Best Bengali Platters in Dhaka for Pohela Boishakh
Pohela Boishakh is just around the corner, and everyone is preparing themselves to celebrate it with friends and family in either a traditional manner, or in their own unique ways. No matter how you celebrate it, the festival is not complete without a traditional Bengali meal—whether it is panta-ilish, khichuri or plain rice with many types of bhorta. Here is a list of some great deals you can avail this Pohela Boishakh:
Roadside stalls at Shahbagh
After attending the program at Ramna Botomul and checking out the fair at Charukola, you can grab some lunch at one of the stalls lined up on the streets. Ilish is usually the priciest item, so if you are on a budget; you can go for panta with tomato/potato/begun bhortas and a green chilli—which should not cost more than 250 or 300 taka per head.
Boishakh Themed Buffet at Le Meridian
If you want to explore a bit expensive experience, then head over to Le Meridian, where there will be folk song, face painting and other performances along with traditional brunch platter and buffet dinner. The items include: shorbat, varieties of shutki bhorta, hash bhuna, local style cooked fish, jhal muri, fuchka, local desserts and other food options. The price for the boishakhi platter is 3500 and buffet dinner is 3900!
Meraki, Gulshan 2
A little more affordable, yet classy, Pohela Boishakh deal would be from Meraki. They have a good range of Bengali items in their platter, which costs 1099tk. Includes, hilsha, bhorta, drinks, desserts etc.
The Westin Dhaka
This 5,500tk deal has a lot of traditional items in the list. There is buy one get one free available for most credit cards.
Boishakh Bhoj at Long Beach Dhaka
Boishakhi platters prepared by celebrity chef “Priyana M, Masterchef India”. The buffet lunch and dinner costs 3500tk and there is buy one get one free offer available.
Oshto Benjon
A well-known local restaurant in Katabon, this place is known for its numerous bhortas, bhajis and other local food items. Head on over there for a cheap but fulfilling Boishakh lunch if you want traditional food that will not break your wallet.
Panthashala
Another underrated gem hidden in Panthapath (57/8 East Rajabazar, West Panthapath), this restaurant serves some of the best khichuri in Dhaka – which you could choose to have with any of the vegetarian/non-vegetarian curries and bhortas available on the menu. Plain rice is also available for those who are less adventurous as foodies.
Priyo Mezban
If you do not mind travelling to eat great food, you can go to Mirpur-6 to try the Mezbani Goshto/Dal and white rice (if you are like me and do not care for overpriced Hilsha). They also have set meals within 350 taka per head, which seems like a fairly good deal.
Many people like to stay at home and enjoy a quieter Pohela Boishakh, away from the crowds. They can still order traditional food to celebrate the festival from the comfort of their home, from pages such as:
- Foodpeon/Homechef– Both of these websites provide a wide array of different items (within a platter and individually), and the best part is that most of this food is prepared by housewives or smaller catering companies; which keeps prices relatively low, but lets you enjoy great food at the same time.
- Tasty Queen BD– This is a home-based catering service which is offering a traditional bhorta platter (with 5 kinds of bhorta) and rice/”khuder bhaat”; which you can customize as per your order. This will quite obviously be a little pricier than the others; you can contact them (preferably a few days ahead) to find out details about what you can order, and how you can place your order.
- The Legacy Food– This is a more professional catering company; therefore their prices will be a little higher than those at lower-end restaurants. However, they have rave reviews on their Facebook page—and their Boishakhi platter includes 9 side dishes with plain rice and a piece of fried fish. If you want to order from them, you will again need to confirm your order at least 72 hours before you want the food.
Food, as we all know, brings us all together. Let us hope that this Pohela Boishakh, our Bengali traditional food brings us together in harmony, making us proud of our age-old traditions and heritage.