Are you planning to visit Darjeeling anytime soon? (I mean once the pandemic is over and if you’re alive)
Though we all are presently content with Stay Home Stay Safe mode, there’s nothing wrong with planning right? (Positive thinking, eh!)
So, if your answer is yes, let me take you to my journey of foodgasm at our very own Queen of Hills, DARJEELING.
Yes, I’m one of those lucky ones who have managed to go on a road trip and come back alive and safe, sometime in between the 1st and 2nd waves of Covid.
Our first road trip happened in January 2021, and that too, to Darjeeling.
Keeping the travel detail part for another day, I'm focusing on FOOD today. And the eateries in Darjeeling are not only about food but also about the ambiance, the view, and of course the experience.
So, here are the food joints we managed to visit during our short yet memorable stay at Darjeeling.
Not to mention, the food was worth licking clean your fingers, spoons, plates… (Did I miss anything else worth licking clean !! :P)
Upon arrival at Darjeeling, we were super hungry, literally.
Seeing a long queue in front of Kunga, we preferred no more searching and went to this veg restaurant located along the way to Chauk Bazaar.
A few years back, I visited this restaurant. They used to serve great veg food like that of Exide’s Haldiram outlet here in Kolkata. But now, it has gone all downward both in quality and in quantity.
You won’t miss anything at all by skipping this place.
It was our first day at Darjeeling. And after a terrible Hasty-Tasty experience, we went straight to Glenary's basement i.e., the pub, to celebrate our successful drive to Darjeeling.
After 7 pm, once the band went LIVE the ambience turned OMG!
"Something Colorful" was the band playing that day. And, what a performance they gave! We were not even feeling hungry anymore!
The food we ordered wasn’t typical dinner items. Along with alcohol, we ordered different chicken and fish preparations. The Fish & Chips and the Garlic chicken (without gravy) are a must-try!
You must not miss the pork and chicken platter here. These are some of Kev’s signature dishes.
We got our table on the new wing. The view from Keventer’s is as WOW as its food.
We also ordered cold and hot coffee.
Do remember to try the softy ice cream while saying bye-bye to Kev.
We were so full after our breakfast at Kev’s, that we went to explore the zoo and simply skipped the lunch part. It was around 5 that hunger drove us straight to Glenary’s bakery section.
We got our table out in the opening, the patio. All I can say the food was Yummmmyyyyy.
Glenary’s Again & Again! (For a lovely dinner at the restaurant this time)
By now, you might feel that our target was Glenray’s only. But that's not the case.
We were unable to get in either at Kunga’s or at Shangri-La. Though there was a huge queue waiting in front of Glenary’s we entered our name on the waiting list and they called us up, right when we were feeling like, “Fck Man! We won’t get anything to eat today!”
But this time, we went to the family restaurant section where live music was playing. We didn’t try the signature dish here (got some bad reviews) and went with every Bengali’s typical dinner choice which was Mixed Fried rice, veg rice, chilly pork, and garlic chicken with gravy. Vodka Fizz and Beer followed.
With country road playing in the background, and the fireplace lit, the ambiance was cozy, the food was delicious the staff was courteous.
Margaret's Deck Tea Lounge (Goodricke Tea Pot) (For a post-breakfast Tea-time)
This place is well-known for its variety of tea as well as for its hanging lounge area. Made a quick stop here and tried their specialty Margaret’s Hope White Tea (Double Pot).
Since we had a heavy breakfast at our hotel before bidding adieu to Darjeeling (it was complementary) and the cookies we liked were not there so, it’s tea all we had here.
For any tea-lover, this place can be a must-stop.
Quick Tip
Trust me, when I tell you that you may run out of time visiting the most popular eateries in Darjeeling. Because there are so many.
Starting from breakfast, we did our lunch, evening snack munching, and dinner at different eateries, yet we could not manage time enough to visit some of the major ones. Either there was a queue too long (my stomach was hungry all the time), or they were closed for construction or Covid reasons.
Note:
- We stayed near the Mall area which gave us easy and quick access to all these eateries (Mount Himalayan Resort)
- We were food lovers, hence tried both veg-non-veg, even pork.
- The food wasn’t that expensive. The price varied based on the eateries.
- At all the places we ate, proper Covid safety measures were followed.
- The eateries that were on our must-visit list but we missed for some reason are: Kunga (there was an impossible-to-wait kinda line outside), Thuli Gurung Restaurant (Known for its Mutton Engine dish but couldn’t find), Shangri-La restaurant (they were full, totally), Joey’s Pub (was under construction), Boney's Cafe, Nathmulls Sunset Lodge (was closed).