Srinagar restaurants cater to all kinds of tourists. The fare can range from Chinese, Continental and Indian to traditional Kashmiri food. There are garden cafes, traditional closed-room restaurants and 3-star hotels. These are located along Residency Road, Lal Chowk and Lambert Lane. You will also hear about a 36-course meal called ‘Wazawan’ in Srinagar. Its history is fascinating and the details are given below.

Non Veg and Veg Food

Kashmiri food is very popular among the non-vegetarians. Some of the popular Kashmiri non-vegetarian food items are meat balls also called ‘rista.’ You also have ‘tabak maz’ (fried lamb ribs), ‘roganjosh’ (lamb curry) and ‘yakni’ (mutton curry) meat dishes that are very rich in oil and spices. For the vegetarian, there are dishes like ‘dum-aloo’ or potatoes cooked on low heat and fried cottage cheese (‘paneer’).

Kahva

A tea drink called ‘kahva’ is very popular. Special Chinese green tea leaves are steeped in boiling water along with cinnamon, crushed cardamom, almonds and a few strands of saffron. 

Breads

Kashmir is also famous for various kinds of breads. There are 'sheermal' and 'baqerkhani' breads which are generally consumed in the morning at breakfast time. The others are 'tsochvoru', ‘naans’, 'lavas' and 'kulcha'.

Wazawan

Then, there is the ‘Wazawan’ cuisine with origins dating back to the reign of Timur in India during the 14th century. During this period, a lot of weavers, architects and cooks migrated from Samarkand to Kashmir valley. The off-spring of these cooks came to be known as the ‘Wazas” and hence, the word ‘Wazawan.’ A lot of effort goes into preparing this meal. A head chef (‘vasta waza’) is assisted by various sous-chefs (‘wazas’). While serving the meal, guests are generally divided into groups of 4. The name of Allah is invoked at the beginning of the meal. People also wash their hands, using a jug and basin in a traditional ceremony. People are then served rice and a variety of lamb and mutton dishes. Yoghurt is provided to cool down the system due to the hot spices. Salads, pickles and chutney are served as side-dishes. A visit to Srinagar would be considered incomplete if you do not eat some of the dishes that are available in this meal.