The Kolkata Food Bloggers were invited by Zomato for lunch at Straits, a neat little place on Rashbehari Avenue which serves Malay-Singaporean cuisine. It is not always that you come across a group of youngsters who are vibrant and warm and the best part – they knew their stuff. I was quite amazed by their knowledge of the food scene in Kolkata. The staff at Straits was very efficient and served us without disrupting the conversation. They took immense care in addressing food preferences and food allergies.

For starters there was Popiah. My plate of Popiah, a traditional Malaysian chicken and peanut spring roll came without the peanuts as I am allergic to it. The sugarcane based drink that accompanied it was sweet and refreshing.

The main course comprised of Nasi Lemak, Chicken Rendang, Sambal Egg and anchovies. The Nasi Lemak was far from what I had expected – I just could not taste the coconut or the flavor of the pandan leaves. Both the Chicken Rendang and Sambal Egg lacked the signature spiciness of typical Malay cusine.

By Sayantani

For dessert we were served Sago Gula Melaka. I have to admit that I quite enjoyed this delicate dessert which had the perfect balance of fragrant coconut and sweet palm sugar.  However, the Sago pearls were a little too hard for my liking. The presentation definitely demands a special mention and so does the portion size – it is huge!By Sayantani
Vegetarian Starter:
Gado Gado with peanut sauce.Vegetarian Main Course: Nasi Lemak with Paneer Rendang and Deep fried mushroom with kung pao sauce.

By Sayantani

I was a little disappointed by the food fare as I did not find it quite up to the mark in terms of authenticity. There is a lot of room for improvement and I think they have an efficient crew and can make it happen.

By Sayantani

By Sayantani

By Poorna

By Sayantani

The Zomato meet ended on a very sweet note.. we went home with lovely gifts 🙂 – a guide to the restaurants in Kolkata and a coffee mug. The afternoon was spent in the company of some wonderful and like-minded people. Looking forward to more
such lovely encounters involving great foodies and good food!
(I forgot my camera hence had to borrow photos – all except one – from fellow bloggers)