JOURNALDiscover ZikPe ↗Food & drink
Original travel stories and practical guides for your time in India.
A sattvic meal in India: ask beyond vegetarian
Two restaurant leads and better ingredient questions, without health promises or assumptions about every kitchen.
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6 Ballygunge Place: choose a Bengali meal and the right outlet
A full restaurant, a thali outlet and a takeaway are different arrangements. Start with the meal format, then choose the branch.
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A Bengaluru breakfast: dosa, idli and filter coffee without the rush
Choose one savoury plate and a coffee, then let the kitchen's version guide your next order. Breakfast does not need to become a queue-hopping contest.
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A Panaji breakfast: coffee at Caravela, then time for the town
A breakfast in Panaji makes most sense when the town is part of your plan.
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A Pune food day: misal in the morning, an Irani cafe pause and a bakery box
Pune eats by institution rather than trend. Plan one day around a misal morning, an Irani cafe table and a bakery to take home.
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A banana-leaf meal in Chennai: what to expect and how to enjoy it
A set meal on a banana leaf is one of Tamil Nadu's best-loved lunches. Here is how it works, what is served and how to eat it comfortably.
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A first Goan meal: curry, coconut and a sweeter finish
Use a few dishes to find your way into Goan food, without reducing it to heat, beach shacks or one community’s cooking.
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A vegetarian meal in Rishikesh: read the thali before the name
A combination meal can simplify lunch, but the exact restaurant, ingredients and portion still matter.
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Agra breakfast: bedai, potato curry and a small jalebi finish
A savoury fried bread and a syrupy sweet make a different Agra morning from another box of petha.
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Agra petha: taste a little, choose the box carefully
A sweet stop with the ingredients, storage and travel conditions understood before you buy a large box.
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Amritsar food: kulcha, lassi and a day built around the table
A food-first plan for Amritsar with stuffed kulcha for breakfast, a langar meal and an evening street snack.
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Annalakshmi, Chennai: a vegetarian meal served in courses
Read the meal format before calling it a thali: the restaurant’s published options include North and South Indian courses.
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Arsalan, Kolkata: choose the biryani before adding the rest
A biryani meal can be the centre of the outing, with the branch and portion understood before the order.
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Bengaluru food: dosas, coffee and a relaxed evening
Enjoy the city's breakfast tradition without making every meal a queue.
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Bengaluru tiffin rooms: MTR or Vidyarthi Bhavan, two different mornings
Both are Basavanagudi institutions with long histories. Choose by the breakfast you want and read the menu rather than the legend.
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Biryani in Hyderabad, Lucknow and Kolkata: what to notice
Hyderabad, Lucknow and Kolkata are useful starting points, but they do not describe all of India's biryani traditions.
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Chennai drinks: filter coffee and a jigarthanda pause
Two different drinks for a Chennai food day, with Madurai’s jigarthanda identity kept clear.
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Chennai street food: a first evening of small plates
Chennai's street food is at its best in the evening, when stalls set up near beaches, temples and markets.
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Delhi dinner: Bukhara or Indian Accent, for different reasons
Bukhara and Indian Accent offer different reasons to plan a Delhi dinner.
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Delhi food: an Old Delhi walk and a meal at your own pace
Explore the city's food without trying to eat every reputation in a day.
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Eating in Agra: a meal, a sweet and time after the Taj
Agra deserves more than a rushed meal between monuments.
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Eating in Chennai: breakfast, a Tamil meal and a coffee pause
Use idli, dosa, a regional meal and filter coffee as a gentle introduction, with space to ask what is in your food.
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Eating in Hyderabad: biryani, a sweet ending and room for more
Hyderabad's food is larger than a debate about the best biryani.
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Eating in Jaipur: dal baati churma, a careful choice of heat and a sweet finish
Jaipur offers more than one way into Rajasthani food.
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Eating in Kochi: Kerala flavours and a slower table
Start with a meal that introduces the local kitchen rather than ordering the longest menu.
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Eating in Mumbai: a street snack and a meal worth slowing down for
A Mumbai food day is easier when the eating follows the rest of your visit.
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Eating in Pune: misal, a simple meal and room for mastani
A first food outing can move from a savoury breakfast to a quieter lunch and a dessert drink, without making spice tolerance a competition.
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Goa bars and breweries: how to choose and drink with care
A production tour asks for an arranged time and a trip to the brewery.
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Goa feni: understand the drink before the tasting
Cashew and coconut feni have different starting materials. A tasting should remain an informed adult choice.
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Hyderabad breakfast: beyond the biryani plan
Khichdi, kheema, paya or a simpler idli-and-dosa morning: choose the breakfast that fits your appetite, not a city stereotype.
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Hyderabad cafe choices: Niloufer chai or Roastery coffee
A chai-and-bun pause and a coffee-led cafe visit can both fit Hyderabad. Match the outlet and drink to the day.
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Hyderabad’s sweet ending: apricot or bread, not just another bite
Qubani ka meetha and double ka meetha offer different textures. Give dessert room after the biryani, and ask about the ingredients.
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Jaipur cafe pauses: Anokhi or a cup at Tapri
Choose the cafe for the food, tea and location you need, rather than making another cross-city stop for a photograph.
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Jaipur haveli high tea: how to choose and what to ask before you book
A high tea in an old haveli can be a graceful pause in a busy Jaipur day. Here is what to check before you reserve.
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Jaipur on a plate: a first taste of Rajasthan
Choose a few dishes with care, and let the meal set the pace.
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Jaipur vegetarian stops: LMB for a meal, Rawat for a kachori pause
A Rajasthani thaal and a filled snack make different outings. Keep the appetite, ingredients and exact location at the centre of the choice.
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Jodhpur street food: a thoughtful first food walk
A short food walk gives you time to look, ask and choose.
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Kochi breakfast: puttu, appam and idiyappam
Choose the main and its accompaniment together. A simple guide to three Kerala breakfast ideas before a day around Kochi.
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Kochi meals: a puttu visit or a Kerala meal at Grand Pavilion
A puttu-focused outing and a broader Kerala restaurant meal make different plans. Keep the dish, location and menu clear.
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Kolkata coffee: College Street conversation or a Hindustan Park brew
Two coffee outings ask for different neighbourhoods and different expectations. Choose the break, not a contest between old and new.
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Kolkata fish: choose the preparation before the famous name
A fish lunch in Kolkata does not need to be a contest between restaurant names.
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Kolkata food: a Bengali meal, a street snack and something sweet
A first food day should give the city's different flavours their own space.
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Kolkata sweets: sandesh, rasgulla and a spoon of mishti doi
A Kolkata sweet counter can make every tray look like the right answer.
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Kolkata tea: a street-side cup or time at Flurys
A milk-tea stop and a seated tea-room visit offer different pauses. Choose the kind of conversation and cup you want.
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Lucknow biryani: compare Wahid and Dastarkhwan by the actual branch
A biryani outing needs an exact restaurant and portion, not a seven-stop challenge. Choose one meal and read what it includes.
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Lucknow chaat: a basket or a tikki, without turning it into a race
A small chaat order and a look at Lucknow’s food histories, with current counter details checked separately.
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Lucknow kebabs: how to choose a satisfying food stop
Lucknow is associated with kebabs and other slow-cooked dishes, but menus and preparation vary between kitchens.
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Lucknow street food: make room for more than kebabs
Lucknow's food culture includes slow cooking and a strong tradition of sharing food.
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Mango dishes in India: ripe and sweet, raw and tangy
An Indian mango menu becomes more interesting when you separate ripe fruit from raw mango.
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Mango season in India: markets, varieties and a visitor's first taste
Summer brings mangoes to every market in India. Here is how to pick, taste and enjoy the fruit, and a few varieties you may meet.
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Mumbai cafe afternoons: Kala Ghoda or a pause at Prithvi
A Fort cafe break and a Juhu theatre-cafe pause belong to different days. Keep the route and any performance booking clear.
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Mumbai vada pav: how to order it and what to expect
A first-timer's guide to Mumbai's favourite snack: what goes in it, how to choose a stall and how to eat it without a fuss.
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Mysuru sweets: Mysore pak and a gentle food walk
Taste the city's best-known sweet, add a filter coffee and a masala dosa, and keep the pace slow.
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Old Delhi food: a chaat stop, a proper meal and a kulfi finish
Old Delhi is a poor place to arrive with a challenge to eat ten dishes.
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Old Mumbai tables: Britannia or Leopold, with a meal of its own
Choose a Ballard Estate lunch or a Colaba cafe visit. History is a reason to look closer, not a guarantee about the meal.
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Bengaluru global dining: Olive Beach and distinct cuisine choices
Bengaluru’s food visit can include a dosa breakfast and a different meal later.
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Pondicherry food: bakeries, Tamil meals and cafe pauses
A bakery breakfast, a Tamil meal and a cafe break offer different ways into the town.
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Pondicherry: where to drink, from cafes and juice bars to an evening glass
Puducherry offers a hotel bar with a programme, a brewpub visit or a relaxed drink with dinner.
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Pune cafe breaks: Vohuman breakfast or German Bakery in Koregaon Park
Pune offers more than one kind of cafe break.
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Pune food: misal, vada pav and a day without rushing
Start small and let Pune's food shape the pauses between your plans.
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Reading an Indian menu: a better first order
An unfamiliar menu is easier when you decide what sort of meal you want.
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Rooftop dining in Bengaluru: choose the view or the food first
A rooftop meal in Bengaluru can mean a sunset drink, a long dinner or a quiet coffee with a skyline.
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Santé Spa Cuisine, Pune: read the plant-led menu dish by dish
Hummus, vegetables and grain-led dishes can make a different Pune meal, without turning a menu into a health promise.
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Seafood in Mumbai: a Fort meal at Mahesh Lunch Home
Choose the fish, preparation and portion, then ask for the complete price before a larger seafood order.
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The Fisherman’s Wharf in Goa: a riverside meal or a Panaji house
Mobor and Panjim are different outings. Choose the branch and the food you want instead of letting a seafood name decide the whole day.
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Varanasi food: kachori and sabzi, lassi, chaat and a sweet finish
A first-visit food plan for Varanasi built around morning kachori, a thick lassi, afternoon chaat and one good sweet.
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Verandah Café, Jaipur: choose a tea visit, not a palace tour
A planned tea or light meal at Rambagh is a dining arrangement, with access and the exact offering checked separately.
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Villa Maya, Thiruvananthapuram: a heritage dining plan
A Kerala restaurant with a heritage setting and a wider culinary conversation. Make the meal the occasion, without assuming that the building tells you the whole menu.
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