Hedua Chat – The 73 Year Old Fast Food Stall

Calcutta is famous for its street food. From Phuchka to Roll to Alu Kabli, you will find them at every corner and every true blue Calcuttan will have their own list of favourite vendors. But when you find a street food stall in business for 70+ years, you know instantly that they must be special. With the 4th generation now into business, Hedua Chat is a name the locals vouch for when it comes to ghugni chaat.

For those who are trying to find the meaning of the words Chaat, Ghugni etc., you can start here and here.

Hedua Chat

Started by Ramdhani Singh in 1941, their specialty is the ghugni they use as the base for various chaats. And of course the masala they sprinkle over the dishes after adding the tamarind water and before serving it to the eager customers. According to Naresh Singh, Ramdhani’s grandson, they have managed to stay in business because of their quality and consistent taste.

Naresh Singh

I personally like this place for their simple tikia and singara chaat and the ghugni. You can find a chaat stall almost every few hundred meters in this city, but most will serve you chaat along with dahi (yogurt), sev, chutneys and what not. While I don’t hate them, I will definitely come to this place when I crave for the taste of ghugni in my chaat. You can find the dahi and sev version here too (the special chaat), but Naresh would never recommend it to his regular customers. I remember asking him once about the special chaat. He told it is for those who are used to the extra toppings and not for the regulars who like the flavour of the ghugni to dominate. So instead of updating the recipes according to recent trends, he have kept both to stay in business as well as serve what he is best known for. Feeling glad that I wont be deprived of my favourite dishes here anytime soon, I ordered my usual half singara chaat and a plain ghugni. I prefer eating them on the spot, but if you are ordering a take away, make sure you ask them to pack the singara / tikia separately or else the whole thing will become dry. Just crush them and add to the ghugni before consuming.

My favourite Singara Chaat

With Dinesh Singh, Naresh’s son, joining the business they are now able to take part in various food festivals. While Dinesh takes care of the shop, Naresh tries to reach new customers through these events. I was astonished to find that Dinesh is a national level water-polo player who have represented Bengal. But still he could not secure a job in the player’s quota and now is helping his father full time and trying to take Hedua Chat to the next level.

Hedua Chat

182, Bidhan Sarani,
Kolkata – 700 006

On the crossing of Bidhan Sarani and Ramdulal Sarkar Street. Opposite Baikuntha Book House.

Open from 1PM – 10PM