Your Ultimate Guide To Russell Street: Food, Finds & Photo Ops

Whatever your lane, food is the lifeline of Kolkata. First stop? Russel Punjabi Dhaba. Enjoy some chai and samosas while listening to traditional Hindi music. For your main course, have tawa roti and chicken bharta. Then, INR 100 gets you a plate of basmati rice. Additionally, the paneer paratha wins for being so delicious, while the Aloo paratha will surpass your expectations. The paratha features a hearty, flavourful stuffing of seasoned mashed potatoes and an outer layer that is wonderfully crispy. The dish is perfectly complemented by the yoghurt and pickles that go with it. 

Timing: 6 AM - 12 AM.

Price: INR 500 for two

Contact: 09041090784

Google Rating: 3.9/5

On 7A Russell Street, the Glenburn Cafe has been renovated from an old warehouse site. It evokes the ambience of a European tea room and is situated within the renowned Glenburn tea estate in Darjeeling. Tea from Darjeeling is served with a squeeze of fresh Gondhoraj lemon. Quaint white louvred windows, the vintage decor, the chequered marble floors, and the flower-filled boxes underneath each window. With its warm wooden accents and green and white colour scheme, it's a wonderful spot to enjoy Glenburn's renowned tea and some cakes and pastries. Hot and cold drinks from the 8th Day Cafe, a roastery in Kolkata, are available, along with 23 varieties of Darjeeling, Assam, and tasty blends from their tea plantations in Darjeeling and Assam.

Timing: 9 AM - 9 PM

Price: INR 950 for two

Google Rating: 4.1/5

Instagram: @glenburncafe

A spot where you feel as though you've travelled back in time. Since its founding in 1940, the Russell Exchange has been one of Asia's oldest auction houses. However, it's not only a place for collectors. It's full of unique artefacts, vintage tales, and a typical historic charm. The company started when Mr Russell, the original owner, sold it to the great-grandfather of the current proprietors. Since then, it has remained in the family. Siblings Sarfaraz Begum Shamsi, Arshad Salim, and Anwar Salim currently manage it. It is like a treasure hunt every Sunday at The Russell Exchange. You can get anything from old cassettes to colonial furniture and antiquated cameras. To attract a younger, more diverse audience, the Salim brothers have launched new initiatives, including fashion exhibitions and music evenings, within the auction house. Previously a favoured spot for filmmaker Satyajit Ray, this secluded neighbourhood on Russell Street offers a unique blend of history, art, and intrigue, making it an ideal destination for anyone wishing to experience the city in a different light.

Timing: Mondays, 10:00 AM - 2:00 PM; Wednesdays to Saturdays, 10:00 AM - 7:00 PM. Sundays, 10 AM - 4 PM. Closed on Tuesdays.

Price INR 20 - INR 1,50,000 onwards

Contact:  033 2229 8974

Google Rating: 4/5

Instagram: @the_russell_exchange

The Bengal Club is one of the oldest social clubs in the city. The majestic white building is where its members, primarily lawyers, doctors and the like, flock to for quiet affairs and legendary British-style food. Encouraged by Lt. Col. the Hon. Finch CB, the Military Secretary to Lord Combermere, Commander-in-Chief of the East India Company's army, the Bengal Club was founded in Calcutta in 1827. Viscount Combermere was the Club's initial sponsor and also served as its first president. It soon developed into an unofficial hub for Raj members to network and socialise, and Lord William Bentinck, the first Governor General of India, became the Club's second patron following Combermere's departure in 1830.

The second president, Charles Metcalfe, held the office until 1838. After moving from Dalhousie Square to Chowringhee, the Club finally settled on 1 and 1/11 Russell Street, which was Lord Macaulay's home in India. By emulating their London social life in the new colonial capital, the British Company personnel were able to reduce their feelings of homesickness and alienation in a distant land. Membership was strictly limited, and Indians were not permitted. The Club remains as exclusive as it was during the colonial era. This facet of affluent metropolitan Kolkata is depicted in Satyajit Ray's 1971 film Seemabaddha. Currently, members and their guests can attend the parties the club hosts on special occasions, such as Christmas and New Year's. 

For 50 years, Anokhi, a renowned boutique in Kolkata, has been screen printing cotton upholstery. In a factory that hasn't changed since Amita Basu founded it to address the lack of variety available for her design business, prints ranging from traditional to modern, graphic to floral, and animal to bird motifs are all created using hand-cut metal screens and printed on long tables. You can't miss this gem – it hugs this huge tree around which they have constructed the store because they didn't want to cut it down. The prints are elegant – reminiscent of paisleys, Mughal floral prints, and bootis, as well as some that resemble a William Morris work, featuring chintzy florals and eye-catching geometrics that look very contemporary and edgy.

Timing: Monday to Friday, 10 AM - 6 PM. Saturdays, 10 AM - 1:30 PM. Closed on Sundays.

Price: INR 999 onwards

Contact: 033 2229 8263

Google Rating: 4/5

Instagram: @russell_street_anokhi_

Blue Poppy has been blowing our minds with delectable Tibetan fare. Now, with Thakali, they are amazing us with some lip-smacking Nepali fare. The Thakali is a tribe from Nepal that resides along the Thak Khola, also known as the Thak River, and Blue Poppy’s new eatery promises to bring their cuisine to us. Located inside the first building of Sikkim House in Middleton Row, it is high on Buddhist and Nepali culture. A whole meal with portions of rice, bread, black dal, meat or veg sabzi, greens and salad. The presence of at least three types of achaar (pickle) is the distinguishing feature. Another thing to try at Blue Poppy Thakali is the Nepali essential dish of Sel Roti. This deep-fried sweet bread feels like a lovechild of a doughnut and malpua, and is best complemented with the Nepali Alu Dam and the amazing pork curry at Blue Poppy.

Timing: 12 PM - 9:30 PM

Price: INR 950 for two

Contact: +919330381545

Google Rating: 4.3/5

Instagram: @bluepoppythakali

Quirky bookends, clocks, mirrors, fabrics, wallpapers, and more that will level up your condo. Kaji is known for its customer-friendly, customisable options. From chairs and sofa sets to smaller items like throw pillows and wall decor, everything can be customised to fit the dimensions of your home. Eco-friendly, non-toxic and odourless, these work as the perfect backdrop to any room. Loving the modern, edgy vibe it lends to the space.

Timing: Monday to Saturday, 10 AM - 7 PM

Price: INR 1,500 onwards

Contact: +919007072724

Instagram: @houseofkaji

Google Rating: 3.7/5

One of the oldest and most well-known saree shops in Kolkata is situated on Russell Street. They have their hand block print units, which make their sarees exceptional. Former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi and former actress Nargis were among their clientele. They have a variety of beautiful cotton weaves, including dhaniakhalis, printed silks, and tangails. Working with weavers from Benaras, Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, and other places, the store celebrated its 50th anniversary this year and has managed to stay modern at its heart while fusing new-era fashion with traditional elements.

Timing: 11 AM - 6:30 PM. Closed on Sundays.

Price: INR 399 onwards

Contact: 096743 92275

Google Rating: 4/5

Facebook: Ananda Designs

The ultimate hotspot of the city. If you walk from Russel Street, it's a 10-15-minute walk. The first thing you should try is Flurys. It's called the 'Queen of Park Street' and offers the best view, accompanied by an English breakfast, in Kolkata. Well-known around the world for its rich, creamy cookies, puddings, and pastries, the restaurant remains as well-liked today as it was decades ago, featuring chandeliers, fancy furniture, and pastel colours that evoke the atmosphere of European tea salons. Then, you can enjoy Trincas' Weekend Jazz Lunch with their unique cushioned velvet backdrop on stage, which reintroduces jazz culture, according to the venue's third-generation owner, Anand Puri. Even now, Trincas is always booked out when jazz music reverberates within the walls of this iconic bar.

Timing: Trincas, 11:30 AM - 11:45 PM. Flurys, 6 AM - 11 PM.

Price: Trincas, INR 1,600 for two. Flurys, INR 1,000 for two

Instagram: @trincasrestaurant, @flurysindia

As always, nothing is complete without some good old street food and a lot of adda. The roadside stalls that sell cha, momos on paper plates with a bowl of clear soup and mouth-watering, falling-off-the-bone meat? You have got to try them. It will merely cost you between INR 100 and INR 200. And if it's office lunch break, you won't be able to stop yourself from ordering a plate of rice, daal, alu bhaja and torkari or maybe chowmein. Maybe a plate of pasta in white or red sauce? Yeah, the street has it all. 

Timing: 7 AM - 10 PM

Price: INR 10 onwards