'Wood-coal chulhas make a comeback': Kolkata restos swing between past and future to make ends meet amid LPG crisis

KOLKATA: From open-air coal tandoors to induction cookers and cooking ranges, restaurants across the city are swaying between past and future methods to get around the LPG crisis.

Those serving Mughlai are moving back to coal-fuelled tandoors and expanding their biryani and kebab platters while electronic fryers, ovens and induction cookers are set to be used in an unprecedented way, especially for continental and Chinese dishes that usually require high-flame ovens fuelled by gas.

Mughlai chain Aminia has set up an open-air chulha with coal and wood as fuel at Chinar Park. "We will transport the food to our 14 outlets in and around Kolkata. We discontinued rumali roti, handi biryani and pudding since they are fuel-consuming. We are ready to serve the rest and expect a sales surge during Eid," said owner Kabir Azhar.

Oudh 1590 is looking for an open-air venue to install a coal-and-wood chulha. "Once we identify a spot, we will centrally cook all our biryani there and transport to our nine outlets. With the current supply of LPG, it will be difficult to cook biryani separately at the outlets," said owner and co-founder Shiladitya Chaudhury. The restaurant chain has already reduced its serving hours, with last orders being taken at 10.15 pm instead of 11 pm.

Mocambo and Peter Cat on Park Street are in the process of making a complete shift to induction cookers, for the first time since they were set up. "At Mocambo, around 50% of our cooking had already shifted to electronic ovens while at Peter Cat and Peter Hu it is around 80% now. Within the next couple of days, we will be using only electronic ovens at all three," said Mocambo and Peter Cat owner Nitin Kothari.

He added that ‘high-powered' cookers are being used to ensure fast cooking and maintain the menu. "There will be no change in the menu and our serving time will not increase," he added.

Songhai-Manthan and MS Bar & Lounge in central Kolkata are buying a range of induction cookers, electric fryers and microwave ovens. "These can be either full or partial substitutes for gas, especially for continental and Chinese dishes, which are our mainstay. For north Indian dishes, we are in the process of using more coal-fuelled tandoor ovens and have started curtailing items that require prolonged use of LPG. We have LPG stock to last for another week," said owner Sudesh Poddar, also the president of Hotel and Restaurants' Association of Eastern India.

At Specialty Restaurants outlets, including Mainland China, Café Mezzuna and Oh!Calcutta, cooking is now hybrid, with a mix of induction cookers and LPG.

"Basic cooking is being partially done on inductions, which were flown in from outlets in other cities where the LPG shortage is relatively smaller," said Specialty Restaurants founder and chairperson Anjan Chatterjee.

Poddar, however, was worried whether the electrical arrangements at his restaurants would be able to take the extra load of electric ovens. "It is untested, so we are keeping our fingers crossed," he said.

Bar-B-Q on Park Street converted to electronic cooking by about 40% while One Step Up is now fully run by induction cookers.

"Depending on the gas supply, we will fully convert Bar-B-Q as well. We are upgrading our electrical set-up to accommodate the extra load," said owner Rajiv Kothari.