Mainland China, Oh! Calcutta owner Anjan Chatterjee's Chourangi to open in London

Calcutta was one of the major cities from where the British ruled before independence, even serving as the capital of the East India Company. Over two centuries later, Calcutta is now set to 'rule' in the capital of England, London. Anjan Chatterjee of Speciality Restaurants is the one behind this, as his new restaurant Chourangi gears up to satisfy the taste buds of the Londoners.

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Chourangi to London 

The brain behind well-known brands like Mainland China, Oh! Calcutta, Sweet Bengal, among others, spoke exclusively to Republic World ahead of the launch. The entrepreneur shared that his focus was on taking 'India's most unexplored cuisine', as the restaurant's tagline suggests, to London.

"London is accustomed to Indian cuisines over the years, but majorly this has been to North Indian food. I'd like to call the food from Kolkata regional. We are looking forward to serve the delicious flavours of the city," Chatterjee says.  

The menu will be familiar. "We're sticking to almost the same menu as Oh! Calcutta. In fact, Chourangi is more like an offshoot of Oh! Calcutta in London." he says.  

The place Chowringhee has been used in popular novels and film titles, but for Chatterjee, it was something that stood for Kolkata, like Oh! Calcutta. "We wanted it to stand for something that is a part of Kolkata, or rather the heart of Kolkata," he shares. He adds that they could not open Oh! Calcutta in London because a Bangladeshi restaurant had already used the name.  

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With over 100 outlets of his various brands worldwide, including India, Bangladesh and Tanzania and Dubai, will Chourangi also see its branches spread out across the world? Chatterjee answers, “We are not looking that far ahead yet. We have just launched."

He adds, "But we are expanding for sure. We’re opening a Mainland China outlet in Houston. While Chourangi opens in January, we are looking at the USA branch of Mainland China around May-June.” 

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Anjan Chatterjee’s success story has been inspirational, from starting as an advertising professional to taking Speciality Restaurants to the heights of profits. It is one of the few restaurant businesses to be listed on the stock market, and reportedly had a turnover of Rs 346 crore in 2018-19. He, however, credits the success to two simple factors: love for food and the desire to serve honest food.

“I live to eat, unlike others who eat to live. My conversations with people are about food. It’s often one of the first things I ask anyone about," the entrepreneur proudly says. 

He adds, "We have thrived on our desire to serve honest food. Without any disrespect to anyone, there has been numerous fusion food items, that usually has nothing to do with what the dish is all about.  We have consciously tried to avoid this, and keep the basic essence of the dishes alive.” 

Anjan Chatterjee signs off by saying that his son has now joined the business. And like the youngster has brought the company’s focus from just food to food alongside liquor, Speciality Restaurants is always determined to explore various avenues to keep growing like they have till now.   

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