Darjeeling has many beautiful hills and valleys to explore. This is the reason why this is the biggest tourist spot in North Bengal. And with tourism, there come other concerns like amenities, food availability and so on. It may not be known to everybody, but Darjeeling is a hub for different kinds of food due to its variety of cultures.
Must try food in Darjeeling
Sael Roti
It is a dish of Traditional Nepali cuisine. Sael Roti or Sel roti is one kind of ring-shaped bread which tastes sweet. This sweet rounded bread is made of rice flour, ghee and added flavours. It is called the traditional food because it mostly gets served during Hindu festivals like Tihar or Dashain. These two festivals are widely celebrated in Nepal & Darjeeling.
It is an 800 years old dish, earlier which used to be prepared without sugar and spices, but as time passed, different experiments have been done, and today’s modified and flavoured sael came into existence. It tastes better served when served with cheese, butter, chutney or pickles. If you’re wondering about what is the famous and unique festive food of Darjeeling, Sael Roti is one of them.
Sha Phaley
Sha Phaley is a Famous street food of Darjeeling. It is one kind of crispy and deep-fried bread that is stuffed with vegetables and chicken. The bread is half-circle or semi-circle in shape. This flavoured Tibetan dish can be served with curry or chutney along with soup. But the best of it comes out when it is served with roasted Barley and cheese. There are restaurants named Nanking Restaurant or Kunga restaurant that serve the best Phaley in Darjeeling.
Thukpa
It is a Tibetan dish that is easily available in many restaurants as well as roadside stalls in Darjeeling. The dish crossed borders when the Tibetan refugees migrated into the city; today, it has become a part of many other states along with Darjeeling, like Delhi or Kolkata. It is a soupy noodle with meat, vegetables and spices. Thukpa is loved by most of the people in town and is also the best street food available in Darjeeling. Other than Darjeeling, Thukpa is also an inseparable part of other neighbouring countries like Sikkim, Assam, Nepal, and Bhutan. Restaurants like Dekevas and Nawangs serve the best Thukpa here.
Aloo Dum
This is a delicious yet Cheap Street food in Darjeeling. It is a spicy recipe of Aloo that every food lover will enjoy. Dum aloo is not only a Nepali dish, but it is also a part of Bengali cuisine. The preparation of this dish starts with the slices of boiled potatoes and then spices, onion slices, ginger, garlic etc., and lastly, it is served with bhajia. Aloo dum is easily available at various places in Darjeeling, even in the local food stalls.
Traditional Nepali Thali
This is a traditional platter having daal, bhat and vegetables in it. It is the most popular dish among the local people. The complete dish includes boiled rice, cooked lentils, cooked vegetables accompanied by chutney, pickles and one sweet dish. The platter is very similar to Bengali cuisine.
Momo
Most food lovers say that the Best momos are served in Darjeeling, especially. It is a commonly served food available here and there in Darjeeling and its surroundings. These dumplings are made of flour, vegetables, and chicken or pork. The best places to have momo in Darjeeling are Kunga restaurant on Gandhi Road, Darjeeling tandoori momos, Devekas etc. In the case of veg momos, it usually costs 30 to 40 rupees for one plate, and in the case of non-veg dishes, it costs around Rs 100.
Gundruk
Gundruk is one of the most delicious foods of Darjeeling as well as Nepal. It can be served both as a main dish or a side dish. It is made of vegetables like spinach, cauliflower master leaves and many other fermented vegetables. This dish is a great source of iron and minerals. However, this dish is not always available commercially. Therefore, the only option you can have is either to have good local friends or to visit restaurants like Kushal Restaurant or Nostalgia Hotel to enjoy the flavour of this ancient dish of Nepal.
Churpee with Niguru
It is a popular as well as the favourite food among the local people. This local snack is made with cows or yuck milk. Some locals even believe it to be the best food in Darjeeling as there are many different ways that Churpee can be used, such as it can be used as a filling of vegetable momos when mixed with cabbages, or it can also be used with onion tomato and green chillies to prepare ‘chur pee’s achar.’ This cheese-like edible item comes in both the form, soft and hard.
Chaang
It is also known as Tongba among the locals. It is a brew prepared from a mixture of fermented yeast and warm water with fermented millet. The brew is quite similar to beer. The best tongba of Darjeeling are found in a place named hot simulation cafe, situated at Richmond Hill. The small cafe is owned and managed by a lady named Lily. It remains open from 10:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m.; the average cost for one container of change is around 100- 200. It is a traditional drink for the people of Limbu.
Phambi
Made with mung beans, it is the Best street food available in Darjeeling. If you love eating and cannot resist delicious food, you must try this local creation of Darjeeling. The preparation of the food is unique. First, mung beans are turned into liquid powder, and then, from the powdery form, a steamed cake is made. This local food originated in the town of Kalimpong. The dish is very rich in protein as mong beams are highly concentrated with iron, zinc, magnesium, potassium and protein.
Other than this, there are many other local and mouth-watering foods available in Darjeeling, such as wachipa, different sausage recipes, keema, sekuwa, kwati and many more. If we keep the cooked food aside, there are options like Darjeeling tea, Darjeeling oranges, Tibetan tea etc. The overall University of Food changes along with the diversity of local culture. Darjeeling is a leading tourist spot. Many different people are coming from different corners of the country. Therefore the availability of various ranges of foods is quite common there.
