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The best Chingri Malaikari in Kolkata

Also spelt chingri malai curry, prawn malai curry, golda chingri malaikari and daab chingri. A curated shortlist, shaped by your votes.

Editorial picks

Selected from published food guides and local reporting. How the list works

  1. Number 1.6 Ballygunge Place (Ballygunge original)

    Open
    12.30pm to 3.30pm and 7pm to 10.30pm, daily
    Where
    6, Dr Amiya Bose Sarani (Ballygunge Place), near Patha Bhavan School, Ballygunge, Kolkata 700019

    Order the daab chingri, prawns baked inside a green coconut, or the jumbo prawn malaikari if the coconut has run out. Book ahead, because the townhouse fills for Sunday lunch and turns walk-ins away.

    What to orderDaab chingri, or jumbo prawn malaikari with plain rice

    0 votes

  2. Number 2.6 Ballygunge Place

    Open
    12.30 to 3.30 and 7 to 10.30 daily
    Where
    6 Ballygunge Place, off Ballygunge Circular Road, Ballygunge, Kolkata 700019

    Ask for the jumbo prawn malaikari, heads left on, and the gravy gets a deeper crustacean edge. The heritage house fills up for Sunday lunch, so book, and skip the fixed thali.

    What to orderJumbo prawn malaikari, heads on

    0 votes

  3. Number 3.Oh! Calcutta, Forum on Elgin Road

    Open
    About noon to 4 and 7 to 11 daily
    Where
    4th floor, Forum Courtyard, 10/3 Elgin Road, Bhowanipore, Kolkata 700020

    Order the chingri malaikari and expect mustard oil and mustard paste under the coconut milk, not just sweetness. At about 795 rupees it is the dearest here, and lunch is quieter than dinner.

    What to orderChingri malaikari

    0 votes

  4. Aaheli (The Peerless Inn

    Open
    12.30pm to 11pm, daily
    Where
    Aaheli, The Peerless Inn, 12 Jawaharlal Nehru Road, Esplanade, Kolkata 700013

    Aaheli turned daab chingri into a restaurant dish in this city, and the bell metal service still suits it. Prices are hotel prices, and the thali tends to crowd out ordering a la carte.

    What to orderDaab chingri, prawns in tender coconut gravy

    0 votes

  5. Oh! Calcutta (Forum Mall

    Open
    1pm to 3.30pm and 7pm to 11pm, daily
    Where
    Forum Mall, 10/3 Elgin Road, Bhowanipore, Kolkata 700020

    Mustard oil and mustard paste sit behind the coconut milk here, so the malaikari tastes sharper than a home one. Mall parking is difficult, and the kitchen closes between lunch and dinner.

    What to orderGolda chingri malaikari

    0 votes

  6. Bhojohori Manna (Ekdalia, the first outlet)

    Open
    Noon to 10.30pm, daily
    Where
    Shop No. 9, 18 Ekdalia Road, Gariahat, Kolkata 700019

    This Ekdalia garage is where the chain began, so take the bagda daab chingri here rather than at a branch. Seating is cramped and there is usually a wait at Sunday lunchtime.

    What to orderBagda daab chingri, two prawns in the coconut

    0 votes

  7. Saptapadi, Purna Das Road

    Open
    Noon to 10.45 daily
    Where
    49B Purna Das Road, Hindustan Park, Gariahat, Kolkata 700029

    The malaikari here is thickened with maize powder and finished with ghee, which makes it creamier than most. The room off Purna Das Road is small, so weekend evenings mean waiting outside.

    What to orderChingri malaikari with steamed rice

    0 votes

  8. Bhojohori Manna

    Open
    Noon to 10.30 daily
    Where
    13 P.C. Sorcar Sarani, Ekdalia Road, Ballygunge, Kolkata 700019

    The Ekdalia garage where the chain started, and the malaikari is still cooked plainly and priced low. Expect to queue on the pavement at weekends, and the newer branches are not the same room.

    What to orderChingri malaikari

    0 votes

  9. Saptapadi (Gariahat)

    Open
    Noon to 4pm and 6pm to 10pm, daily
    Where
    48 Mahanirban Road, Gariahat, Kolkata 700029

    Their chingri malai curry is thickened with maize flour and ghee, so it eats heavier than the home version. The kitchen shuts in the afternoon; do not arrive between four and six.

    What to orderChingri malai curry with steamed rice

    0 votes

  10. Koshe Kosha

    Open
    11am to 11pm daily
    Where
    152/1 Bidhan Sarani, near Roopbani cinema, Hatibagan, Kolkata 700006

    The north Kolkata branch, by the Roopbani cinema, does a thick creamy prawn malaikari that wants plain rice under it. Bidhan Sarani traffic is heavy, so come by metro to Shobhabazar.

    What to orderChingri malaikari, or the daab chingri

    0 votes

  11. Sonar Tori

    Open
    Noon to 10.30 daily
    Where
    4th floor, B Block, City Centre, DC Block, Sector I, Bidhannagar, Kolkata 700064

    Bengali and Bangladeshi cooking on the fourth floor of a mall, with the malaikari around 449 rupees. Weekend evenings mean a wait for a table, and the buffet is not where the prawns are.

    What to orderChingri malaikari

    0 votes

  12. Gondhoraj - Flavours of Bengal (Gariahat)

    Open
    Noon to about 10pm, daily
    Where
    Upper floor, Rash Behari Avenue near Zudio, Gariahat crossing, Kolkata 700029

    Ask for the galda chingri malaikari, which arrives with a dusting of nutmeg. The restaurant sits on an upper floor above Rash Behari Avenue, so allow time for the lift.

    What to orderGalda chingri malaikari with nutmeg finish

    0 votes

  13. Ilish Truly Bong

    Open
    11am to 11pm daily
    Where
    83B Park Street, Mullick Bazar, Kolkata 700016

    Lopa Kamilya cooks a family recipe, so the malaikari runs spicier than the coconut milk suggests. It sits at the Mullick Bazar end of Park Street, which is a walk from the metro.

    What to orderChingri malaikari

    0 votes

  14. Swadhin Bharat Hindu Hotel (College Square)

    Open
    About 10.30am to 4pm, then 7.30pm to 10.30pm
    Where
    8/2 Bhawani Dutta Lane, below Raja Guest House, College Square, Kolkata 700073

    A ninety year old pice hotel where jumbo prawns arrive simmered in coconut milk for very little money. Ask at the counter what is left, since dishes run out before the four o'clock close.

    What to orderJumbo prawns in coconut milk, with rice and pui chorchori

    0 votes

  15. Babu Culture (Gariahat)

    Open
    12.30pm to 4pm and 7pm to 10pm, daily
    Where
    7/2B Dover Lane, opposite Dover Lane, Ballygunge, Kolkata 700029

    Chingri malai curry here is scented with gondhoraj lime leaf, which is a change from the plain coconut version. The kitchen closes mid afternoon, so aim for early lunch or after seven.

    What to orderChingri malai curry with lebu pata

    0 votes

  16. Kasturi, Mustaque Ahmed Street

    Open
    About 12.30 to 11 daily, hours vary
    Where
    7A Mustaque Ahmed Street, near New Market, Kolkata 700016

    Dhaka style cooking near New Market. The chingri malaikari holds up, though the kitchen is better known for kochu pata chingri bhapa. Crowded at lunch, cramped seating, and the hours shift.

    What to orderChingri malaikari

    0 votes

  17. The Bhoj Company (Free School Street)

    Open
    Noon to 10pm, daily; some listings say from 9am
    Where
    30A Free School Street, Kolkata 700016

    Plain, cheap and always busy: the chingri malai curry comes without ceremony, and rice is billed separately. Posted hours differ between listings, so ring ahead before a late evening visit.

    What to orderChingri malai curry with rice

    0 votes

  18. Gondhoraj

    Open
    Noon to 10pm daily
    Where
    3rd floor, 169 Rashbehari Avenue, near the Zudio building, Gariahat, Kolkata 700019

    Galda chingri here, the big freshwater prawns, with nutmeg grated over the coconut gravy before it reaches the table. You want the third floor above the Zudio on Rashbehari, and the kitchen stops at ten.

    What to orderGalda chingri malaikari

    0 votes

  19. Babu Culture

    Open
    Noon to 10.30 daily
    Where
    7/2B Dover Lane, Ballygunge, Kolkata 700029

    Their version drops gondhoraj lime leaves into the coconut gravy, so it arrives smelling of citrus. Dover Lane is narrow, parking is a fight, and the four outlets are not identical.

    What to orderChingri malaikari with gondhoraj lebu

    0 votes

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