Darjeeling India – Best Local Specialties and Places to Eat

Food in the Darjeeling region offers a tasty mixture of Indian, Nepali and Tibetan cuisines. Here you are still in India, but the majority of the population nowadays is formed by people of the Nepali origin and there are also lots of Tibetan immigrants. Therefore the whole area is a food lovers’ paradise as here you can taste a different variety of food compared to other parts of India.

Local cuisine

The bases of Darjeeling food culture rests on various kinds of dumplings, noodle dishes and vegetable dishes. There are also lots of non-vegetarian dishes so meat lovers do not have to be worried at all.

Traditional dishes from Darjeeling

So what are the dishes you definitely should not miss during your stay in Darjeeling?

Momo dumplings

These are special dumplings made of thin wheat flour dough with various kinds of fillings. There are vegetarian momos usually made with cabbage and carrots and non-vegetarian varieties with chicken or lamb. Momos are always served with spicy chilly sauce and sometimes with broth soup. Dumplings are normally steamed in three or four storied steamers, but can be prepared in a deep fried or cothey version – steamed and lightly fried, served in a spicy tomato gravy. Originally momos come from Nepali and Tibetan cuisine. It is also a popular street food.

Thukpa

This is a thick noodle soup with vegetables or meat based on Tibetan culinary traditions. It is served in big bowls and it is a great choice for colder days as it really warms you from inside. Each place cooks their own version of thukpa that is why the soup can be both quite mild and spicy – if you cannot eat hot food, ask them not to put in too much chilli.

Nepali Set

Nepali Set or Nepali Thali is a dish consisting of rice and a number of small dishes to come with rice like lentil soup, vegetable curries, meat curry, salad and spicy pickles, mostly tomatoes and chillies, often including yoghurt and a sweet dessert. It is a good chance to taste more flavours of the local cuisine during one meal, so we highly recommend you to try local thali.

Sel Roti

Sel roti is a special kind of bread or pancakes. It is seen really much neither in the streets nor in the restaurants but is more common in the local homes. To make a sel roti, thin batter made of flour, water, sugar and bit of soda is used. Rings are then formed from the dough and deep fried in oil. Although the taste is a bit sweet, sel roti are usually served with chickpea curry and a boiled egg.

Tingmo

Another kind of steamed dumplings, tingmo are of the Tibetan origin. They are bigger than momos and have no filling. They are served with some kind of curry, thick soup and spicy sauce.

Aloo Dum

Aloo Dum is a potato based street food staple, very popular in Darjeeling. It is a sort of potato red chilli curry and it is usually served with bhujia chips or flattened bread.

Dalle

It is not a separate dish but rather just a side dish or an appetizer in a form of spicy pickles. Dalle are round red fermented pickles in vegetable oil and are usually served with main courses.

Shaphalay

Shaphalay is a sort of Tibetan bread, usually filled with minced meat and eaten with curries.

Darjeeling Tea

Darjeeling is world famous for its premium black, green or white tea, produced at local tea plantations. There are many places where you can taste different types of tea. Darjeeling tea has delicate taste and it is never served with milk.

Tibetan Butter Tea

With high population of the Tibetans in Darjeeling you can even find places where traditional Tibetan butter milk tea is served. The taste is very unique and bit of salty so it won’t appeal to everyone. But why not to try?

Street food of Darjeeling

We have already mentioned some of the most famous specialties of Darjeeling street food such as momo dumplings or aloo dum. Apart from them you can often find fried noodles, fried rice, bread pakodas or samosas filled with spicy fillings in Darjeeling. There are many small food stalls where you can grab a bite and usually wash it down with a cup of Indian sweet milk chai tea.

If you want to be a part of proper Darjeeling street food culture then in the evening come to the Clock Tower and head up from it in the direction of the Mall. Just a minute’s walk will bring you to the place. Every day street vendors with their cyclo-stalls would gather here and sell delicious bites to eat right on the spot. There are a lot of stalls with momos – go ahead and self-organize a private momo-tasting session!

Local restaurants

There are many restaurants where you can enjoy delicious food and friendly atmosphere.
Kunga Restaurant enjoys ever-lasting popularity. It is on the small side but incredibly warm and cosy. They serve all the local cuisines – from Indian to Tibetan, Chinese and Nepali plus a number of dishes from the Continent. It is situated on Gandhi Road.

On Laden La Road, not far from the Clock Tower, there is Park Restaurant, a very simple but decent place with very tasty food and polite staff.

To get to Sonam`s Kitchen on Dr Zakir Hussain Road you will have to make some exercise walking uphill but you will be rewarded with great food, lovely atmosphere with friendly owners. It is recommended especially for breakfast but you can enjoy meals here all day long.

Cafes and coffee houses

Tea goes strong in Darjeeling but thanks to the constant flow of foreign tourists coffee shops where you can easily find delicious proper coffee are mushrooming now. Beside coffee they normally serve some snacks and sweet items such as pancakes or pastries. Check Himalayan Java Coffee on Nehru Road – they serve great coffee in a modern, comfortable setting. They use locally gown coffee beans so it is nice to try the taste.

In Chowrasta, you can find a branch of the chain Cafe Coffee Day, well known Indian cafe network serving quality and cheap coffee. Except coffee they serve teas, snacks and desserts. The location is splendid and the building itself is made of glass so you can enjoy gorgeous views.

Bars and drinking in Darjeeling

Since Darjeeling has strong Nepali and Tibetan influence, there is no problem with finding some alcoholic beverages if needed. There are a few bars and pubs and most restaurants serve beer and even other kinds of alcohol – try Simla Bar and Restaurant, Joey`s Pub or Mohit Restaurant and Bar.

If you want to try something special then search for tongba, a local alcoholic drink. It is widely available in Darjeeling, especially in local restaurants. Fermented millet seeds are put into a wooden jar and some hot water is then poured over them and left for a couple of minutes to let the flavour and alcohol come out. Now it is ready to be sipped through a straw. When finished, you can repeat the whole process two or three times until the millet seeds have given their taste to the water completely. The taste of the beverage is unique – well, we will leave it up to you to describe it after you have tasted it! Not supporting drinking alcohol too much, we still should admit that it is a great thing cold evenings in the mountains. Tiongba probably originates from the eastern parts of Nepal, but it is also widely known in the Indian states of Darjeeling and Sikkim.