Delhi Food Guide 2025: Butter Chicken, Chaat & Dilli Ki Rasoi

Delhi is India's food capital — a city where Mughal court cuisine meets Punjabi roadside dhabas, where ancient chaat recipes have been perfected over 300 years, and where a new generation of chefs is reimagining Indian cuisine for the world. Eating well in Delhi is non-negotiable.

Delhi's Iconic Dishes

• Butter Chicken (Murgh Makhani) — invented in Delhi in the 1950s at Moti Mahal, Daryaganj. Rich tomato-cream sauce, tandoor-cooked chicken. The original restaurant still operates.
• Chaat — Delhi's street food obsession. Papdi chaat, dahi puri, gol gappa (pani puri) — sour, sweet, spicy, crunchy all at once. Khan Market and Lajpat Nagar's chaatwalas are legendary.
• Paratha — stuffed flatbreads from Paranthe Wali Gali, Old Delhi. Aloo, gobhi, paneer or mooli filled.
• Nihari — slow-cooked mutton stew, traditionally eaten at dawn. Karim's (Old Delhi) and Al Jawahar are the institutions.

Best Neighbourhoods for Food

• Khan Market — upscale, international, top-rated restaurants
• Hauz Khas Village — hip, lakeside cafés and rooftop restaurants
• Lajpat Nagar — brilliant affordable South Indian and Punjabi