD, one section of the restaurant is now made air-conditioned. Even though malls have taken away most dedicated of shoppers of New Market and falling profits have softened people’s attitudes to change; Nevertheless, a little band of aficionados, in which I must include myself, know that New Market has a secret the malls will never have: its magic name protects it from ever being old. You might park your car in the brand new automated parking plaza, as I did, have a coffee in its attached underground mall, but you’ll still want to go to Nizam’s for your kathi roll.

Location: No.23 & 24, Hogg Street, BBD Bag (Dalhousie Sc), Beside New Market, Kolkata- 700013

Contact No.:  (+91) 9831073534, (+91) 9836194669, (+91)(33) 32928340
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