Kesar da Dhaba
Founded in 1916 in Sheikhupura, now in Pakistan, and re-established in the old city after Partition; the dal fry simmers for twelve hours and tastes like it.
Order dal, laccha paratha and the phirni served in clay bowls.
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Amritsar
Guru Ram Das dug the holy pool and the city grew around it; Amritsar holds Sikhism's golden shrine, the garden where the Raj lost its legitimacy, and some of India's best eating.
Sarovar
1577
The tank
Guru Ram Das founds the city.
1801
Ranjit Singh
The Sikh empire gilds the shrine.
1919
Jallianwala Bagh
A massacre turns the freedom movement.
1947
Partition
The border falls thirty kilometers away.
Price per person₹ under ₹300₹₹ ₹300–1,000₹₹₹ ₹1,000–3,000₹₹₹₹ over ₹3,000
Bharawan da Dhaba
Serving Amritsari kulcha and sarson da saag beside the temple approach since 1912.
Good for a quick vegetarian lunch near the temple.
₹
Kanha Sweets
A sweet shop more than a century old, best known for its breakfast of peethi-poori, chole and lassi.
Breakfast only for the poori; it gets crowded by 9am.
₹
All India Famous Amritsari Kulcha
Crisp, stuffed kulchas baked on the tandoor wall and served with chole and butter.
Get the mixed kulcha; Kulcha Land on Ranjit Avenue is the other favorite.
₹
Makhan Fish & Chicken Corner
The 1962 original of Amritsari fish — river fish in gram-flour batter, fried to order.
Evenings are best; order fish and the tandoori chicken.
₹₹
Beera Chicken House
A busy roadside restaurant famous for tandoori and butter chicken.
Dinner only; expect a wait.
₹₹
Surjit Food Plaza
A family restaurant known for its butter chicken and tandoori dishes.
Good for dinner after the Wagah ceremony.
₹₹
Ahuja Lassi
A tall, thick saffron lassi topped with butter, one of the city's best-loved lassi shops.
A glass is a meal; share one.
₹
Gurdas Ram Jalebi Wala
Thick, crunchy Amritsari jalebis fried in desi ghee, served hot.
Eat them hot with rabri.
₹
Giani Tea Stall
Serving since the 1950s near the Golden Temple, this stall's tea and sweets became a fixture for pilgrims after decades near the shrine's entrance.
A good stop for tea before or after the temple.
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