Savour authentic Bengali food at this Powai eatery

The Boda Fish Thali was a value-for-money option

Cafe Boda
Food: Good
Service: Polite
Ambiance: Welcoming

Braving heavy rain on a mid-week evening, we headed to Cafe Boda in Powai. Once in, it felt as if we were seated in a typical Kolkata eatery - the Bangla soundtrack and presence of Bangla-speaking attendants added to the mood.

The cozy interiors of Cafe Boda

Interestingly, Cafe Boda is an acronym for Bengali One Day Advance! As the story goes, the owners had started as a home delivery service, a year ago in Bandra, where customers had to order a day in advance. Since a scenario arrived where customers were keen on ordering food on the same day, the owners started Cafe Boda. Wooden benches, brightly-coloured metal chairs and a few artworks make up for its interiors with an air-conditioned indoor section and an al fresco set-up too.

For starters, we opted for the Moghlai Paratha Chicken (Rs 145) and Fish Kobiraji Cutlet (Rs 149). The Moghlai Paratha was crispy with a filling of potatoes and chicken but tasted average and could have done with a dash of spice. The Fish Kobiraji Cutlet had a lace-like net made from eggs surrounding the cutlet. It was crunchy from the top and tender from the inside and tasted delicious. A great snack for rained-in evenings.

The Fish Kobiraji Cutlet is crunchy on the outside and tender inside

Next, Boda Fish Thali (Rs 519) was on our radar. It includes rice, two luchis (puris), crispy fried potatoes, tomato chutney, Alu Dum, Shorshe Ilish (Hilsa in mustard sauce), and Payesh. Since we'd tasted Alu Dum with Moghlai Parathas already; our attendant substituted this with Dhokar Dalna (comprising Chana dal koftas dipped in curry).

The Boda Fish Thali was a value-for-money option

The Thali made for a value-for-money option as we could savour most of the standard Bengali delicacies in one go. The luchis were warm, fluffy and made for comfort food with the Dhokar Dalna. We were glad to eat the delectable Illish fish but the gravy was too salty. The Tomato Chutney and Payesh were spot on. The Nawabi Murg Biryani (Rs 269) was average with too little meat, and a smattering of potato and boiled egg with thankfully, a yum mutton gravy for accompaniment. Traditionally, Bengali biryanis go light on the meat but this was way too minimal. We liked the Katla Jhol (Rs 199) as well; the Bengal Carp was succulent and the gravy complemented the plain rice.

Nalengurer Ice cream. Pics/Atul Kamble

For dessert, Nalengurer Ice cream (Rs 99) made from date palm jaggery ended up as our highlight because despite being full till the gills, we managed to polish off this sugary twist.