11 of the Best Street Foods in Delhi

Delhi, India’s capital, not just stands for big historical buildings and flourishing markets, but also lip-smacking foods of diverse kinds. Be it the traditional kebabs of the Mughals or the crispy savories of the present like samosas, chaats, rolls and momos, the city has it all. Let us take a quick look at the list of the famous delicacies one may get here along with the prominent joints selling them.Street Food in Delhi

Dahi Bhalla from Natraj, Chandi Chowk

Cheap Street Food in Delhi

A dish of vada (lentil fritters) soaked in sweet curd, the charm of this platter lie in the green and red chutney (dips) which serve as a garnish, alongside the crispy bhujia (snack) sprinkled on top. Nataraj Dahi Bhalla Wale, a small joint situated at a 2-minute distance from Chandni Chowk metro station excels in dahi bhalla and fried dal tikkis (lentils cutlet), the only two items on its menu.

Approximate cost:

Rs 50 to 60 per plate

Other places to get it:

Dahi Bhalla Corner, Karol Bagh; Shyam Ji Corner, Old Delhi Road; Atul Chaat Corner, adjacent to Rajouri Garden

Aloo Tikki Chaat from Prabhu Chaat Bhandar, Mansingh Road

Aloo Tikki Chat Street Food in Delhi

Just like dahi bhalle, aloo tikki or potato cutlet is another popular chat dish (savory snack) sold on the streets of Delhi like hot cakes. Prabhu Chaat Bhandar is one of the best places to eat spicy aloo tikki chaat besides other items like dahi bhalle, golgappa (round, crispy balls), papri chaat (a fried wafer fusion) and bhelpuri (savory snack).

Approximate cost:

Rs 50 to 60 per plate

Other places to get it:

Bittoo Tikki Wala, Rohini; Prince Chaat Corner, Greater Kailash I; Padam Chaat Corner, Chandni Chowk; Bishan Swaroop Chaat Bhandar, Chandni Chowk (famed for its fruit chaat); Ashok Chaat Corner, Chawri Bazaar

Chole Kulche from Lothan Ji Chole Wale, Krishna Nagar

Chole Kulche Early Morning Street Food in New Delhi

A spicy curry of boiled chickpeas, garnished with coriander, ginger, onion rings, and a dash of butter, chole, is incomplete without kulcha, a fluffy, leavened flatbread. Sold in every nook and corner of the streets of Delhi, this is indeed a perfect breakfast snack to drive away your morning blues. The USP of this place lies in the piping hot chole topped with sour sauce alongside soft kulcha served on leaf plates, with the spice level varying from mild, medium to hot.

Approximate cost:

Rs 40 to 50 per plate

Other places to get it:

Ratan Lal Chole Kulche Wala, Old Rajinder Nagar; Baljeet, Paschim Vihar; Banta De Mashoor Chole Kulche, Rohini

Kachori- Sabzi from Jung Bahadur Kachori Wala, Chandni Chowk

Kachori Sabzi Famous Street Food in Delhi

This tasty dish is similar to chole kulche, the difference being the kachori, a fried, crispy snack. The curry might either comprise of cooked potatoes or chole (chickpeas). Jung Bahadur running since 1940, is a popular old Delhi food joint, famous for their hot and crispy kachoris, especially those made from urad dal (black gram), alongside hot aloo sabzi, topped with chilies, coriander, and spicy dips.

Varieties:

Matar (peas) kachori; dal (lentils) kachori; pyaaz (onion) kachori

Approximate cost:

Rs 20 of half plate; Rs 35 for full plate

Other places to get it:

Fateh Chand Kachori Waley, Civil Lines; Sharma Kachoriwala, Kamla Nagar; Ranjeet Kachoriwala, Janpath (noted for bread pakoras and samosas)

Kebabs from Ghalib Kebab Corner, Nizamuddin

Best Mughlai Street Food in Old Delhi

One of the greatest testimonies of the Mughal rule which the city boasts of is the sumptuous spread of kebabs and other Mughlai delicacies, mostly found in the Old Delhi region. Ghalib’s, adjacent to the Markazi mosque is famed for the juicy shami and sheekh kebabs it has been selling since 45 years. The reasonable rate of the delicacies draws a huge crowd towards this shop every evening.

Varieties:

Seekh kebab (minced meat placed on skewers and cooked on a tandoor or barbeque); shammi kebab (a small patty of minced beef, mutton or lamb); kakori kebab; sutli kebab (soft, delicate kebabs held with a piece of thread)

Approximate cost:

Rs 50 for 4 pieces of seekh kebab; Rs 70 for 2 pieces of shammi kebab

Other places to get it:

Majeed’s, Vasant Kunj (excels in pudina-flavored kakori kebab); Bhaijaan Kababs, adjacent to Jama Masjid, Chandni Chowk (opens at 4:30 pm and specializes in shammi kebab); Ustad Moinuddin Kebabs; Kit Care Kebab Corner, Nizamuddin (have served kebabs to eminent guests like Bill Clinton)

Pakoda from Khandani Pakodewala, Sarojini Nagar Market

Pakoda Veg Street Food in Delhi

They are spicy fried fritters prepared from a batter of gram flour and any other ingredient like potato, eggplant, spinach, chili, cauliflower and paneer (cottage cheese). Khandani Pakodewala is a 50-year-old joint noted for selling 15 different kinds of pakoda. They even sell Gujarati snacks like dhokla and khandvi.

Varieties:

Aloo pakoda (potato); paneer pakoda; methi pakoda (fenugreek); gobi pakoda (cauliflower); pyaaz pakoda (onion); hari mirchi pakoda (green chilly), sweet corn pakoda; Ram laddo (crispy fritters made from a batter of lentils, garnished with lemon juice and green chutney)

Approximate cost:

Rs 15 per piece (paneer pakoda); Rs 12 per piece (lotus stem pakoda); Rs 12 per piece (sweet corn pakoda); Rs 12 per piece (mixed veg pakoda); Rs 12 per piece (onion pakoda)

Other places to get it:

Pakode Ki Dukaan, Karol Bagh; Kakkar’s Pakoda Stall, Karol Bagh; Nukkadwala, Saket; Paramjit Machi Wala, Moti Nagar (popular for chicken and fish pakoda)

Kulfi from Roshan di Kulfi, Karol Bagh

Kulfi Famous Street Food in New Delhi

Kulfi, a flavored ice cream made with milk and garnished using almonds and nuts is extremely popular all over India, especially during the scorching summers. Of the several kulfi shops in Delhi, Roshan di Kulfi, functional since 1958 is the one of the most sought-after, noteworthy for their thick, filling presentation, topped with a satisfying amount of falooda (noodle-like topping). Their kesar pista and mango kulfi are the ones you cannot miss. They even offer sugar-free kulfi for those who have diabetes.

Varieties:

Mango kulfi; kesar kulfi; pan faluda kulfi; chocolate kulfi

Approximate cost:

Rs 40 to 50 (plain kulfi)

Other places to get it:

Kuremal Mahavir Prasad Kulfiwale, Hauz Qazi (sells 30 varieties of kulfi); Siya Ram Nannumal Kulfiwale Ajmeri Gate (famous for fruit kulfi); Ravi Raj Di Kulfi (popular for its stick kulfi); Ram Bharose Gupta’s stall, Lajpat Nagar IV (kulfi served with yellow and white faluda and topped with rabri);

Chole Bhature from Chache di Hatti, Kamla Nagar

Chole Bhature Best Street Food in North Campus Delhi

Another popular North Indian dish, it has two parts, chole, a spicy chickpea curry and bhature, a fried flatbread prepared from flour. Onions, pickle and spicy dips make this dish all the more delicious. Chache di Hatti, situated in the Northern campus of Delhi University is an instant hit because of the soft bhature and spicy chole it sells along with a pickled salad. The rush is such that the stock gets exhausted by noon, within an hour or two of its opening time.

Approximate cost:

Rs 50 per plate for two pieces of bhature with chole

Other places to get it:

Pandit Ji, Kanti Nagar (opens at 6:30 in the morning); Sita Ram Diwan Chand, Paharganj; Bille Di Hatti, Kamla Nagar (it also sells creamy and tasty lassi); Radhey Shyam Subhash Kumar, opposite to new railway station, Paharganj

Chicken Platter from Rajinder Da Dhaba, Safdarjung

Best Non Veg Street Food in New Delhi

Delhi would certainly not disappoint you when it comes to chicken dishes as it has a variety on its platters like butter chicken, chicken curry, kadhai chicken (a spicy dish named after the cooking pot or karahi in which it is prepared), chicken tangdi (leg) fry and much more. Of the various places specializing in chicken, Rajinder Dhaba is unique for its delectable food that comes at an economical price.

Approximate cost:

Rs 90 to 100 (2 pieces chicken tangdi fry); Rs 180 (quarter plate butter chicken); Rs 150 (chicken curry, chest pieces); Rs 160 (chicken curry, leg pieces)

Parantha from Moolchand, Lajpat Nagar

Parantha Best Street Food in South Delhi

The chilly winters here is incomplete without a plate of steaming parantha (a fried flatbread), often teamed with a piping hot curry and a dollop of ghee or butter. They are even stuffed with potatoes, radish, cauliflower, paneer, or chicken. Moolchand, in South Delhi, boasts of paranthas filled with cheese, chill, fenugreek (methi), garlic, and egg.

Varieties:

Aloo parantha (potato); gobi parantha (cauliflower); mooli parantha (radish); pyaaz parantha (onion)

Approximate cost:

Rs 30 to 35 (plain parantha); Rs 35 to 40 (aloo parantha); Rs 45 to 50 (dal and gobi parantha); Rs 65 to 70 (pyaaz parantha)

Other places to get it:

Paranthe Wali Gali, Rajouri Garden; Laxman Fast Food, Katwaria Sarai; Prisha Parantha Junction, Uttam Nagar (offers prize money of Rs 11,000 to one who can singly eat their giant-sized parantha); Paratha King, Rohini

Daulat Ki Chaat From the Streets of Old Delhi

Daulat KI Chaat Winter Street Food in Old Delhi

This is a soft, fluffy, buttery dessert exclusively found in the streets of Delhi during winters, prepared by whipping sugar and milk, and garnished with saffron.  Served mostly in the mornings, it is equivalent to Lucknow’s nimish and Varanasi’s malayo. According to legends, the dish was deemed as precious as wealth and hence acquired the name “Daulat”.

Approximate cost:

Rs 40 to 50 per plate

Other places to get it:

Areas around Chandni Chowk, and Chawri Bazaar in Old Delhi, sold in terracotta pots.

Though you would get street foods in every corner of the city, the popular hubs include the Chandni Chowk area of Old Delhi, Karol Bagh of North Delhi, and Lajpat Nagar area of South Delhi. To get a perfect feel of the street food market in Delhi as well as other cities in India, one can attend the National Street Food Festival, held in December every year.

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