Jaipur's best restaurants:
Rajasthan in five courses
A typical brunch
People in India eat throughout the day. They’ll have a curry early in the morning, then a midmorning snack. There’s a place called Rawat Kachori, opposite the bus stand in Jaipur, that does the best onion kachoris – cooked lentils and onions, wrapped in wheat pastry and deep-fried. Not the healthiest of snacks, but it’s an experience.
Rawat Kachori (Station Road, Jaipur). Kachori from about 10p each
Lunch
Handi Restaurant, opposite the GPO, does the best and most authentic laal maas you can find in a normal street setting, as opposed to a hotel. Ask for it with handkerchief-thin roomali bread, the combination most people go for. It’s popular with locals but safe for travellers because the food is so spicy. It kills anything!
Right next door is the Copper Chimney, one of the longest-standing Indian-Chinese restaurants in Jaipur. It serves things such as chicken Haka noodles, crispy okra with a garlic sauce, and honey chilli potatoes, but also traditional northern Indian cuisine.
In the Pink City, the old part of town, there’s a vegetarian restaurant called LMB – Laxmi Mishthan Bhandar. The speciality there is vegetarian thali, 16 or 18 different dishes, all with contrasting tastes and textures.
Handi Restaurant (opposite the GPO, MI Road; 0091 141 236 4839;handirestaurant.com). Laal maas £3, three courses £4-£6
Copper Chimney (Maya Mansion, MI Road; 141 237 2275; mayagroupjaipur.com). Three courses £3.70-£11.40
LMB (LMB Hotel, 100 Johari Bazar; 141 400 1616; hotellmb.com). Vegetarian thali £4.80, three courses à la carte £3-£6.50
Fine dining
At the top end, nothing beats Surya Mahal at the Oberoi Rajvilas. It offers European and Asian cuisine but showcases Rajasthani specialities. Start with an Indian street-food platter, minced lamb skewers or tandoori fish marinated in garlicky kasundi mustard, followed by laal maas, or tandoori chicken on the bone marinated in yogurt and Kashmiri chillies.
Surya Mahal (Goner Road, Luniawas; 141 268 0101; oberoihotels.com/oberoi_rajvilas). Three courses £25-£55
Aperitifs
The most glamorous settings for pre-dinner drinks are still the grand hotels. The Verandah, at the Rambagh Palace, is set on an airy, arched veranda with panoramic views of the gardens. They also have a heritage train parked in the grounds which serves as a bar. I’d opt for something colonial: a gin and tonic or a glass of champagne.
The Verandah and Steam (Rambagh Palace Jaipur hotel, Bhawani Singh Road; 141 238 5700; tajhotels.com). Cocktails from about £7
Dinner
Rajasthan has had its share of Mughal influence. There’s a place in the Pink City, Kallu’s, which is in a predominantly Hindu locality but serves old-style Muslim food: kebabs, birianis [rice with meat and vegetables], niharis [slow-cooked beef or lamb stew], fermented bread and thin spicy curries, like soups. It’s off the beaten track for most tourists but good for the more adventurous traveller – and extremely cheap.
Similar to the famous Bukhara restaurant in Delhi is Peshawri, which serves a North-west Frontier meal centred on lentils, kebabs and breads. Another good place is Chokhi Dhani, which gives a snapshot of local life and colour. It’s a Rajasthani craft village with musicians, acrobats, tea and dinner. There are three indoor dining areas but I prefer to eat alfresco. You sit on the ground and they bring out dish after dish in an atmosphere of celebration – things such as ker sangri and dal baati churma, which is lentils served with baked dough balls and cracked wheat sautéed in ghee (clarified butter), sweetened with sugar and dried fruit.
Islami Kallu Hotel Restaurant (135 Ramganj Market, Johari Bazar; 916 651 7808). Birianis and curries 40p-£1.60, three courses £5
Peshawri (ITC Rajputana Hotel, Palace Road; 141 510 0100; itchotels.in). Three courses £19-£24, set menus £11-£16
Chokhi Dhani (12 Miles, Tonk Road; 5165000;chokhidhani.com). Entry with thali included, £7-£9 depending on dining area
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