72 Hours in Banaras: The Food of the City of Shiva, Part 2
From hidden gems to tourist traps, a review of everything I had on my trip to Varanasi
In April, I went on a 3 - day solo trip to Benaras, with the aim of witnessing the glory of the mighty Ganga and visiting the religious sites that comprise what is arguably India’s historical cultural center. There was a lot of good stuff, a lot of bad, and I described my travel experience last week in the first part of a two-part series of blog posts. Now, it’s time for Part II; where I take you through every single place I had food at on this trip - from kachoris and sabzi to lassi and rabdi. The food of Uttar Pradesh is some of the best in the country, and you can hardly go wrong with finding delicious food even you throw a pin on a map to decide your next food spot to visit. I tried almost every delicacy the Northern side of the city has to offer.
The only major misses from this trip were the non-vegetarian food of the city; as this trip was focused on the religious center of the city where meat sale is restricted, malaiyo; a winter delicacy that would not be available in April, and the much-famed Paan Benaras Wala. Well, I did have a couple of mouthfuls of paan from non-descript parlours scattered around town, but did not care to document it in my notebook or camera roll, and I didn’t find the taste to be significantly different from the paan I’m used to in other cities.
The Ram Bhandar
The trip went off to a slow start, with more than an hour’s wait at one of Thatheri Bazaar’s most popular breakfast eateries, The Ram Bhandar. Honestly, this may have been the longest I have waited for ANY meal in my life, let alone a small plate of Kachori-Sabzi and Jalebi. Prior to reaching the city, I did not find enough places in the city that were recommended by my sources, and the other Kachori spot I was keen on trying (Neelu Kachori Bhandar) was closed for the entire duration of the trip. Oh well, that’s just fate. A part of me wanted to ditch the long line and try some other nondescript place nearby, another part of me felt that it would be incredibly dishonest for a self-styled food writer like me to not visit one of the most popular places in Banaras. I am not sure which part of me won this internal discord, but my decision to stay was probably most influenced by exhaustion and the unwillingness to explore; the overnight train journey in a cramped 3E berth had not been kind on me.
After what felt like an eternity of browsing through Diana L. Eck’s seminal Banaras: City of Light and observing the intricacies of their inventory management system, I was finally handed my order - crunchy, deep-fried Urad Dal Kachoris crushed beneath the weight of a dark aloo-chhole sabzi, which featured a generous drizzle of pudina chutney and sweet chutney, garnished with coriander, shredded mooli and carrot. Unfortunately, I can’t say the wait was worth it. The food wasn’t particularly bad, it was very simple, no frills, and not very masaledaar, but it was also nothing to rave about. I’m sure you can get a similar quality of kachori-sabzi at multiple other places in the city (and country), and to be honest, the rusticness of the Kachori made it a bit cumbersome to finish after a few bites.
The Jalebi here was good. It was hot, fresh, sweet and nice. But I don’t think that is reason enough to spend an hour waiting for an easily-replicable plate in an extremely cramped space. Visitors wanting to try this 138-year old eatery (they claim to have started operations in 1887) are recommended to come in the early hours of the day, preferably right after they start operations, or a bit after that. My recommendation would be to skip it, and start your day with any other spot you deem fit (unfortunately none of the breakfast spots I had on this trip held up for me, so I don’t have a specific recommendation for you as of now).
Recommendations:
Kachori-Sabzi (6.75/10), Jalebi (8/10)
Location:
C.K 15/29 Katra Ratanlal, Thatheri Bazar, Govindpura, Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh 221001
Kashi Chat Bhandar
The wide, plaza-esque Godowlia Road in Benaras, the primary way to reach Dashashwamedh Ghat from the main city, is a crowded, touristy road, full of hustlers pestering you to book a hotel room, the cacophony of sellers cataloguing their offers on kulfi, sarees, handicrafts and kid’s toys, and a bunch of generic, nondescript dhabas and restaurants offering everything from Dosas and Idlis to Veg Thalis and Kachoris on their menu. On this road lies what is arguably the most popular food spot in Varanasi (The Ram Bhandar would come second to this) - Kashi Chat Bhandar, which is so popular amongst tourists (thanks to Instagram Reels and YouTube), that the stretch of road in front of the shop is literally blocked at night by pilgrims and tourists enjoying plates upon plates of chaat, leaving zero space for either foot traffic or vehicles to pass from in front of it.
Unfortunately, this place too, like the above, is quite mediocre, and nothing more than an average, crowded tourist trap. The Tamatar Chaat - which is a dish unique to Benaras - hot, thick tomato-aloo-matar gravy constantly sizzling on a tawa, scooped up into a kulhad, mixed with a thin masala of tamatar that provides much of the flavour to the dish, and topped with desi ghee, chashni, zeera, kala namak, nimboo, namakpara and coriander. Unfortunately, the elaborate construction of this layered chaat did not go well with me. The tomatoes were a bit too sour, and the sweetness or saltiness from the other toppings did not do enough to cut it out. The namakpara added on top tasted like mass-produced cheeselings, although I have no way to confirm which namakpara they actually use. Biting through these atomically small particles was the food equivalent of a swarm of mosquitoes hovering around your head. I get that they provide some crunch to each nivala, but at the dimensions and volume they were featured in, this crunchiness did not come off well at all.
I have a similar complaint with their Palak Patta Chaat - another dish unique to Benaras - there was too much namakpara added, the volume of sweet chutney was excessive, and their green chutney was not strong enough to counter those flavours. The feeling of the namakpara not assimilating well with the other flavours of the chaat was even stronger when it comes to the Palak Patta, compared to the former, in part because the volume of namakpara added was much, much higher than that to the Tamatar Chaat. Although the base of Palak Patta, a tikki strongly featuring flavours of spinach, was delicious on its own, crispy, strong, and flavourful, but the construction of the chaat was imbalanced, hurried, and mediocre in the grand scheme of things.
Their Pani Puri was perhaps the only thing I enjoyed on the menu, out of the three things I had sampled here. Their menu is quite extensive, but the mediocrity of the first two items, and the unavailability of the only other unique dish on the menu (Chura Matar; the others were papdi chaat and dahi bhalla which are available outside Kashi as well) meant that I put a halt to those thoughts. The dhaniya-pudina water was genuinely refreshing and the masala of the safed matar, slightly mashed, was savoury and delicious. This is the first time I’ve enjoyed pani puri with a filling of safed matar (my usual prefernce is mashed aloo-chana masala), and both the masala and the water here was more flavourful than what I’ve had so far in Lucknow.
Overall, I would recommend you to skip this outlet - I visited them during lunch, when it was quite crowded, but merely a third of the crowd that gathered for dinner. If it was this mediocre for lunch, I can only imagine how mediocre it would be when a larger crowd gathers.
Recommendations:
Tamatar Chaat (5/10), Palak Patta Chaat (6/10), Pani Puri (7/10)
Location:
D 37/47, Dashashwamedh Ghat Rd, Godowlia, Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh 221001
Deena Chaat Bhandar
Deena Chaat Bhandar is a few blocks away from Kashi, on the much less crowded Luxa road that eventually connects to Godowlia and the touristy centre of Benaras. Although much of their menu is similar to that of Kashi, I found their stuff to be vastly superior to the former in terms of quality. If you’re visiting Benaras, and want to relish the local chatpata flavours on offer, you’re better off skipping Kashi, walking a few hundred metres ahead to Deena instead.
Their Tamatar Chaat was delicious, similar in construction to that of Kashi, but much more well-balanced and truly worthy of being a flagbearer of the local cuisine. The tomatoes were neither too sweet, nor too sour, the spice of the masalas and flavour of tomatoes very visible on the chaat, blending flawlessly with the hot, mashed aloo it was served with. Even the type of namakpara they added to the chaat mixed more naturally with the dish, rather than sticking out like a sore thumb. A much better offering than that at Kashi.
Their Palak Patta Chaat, served with dahi, green and sweet chutneys, garnished with shredded ginger, mooli, carrots and coriander leaves was also a true eye-opener to the flavours of the land of Shiva. The tikki of spinach was crispy, flavourful and wonderfully crunchy, and the addition of the toppings and chutneys blended extremely well with each other, with no annoying namakpara to interrupt every bite of yours. The chutneys were strong, they were well-balanced, and a wonderful addition to the already scrumdiddlyumptious base of spinach.
The Aloo Tikki was similarly constructed to the Palak Patta, with a bit of chhole masala added which did wonders in terms of adding a new, darker flavour to the mix, one that acted as a nice base of flavour to the whole thing, with the aloo tikki providing most of the texture. Although they did refill the dahi without question or extra charge, it did feel a bit dry, and could do with a bit more dahi and chutneys added to the first draft. The quantity of chutney was a bit lower in this chaat than any other chaat I’ve had before, which is my main complaint with it. Nothing much else to crib about.
I have similar views on their pani puri as on the one at Kashi, except this was a bit more flavourful, a bit stronger, more concentrated, and served live, not separate in a dish and a glass like the one at Kashi.
Recommendations:
Tamatar Chaat (9.5/10), Palak Patta Chaat (9.75/10), Aloo Tikki (8.75/10), Pani Puri (8.75/10)
Location:
D47/184, only one branch, Luxa Rd, near PDR mall, Luxa, Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh 221001
Laxmi Chai Wale
Laxmi Chai Wale in Govindpura is another breakfast spot rushed into fame for their Safed Makkhan Toast and Chai. Once you reach the location, you will encounter two different sets of paunchy men screaming at you, insisting their shop is the “original” one, and insisting you to have a seat at their establishment, and not the fraudulent other. I did not want to engage much of my mental capacity for some toast and chai, so I sheepishly sat down at the first shop from the entrance, and placed my order.
Their Safed Makkhan Toast was a simple creation. Two slices of bread, lathered in white butter and topped with black pepper, roasted between an iron grill over an open flame. This too, was quite mediocre. The Makkhan was of bad quality, not very thick, served in too little quantity, and not very creamy either, and the toast felt a bit too burnt for my liking. I didn't find the whole idea very appetizing at all, and the chai served was honestly quite mediocre. This is another popular spot in the city that is probably best to skip on your visit here.
Recommendations:
Safed Makkhan Toast (4/10), Chai (5.5/10)
Location:
CK 56/34, near chowk thana, Govindpura, Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh 221001
Shree Shree Ram Bhandar
Don’t confuse this with the similarly-named The Ram Bhandar in Thatheri Bazaar, although going by the numerous negative Google reviews on their page that cuss out The Ram Bhandar’s mediocre breakfast, a LOT of you are very confused. This shop sells sweets, and I tried out their Lalpeda and Malai Gilori one morning. The Lalpeda, a result of the caramelisation of khoya and sugar, was delightful. Thick, strong, very rich and flavourful - it tasted the way a proper peda should. I loved the Malai Gilori here too, with the outer covering being a bit ‘webby’ in its texture, sort of like a dense honeycomb that is the right amount brittle, right amount chewy, and the flavours of the malai came through wonderfully. What I liked about this, especially in comparison to other Malai Gilori shops in the state (most notably Ram Asrey in Hazratganj, Lucknow), is that the inner filling of Malai had a separate flavour to that of the outer one. Perfect, worth packing some of their goods for eating back home or to have a snack on your travels there.
Recommendations:
Malai Gilori (9/10), Lalpeda (8.5/10)
Location:
C.K. 16/48, Thatheri Bazar, Ghasi Tola, Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh 221001
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Blue Lassi Shop
Blue Lassi in Kachaudi Gali has one of the most interesting interiors of restaurants I’ve been to; an iconic blue-painted wall, plastered with passport size photos and testimonials on wooden spoons, with signage in Korean indicating its history as a popular spot amongst tourists from that part of Earth. This shop is famous for the hundreds of varieties of hand-churned lassi they supposedly serve to its patrons, although when I visited them, they only had three with them - Mix Fruit, Mango and Dry Fruit.
I had their Mixed Fruit and Dry Fruit lassis. They were perhaps some of the most enjoyable lassis I’ve ever had in my life - thick and creamy with a generous topping of freshly chopped mango, pomegranate and banana in the former, and badam, pista and kesar in the latter. The sweetness of the lassi was induced from the fruits, and the dry fruit lassi was a bit more bland when it came to sweetness. This was perhaps the only mainstream tourist spot in Varanasi that I enjoyed, the rest were extremely disappointing and frankly, skippable.
Recommendations:
Mixed Fruit Lassi (9/10), Dry Fruit Lassi (8/10)
Location:
CK 12/1 Kunj Gali, Kachaudi Gali, Near Rajbandhu, Govindpura, Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh 221001
Raja Ram Lassi Wale
Raja Ram Lassi Wale is a small, unassuming shop in Chaukhamba that only serves one thing on their menu - fresh, hand-churned lassi. The lassi is thick, and is served with frothy, crisp malai on top, which adds much heterogeneity to the dish. I enjoy it when sweet dishes are not excessively sugary, not for health reasons, but because excess sugar too often overpowers the rest of the flavours of the dish, pushing them back to a secondary role. Honestly, I feel like a lot of places in India are faulty of this; it becoming a rat race where shops that don’t sell excessively sugary treats are left behind in sales because customers get used to higher sweet levels in their jalebis or chais. At places like Raja Ram, where you can taste the milkiness, where you can feel the creaminess, you really start to appreciate the joys of having food that is a little less intense on one flavour, and is well-rounded instead.
Recommendations:
Malai Lassi (8.75/10)
Location:
Raja Ram Lassi Wale, Chukhambha, Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh 221001
Shiv Prasad Lassi Wale, Ramnagar
If you find yourself visiting the Ramnagar Fort, Shiv Prasad Lassi nearby serves a wonderful mixture of thick, creamy, bland lassi, topped with a sweet, thick layer of rabdi on top. Heterogeneity! Who doesn’t love it.
Recommendations:
Lassi - Rabdi (8.5/10)
Location:
Shiv Prasad Lassi Bhandar, Ramnagar
Lemon Tea by the Ghats
From dawn to dusk, merchants are found roaming the ghats of Benaras from North to South, calling out to potential customers with calls of “Lemon Tea, Nimboo Chai le lo”. Their tea is hot, zesty, freshly prepared with black pepper, hajmola, and other spices that hit you in the throat. Mauj. It’s especially delicious in the mornings and I’d imagine it would be much more enjoyable in the winter. Sipping Lemon Tea by the Ghats and observing the life of Banaras - children playing cricket by the Ghats, pilgrims walking towards the Vishwanath Temple, students involved in early-morning classes, people bathing in the Ganga, and boatmen occupying space on the horizon, all while a cool, strong breeze weaves through your hair, relieving you of the intense April weather, is an incredible vibe; and if I ever return to Banaras, it will be to sip tea by the Ghats before all else. I don’t usually give a perfect score to any place I eat at, as taste is subjective and there is always room for improvement, but this shall be the first, and perhaps only dish, that I have rated a 10/10, just for the vibes alone tbh.
Recommendations:
Lemon Tea (10/10)
Location:
Ghats of Benaras, Multiple Sellers
Pathak Ji Thandai
Pathak Ji Thandai, situated in a small lane off the main road of Godowlia, is my favourite food discovery that I made on this little trip of mine, a truly one-of-a-kind place that makes Thandai without milk, using the juice from fruit extract instead, which imparts a lovely, natural flavour into the drink. There is no fixed menu for what fruits he uses, and he usually has whatever fruit is locally available in season for his thandai-making purposes. At the time of my visit, mangoes were not locally available in Uttar Pradesh, else I would’ve had their aam ki thandai (and probably would have packed some to take home as well!).
The first thandai I had was their Watermelon Thandai, which was thin, and tasted exactly how a thandai made of watermelon would taste like. It was not very strong on the fruit flavour, but masalas such as cardamom, black pepper and fennel seeds were quite prominent, and was what gave this extract the taste of the classic thandai we are all used to.
I also had their Dry Fruit Thandai, which was strong on the almonds - the owner boasted of how he does not use the regular badams available in the market at all, and chooses to buy Peshawari Badams instead, which he regards as much more high quality than the regular ones. The saunf, kali mirch and ilaichi that hit your throat after you’ve just gulped down a glass of badam-tasting thandai are excellent, and I truly loved this place and the variety of drinks it has on offer.
They also serve a regular thandai, which I tried as well, prominently flavoured with kesar. It was much better than the other two places I had thandai at in Godowlia, but I’ve had better thandai elsewhere.
Recommendations:
Watermelon Thandai (9.75/10), Dry Fruit Thandai (9.25/10), Thandai (8/10)
Location:
Mishra Pokhra, Godaulia, Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh 221010
Mishrambu Thandai
This shop is situated right at the corner of the Godowlia crossing, where a couple of thandai shops are located right next to each other. The thandai was mediocre to be honest. It was not very thick, neither were its flavours strong enough. It felt like I was drinking flavoured water, and although thickness doesn’t matter as much in a thandai as it does in lassi, but you do expect the kick of black pepper, cardamom and fennel seeds to hit you in the throat after you gulp down an entire glass of it. I could feel nothing in either my throat or in my heart, and this was easily one of the most sad beverages I’ve had in my life so far.
Recommendations:
Banarasiya Thandai (4.75/10)
Location:
Sonapura Rd, Luxmanpura, Ramapura Luxa, Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh 221001
Badal Thandai
Situated just next to Mishrambu, this is a bit thicker, with the addition of malai on top, which makes it slightly more enjoyable to its neighbour. The thandai is not very flavourful, and while you can just taste hints of kesar, badam and pista, the spices feel missing too. Slightly better than Mishrambu, but nothing to rave about.
The Thandai game of Benaras has been disappointing so far, but Pathak Ji (mentioned earlier) and his fruit-flavoured thandais was something that I hadn’t ever seen elsewhere, and it captured my heart and my tongue.
Recommendations:
Thandai (6/10)
Location:
8254+JMG, Sonapura Rd, next to SBI ATM, Luxmanpura, Godowlia, Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh 221001
Pizzeria Vaatika Cafe
Located off the shores of Assi Ghat, this restaurant brings European-style cafe culture to Banaras, serving fresh pizzas, pasta and coffee with outdoor seating under the shade of trees with a leisurely view of the Ganga. It is hard to think of a better date spot, especially in the mornings, evenings or the winter. If you’re visiting Benaras with your SO, I would definitely recommend you check out this spot for a leisurely Italian meal.
I particularly enjoyed their Ravioli, with a generous filling of spinach and cheese buried under a delicious arrabiata sauce with tomato and red pepper. The sauce was well-made, the pasta was well-cooked, I have little complaints other than the suggestion to serve some complimentary garlic bread (as is standard in Italian restaurants) to scoop up the sauce that remains after you’ve gobbled up their amazing pasta.
Their Margherita Pizza, with an extra topping of mushroom on my request, was good as well, although not the same as the heights reached by the Ravioli. The cheese was a bit sour, which should not be the case for good margherita, and a bit too heavy compared to the rest of the dish, which was quite light on the stomach, leading to a weird mismatch of flavour where it felt that the cheese was the star of the show, with the actual pizza being a mere sidekick to it. Thin-crust, well-baked, quality marinara and a generous spread of mushroom on top - if only they had sorted the cheese situation I’d have left this place a happier man.
I had ordered a Frappe Mocha with Ice Cream on the side of it, as well as a Lemon Soda. Both of them were just OK, nothing to go home about. The Lemon Soda in particular was quite mediocre, overpriced as well, but I guess the latter’s not unexpected for slightly upscale establishments in India these days.
Lastly, for dessert, their Apple Pie. I wanted to have it with whipped cream, but they ran out of stock and I wasn’t in the mood for another scoop of ice cream, so just had it as is. The pie itself was good. Not too hard but not undercooked either, and easily breaks apart, with a crumbly texture that is sure to light candles in your heart. The apple filling was nice as well, but could be a bit more rich. This was too mild, and felt like you’re eating a watered-down version of what an actual apple tastes like. It lacked the freshness or the punch that good, rich apple pie is supposed to have, and I felt a lot of online reviews raving about how this is the “best apple pie of their life” to be quite misleading in this case as well.
Location:
B-1/178, Assi Ghat Rd, Shivala, Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh 221005
Recommendations:
Ravioli (8.25/10), Margherita Mushroom Pizza (6.75/10), Frappe Mocha with Ice Cream (5/10), Apple Pie (7.75/10)
Conclusion
While there were some gems that I unearthed on my short trip to Kashi, most places I tried felt overhyped, disappointing and of subpar quality. I believe the reason for this is clear as well. Most of my trip was spent in the Northern half of the city - an area where most food spots are aimed towards tourists and pilgrims, a demographic who are extremely unlikely to remain repeat customers of any establishment they visit. Thus, most places in the vicinity of Godowlia and Thatheri Bazar were either legacy restaurants who are way past their prime, or fast-food restaurants appealing to as many unadventurous tourists from across the country as they can, offering everything from thalis to idli-dosa under their roof. I have learned to identify the latter from a distance, with everything from the font on the billboard to the menu to the appearance of the shop’s facade giving me signs if a place is meant to be an oily, mediocre money grab or not.
If I ever visit the city again, I would like to stay at the southern, peaceful Assi Ghat, both because of my disappointing experience in the crowded city center and temples (which I’ve described in a blog post before - you can read it here), and because I am yet to explore the food closer to BHU and Hyderabad Gate, food that I hope shall be better than the northern city centre.
In any case, I hope you enjoyed reading this blog. I’d really appreciate it if you would let me know your thoughts on these longer, detailed posts, or if you have anything else to say. Engagement is quite low on my posts despite them getting good viewership, and I am unable to judge if what I write in these posts is resonating with my audience or not. I am thinking of continuing with similar longer posts, once a week, and shall return to you next week with a write-up on a place in Amdavad that made me rediscover the little joys of friendship - New Irani Restaurant.
Really really like these detailed food reviews Kathan! Personally, it feels like you have become a bit of a pro at being a food reviewer. I really appreciate the depths to which you go into in every single review, describing the ingredients, the flavours, the tidbits of insight you gain from talking to the people running the establishments, while maintaining a really engaging and easy-going narrative style of writing.
Thank you for doing what you do and I wish you all the success in the future!