Food & Cuisine in Varanasi

Food info sections | Eating locally

When a city names its lanes after various food items, you know that it makes a serious business of eating! And yet, Varanasi cannot claim to have many dishes that are quintessentially Benarasi.

Most of the popular dishes are an amalgam of food preparations from various regions across India. Over the years, this curious version of ‘fusion food' has assumed an identity of its own.

Traditional Varanasi food is ‘satvik' - mouth-watering vegetarian fare that tends to emphasise flavours rather than presentation. There are also a variety of food items centred round the city's endless religious days and rituals. Tourists from different religious affiliations delight in these special days simply because the spread is so lavish and exotic.

This Varanasi Restaurant Guide will give you insight into eating out in Varanasi, as well as places to dine. For a list of things to see and do, have a look at our Varanasi Destination Guide. For more general travel information about India, our India Country Guide, India Destination Guide and India Shopping Guide will help you plan your holiday. Sitting down to enjoy a nice meal is a perfect way to end your day spent shopping in Varanasi!

Varanasi Restaurant Guide

What to Eat

Spicy Snacks

Varanasi serves a plethora of scrumptious hot snacks that can be munched through the day. Try the crisp samosas (kneaded flour shaped into a triangle and stuffed with curried potatoes and peas) served with tangy pickles, kachoris (fried pastry puffs stuffed with spicy lentils), piping hot pakoras (chunks of seasonal vegetables dipped in a batter of gram-flour and deep fried), and puris (fried and puffed wheat bread) served with vegetables.

Another popular sweet snack, usually eaten in the evening, is the lavanglata. In the winter, it is usually accompanied by hot milk.

Chaat

This comprises an assortment of snack items that are mixed together in various combinations to produce dishes that are totally unique. The most famous item on the chaat menu is probably the gol goppa.

Basic ingredients of most chaat dishes are crispy fried bread, cubes of potato, chick peas, gram bean, lemon, pomegranate seeds, tamarind, black salt, yoghurt and chutneys of varying piquancy. Most chaat dishes also include chaat masala, a mix of amchoor (dried mango powder), black salt, cumin, dried ginger, coriander, black pepper and red pepper.

Milk-based Dishes

The people of Varanasi have a long standing tryst with milk. One of Varanasi's unique contributions to Indian cuisine has been the famous lassi. Often served with sugar or salt, this creamy curd-based drink is the ultimate cooler in hot Varanasi summers.

You may also want to try the rabri - thick, sweetened milk served in earthen bowls. Yet another popular milk-based drink is the thandai, laced with kesar (saffron), yoghurt, malai (clotted cream), almonds and shira (saffron semolina pudding).

Apart from the drinks, Varanasi also has delicious milk-based sweets like the delicious rosgullas (dessert made with cottage cheese and milk), sandesh (cheese fudge), chamcham (made by creaming flour, saffron, sugar, lemon juice and coconut flakes) and pedas made with khoa (dried whole milk or milk condensed by heating in an open iron pan).

Sweets

People in Varanasi love their sweets. Especially during a festival, it is common to come across streets that are lined with dessert stalls exhibiting mounds upon mounds of mouth-watering delicacies. Try the delicious ladoos, piping hot jalebis, various forms of barfi and the ubiquitous pedas.

Drinks

Sip the colourful sherbets made with fruits and aromatic ingredients like rose petals and khus (poppy seeds), the seasonal panna made with raw mangoes, the delicious lassi made from milk and curd churned until it is smooth and frothy.

The thandai, a rich creamy milk concoction spiced with saffron and dry fruits, is also popular. During festivals it is spiked with bhang (a liquid derived from marijuana) and is consumed as an alcoholic drink.

Paan

If you aren't particularly averse to tobacco, you may want to try a Benarasi paan. While it cannot really be considered as a food item, this betel nut mixture has become famous all over the country and is worth trying, if only for the experience.

Where to Eat

Varanasi has its fair share of classy restaurants and international joints. However, the streets are the best place to enjoy authentic local fare.
If you're travelling to the cities surrounding Varanasi, you could also consider making a stop at one of the dhabas situated along the highway. The portions are generous and served in a no-fuss ambience.

The most genuine local experience though would be to share a meal with a traditional family. You'll find yourself sitting on the floor or on a low wooden stool, with the main course being served in a thali (a shiny brass plate) and the side dishes being served in a katori (a small bowl).