A Taste Of The Capital: Famous Restaurants in Delhi

When two friends {PN Malhotra and GK Ghai} landed in Delhi from Karachi in 1948, the Embassy restaurant was born. Till date, we find this restaurant busy at all times, serving the crème de la crème of the city. If you’re grabbing a meal here, the chicken malai tikka and Amritsari macchi are great options.

You find a Moti Mahal in almost every neighbourhood in this day, but Daryaganj is where it all started {in Delhi, at least}. Founded in 1947, Moti Mahal has been since serving the most delicious butter chicken {rumour has it they came up with the original recipe}.

Indian Coffee House came about during British rule in the early 1940s. It has seen its ups and downs over the years, but when it comes to old-school ambience and a thirst for coffee, it tops our list time and again.

Karim’s has been in the picture since 1913, wooing all non-vegetarians with its stellar range of kebabs, curries, shorbas and tandoori fare. Although a number of outlets have opened all over the city, the Jama Masjid one remains the most popular.

Since its inception in 1962, Defence Bakery has been consistently serving quality baked goods including tea cakes, frosted pastries {more recently, a yummy millefeuille}, fresh breads and savoury goodies.

Started way back in 1962 by Haji Banda Hasan, this popular rolls and tikka joint was one of the first places to set up shop in Khan Market, thereby gaining the founder the name ‘Khan Chacha.’ If you’re stopping by here, make sure you try the mutton seekh and the chicken roll.

Founded way back in 1942 by Lala Hans Raj Kalra, United Coffee House has since then been a hub for meals, starting from breakast to high tea, to pre-dinner or late night coffee {or drinks}. Although you can’t go very wrong while ordering here, UCH strongly recommends the Chicken Al’a Kiev, Tomato Fish, Cheese Balls, Fish Meuniere and Keema Samosa. The ambience is always lively and buzzing with activity and conversation.

The Delhi we know today is chock full of delicious confectionery items {think banoffee pies, red velvet, decadent chocolate cakes, meringues etc} but in 1926, cakes were barely known, much less popularly consumed. It was in this year that Wenger’s made a name for itself by introducing the Delhi folk to cakes and bakes; 89 years down the line, they’re still producing some of the most quality pastries, breads, cakes and puddings.