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Nothing could be more intriguing than the idea of travel as a philosophy, where the journey is about exploring the ways of the world. “It’s a great way to experience different ways of life, environments, attitudes, food, pop culture and history,” Anand Puri, the owner of Kolkata's iconic restaurant Trincas, told OT.
For Puri, travel is a constant that shapes how he thinks. He expressed how fresh thoughts make him more aware of the world and see life differently. “Scuba diving in Australia and Indonesia, for example, allowed me to become more aware of the oceans and unlock fresh thoughts, as did the cosplay subculture in Japan."
The cultural aspect of travel makes Puri “addictive” about it. As someone who has travelled to over 40 places, from Beijing to Antarctica, the varied lifestyles, cooking patterns and architecture interest him. “The experience of travelling is what makes it so relevant. It is always refreshing to know how things are done in different parts of the world.”
When Puri travelled to China, he discovered Indian tandoor-like ovens used to bake bread and meat. The ancient architecture in Petra that kept houses cool in the desert taught him about the myriad of philosophies and the depth of the human mind.
As a third-generation food connoisseur in his family, his journeys have made him more empathetic to the world and allowed him to see things from fresh perspectives."
“You might bring back ideas from that secret bar you found in a flower shop in Buenos Aires or that great dish presentation idea you saw in Sydney, but the real learning is how to look at situations and the people they involve and connect the dots accordingly,” he added.
From working in cities like New York and New Delhi before taking over Trincas in Kolkata, Puri brought bits and pieces of learning with him when he ended up in Kolkata 5 years ago to helm the famed eatery. “My grandfather and father were both in hospitality, making me the third generation. It’s in the air around you as you grow up, and before you know it, you’re a part of it.”
As you walk into the restaurant, its wooden décor, red velvet and gold trim interiors are reminiscent of French jazz bars of the 1930s and 40s. The retro-cool lightbulb signage is also a throwback to old French theatres, while the black and white photos and the wooden elements are nods to British pubs.
Using his travels-inspired aesthetics, Puri revamped the heritage outlet into a vintage yet modern place where eating is an experience, and each corner has a story. What makes it unique is the touch of New York here. "The super-fast service at Trincas, especially the process of getting the food out to the table from the bustling multicuisine kitchen, also came from 7th Avenue to Park Street.”
Not only this, but Puri's diverse travels across the country, including in New Delhi, taught him the nitty-gritty of the hospitality business. Running a boutique lodging experience in New Delhi taught him to understand a business’ niche and how to focus efforts on bringing a brand front and centre to the right audience. The experience of living in different settings also familiarised him with more avenues to transition Trincas from just a mere eatery to a "retro-cool" establishment.
Be it the charm of live music or the quirky social media posts, Trincas has positioned itself as a restaurant that plays chic while holding onto its glorious past.
If you treat Trincas as just a restaurant serving good food, it stands tall on its own, but if you delve deeper, there's more to this place. From stories and heritage recipes to decor and ideas, the restaurant's visual appeal and vintage recipes are a treat to the senses.
“Eating a butter-filled, crumb fried chicken breast is a super tasty experience. But, knowing that you may be sitting in a celebrity’s favourite spot and that the Chicken A La Kiev on your plate is a heritage recipe that was in vogue in Calcutta in the 1950s and cost INR 4 as per the menu framed on the wall; and having watched a hilarious video about how to eat it on Instagram the night before, makes that butter bomb so much more satisfying.”
Besides, the "'TrincasTimelineProject' is another way to keep the legacy of this century-old restaurant alive. “The Trincas Timeline Project is a community-based memory project. That is to say that Trincas’ history stretches back so far (100 years) that no one person can contain all its details. You need as many memories from as many people as possible to stitch that magic carpet together before you can travel back in time and see things as they were. It is a repository for some great stories about urban culture and the history of Kolkata, Park Street and Trincas.”
The drive for chronicling these narratives comes from Puri’s passion for writing. “It’s been an absolute pleasure to capture people’s imaginations by putting this history in writing. There’s so much character in the history that it’s inspired things in the present, like the Weekend Jazz Sessions, the menu, and the décor,"
So, if you want to explore an engaging culinary experience in Kolkata, pick Trincas. Try its heritage recipes from not just the 1950s but also from the 1980s when Trincas was the first restaurant to add Sichuan-inspired Chinese food to Calcutta’s Hakka and Cantonese repertoire.
Timing: Opens from Monday to Sunday from 12-5 pm (lunch) and 5-11 pm (dinner
Address: The Park Hotel, 17, Park St, near Oxford Book Store, Taltala, Kolkata, West Bengal 700016
