I arrived in Indore on a bustling morning expecting the usual sizzle from a city famed for its street food, but instead found start-ups and rooftop cafés sitting easily alongside heritage courtyards and colonial facades. That same interplay of old and new runs through Indore’s food culture. Over the next few days, I set out to explore the best places to eat in Indore, moving beyond the famous Sarafa night bazaar into neighbourhood favourites and timeworn kitchens where locals gather.
My base for the trip was Sayaji Indore, one of the city’s oldest five-star hotels and still a familiar landmark in the local imagination. It didn’t take long to see that Indore’s flair for indulgence isn’t a modern whim. It feels like something the Holkars, the city’s former rulers, left behind — a legacy that still lingers in the way the city of Indore eats and entertains.
Every day in Indore: Namkeen, mithai, and breakfast staples
Image credit: omnamkeen
To get a taste of everyday Indore, I started at Om Namkeen, a shop that opened in 1984 and has since grown into a near-legend with outlets across the city. Here, namkeen isn’t an afterthought – it’s practically a food group. Families stock their pantries with mixtures, office-goers carry packets to their desks, and no one leaves Indore without a bag tucked into their luggage. I tried the khatta meetha blend that struck the perfect balance of tang and crunch, while the onion and garlic sev left a sharp, lasting note. In Indore, buying namkeen is a cultural act, a way of taking the city home.
If namkeen travels, sweets anchor you. Mithai shops in Indore aren’t seasonal indulgences. They’re daily companions. At Agarwal Sweets, established in 1956 and now run by the fourth generation, I tasted continuity. Their besan chakki, made from roasted gram flour and slow-cooked in ghee, was dense yet airy, fragrant with cardamom and finished with a fudgy texture that stayed with you after each bite.
Poha and Jalebi
No morning in Indore feels complete without poha and jalebi. I first tried the combination a decade ago at a street corner, and the mix of sweet and savoury left me both puzzled and delighted. On this trip, I found it again at my breakfast buffet. More polished, but unchanged in essence. The poha was soft, flecked with mustard seeds, curry leaves, and crunchy sev. The jalebi, syrupy and crisp, collided with it in a way that continues to perplex and satisfy in equal measure. For me, it remains the most succinct expression of Indore’s food culture. Inventive, audacious, and deeply comforting.
Local legends: Chappan and Sarafa
Chappan |
From these everyday anchors, the city opens up into one of the best places to eat in Indore, Chappan Dukan, a stretch of fifty-six shops that has long been part of Indore’s food map. Families pause here between errands, students hang out over cold coffee, and office-goers grab quick bites. I stopped first at the iconic Johny Hot Dog for their egg and mutton benjo, a soft, slightly greasy bun hugging a golden omelette patty spiked with ketchup and mustard. At Madhuram, a glass of shikanji arrived frothy and cool, milk whipped with dry fruits and a hint of spice. Then came chole tikki at Young Tarang, crisp on the outside, yielding to spiced chickpeas inside and finished with chutneys that stained the plate.
Joshi Dahi Bada House |
And yes, I did return to Sarafa Bazaar. By day, it’s a jewellery market. Once the shutters come down, the street transforms into a carnival of food, making it one of the best places to eat in Indore for street food at its finest. I stopped first at Joshi Dahi Bada House, where you’ll likely find a crowd gathered to watch dahi vadas being tossed high in the air and caught again, the curd somehow never spilling. Further along, stalls beckoned with Indore’s signatures: khopra pattice, golden potato patties that crack open to a coconut filling; bhutte ka kees, corn grated fine and slow-cooked with milk and spices until soft and fragrant; spicy, crisp-fried garadu (yam); and the indulgent jaleba, larger and syrupier than the usual jalebi. Even in the swirl of neon and noise, Sarafa felt less like a market and more like the city’s collective dining table.
Refined flavours from the best places to eat in Indore
Lamb chops |
But there’s another side to Indore’s food culture, one that thrives in quiet, deliberate spaces. Here, meals are measured, flavours refined, and presentation matters as much as taste. One afternoon, lunch took me to Sayaji’s Sanchi, a pan-Indian restaurant, where I began with ghewar chaat, a festival sweet turned savoury. Then came lamb chops, gosht kebabs, and grilled quail. What fascinated me most were the variations in baati.
If Rajasthan is known for dal baati, in Madhya Pradesh’s Malwa region, it’s dal bafla. The wheat ball is boiled before baking, making it lighter and more porous, which pairs perfectly with dal and churma. Even more striking was gosht bafla, where the bafla soaks up the juices of slow-cooked lamb beautifully. I ended with baked rasgulla, caramelised at the edges and warm inside. The meal revealed how Indore reimagines local flavours while staying rooted in tradition.
Kebabsville | Image credit: Edwina D’souza
At Kebabsville, the mood was entirely different. Long before barbecue buffets became a trend, this restaurant was serving endless skewers of chicken, lamb, duck, fish, paneer, and a variety of vegetarian kebabs to packed houses, making it one of the best places to eat in Indore for both meat lovers and vegetarians. Its concept later inspired the national chain Barbeque Nation, yet in Indore it remains unapologetically local, a place where smoke, spice, and conversation define the evening, whether for a birthday, an office party, or a casual night out.
Sushi at Chopstick City | Image credit: Edwina D’souza
Indore’s openness to new flavours doesn’t stop there. At Chopstick City, generations of locals have discovered Chinese favourites, from stir-fried chicken with noodles to delicate dim sums served in bamboo baskets. On the rooftop at Mediterra, overlooking the bustling streets of Vijay Nagar, I tasted lamb shorba that was delicate yet full-bodied, followed by lobster thermidor, rich and creamy, that would feel at home in a European dining room.
Image Credit: Nishtha Grover
At Atelier V, a casual fine dining restaurant, you can enjoy cocktails from around the world paired with delicious food. The Gnocchi, in particular, is the highlight of the menu. This restaurant embodies Indore’s willingness to embrace new influences while maintaining the generosity and warmth that make dining here a uniquely enjoyable experience.
A city on a plate
Iconic street food of Indore |
As I tasted my way through Indore, I realised this has always been a city that truly knows how to enjoy its food. What sets it apart isn’t just the iconic dishes — though poha jalebi and bhutte ka kees absolutely deserve their reputation — but the way history, memory, and ambition come together at the table. The mercantile spirit that created an enduring love for namkeen, the royal heritage, and the city’s modern aspirations have all shaped how people eat. Rooftop dining and cosmopolitan flair now stand alongside family-run mithai shops and namkeen counters that keep people connected to flavours that feel timeless.
Tips for enjoying Indore’s local food
Kachori | Image credit: Nishtha Grover
Food stalls in Sarafa Bazaar start setting up around 8 pm, but the real buzz is between 9 and 10 pm when the energy peaks — making it one of the best places to eat in Indore.
Carry cash, since many small stalls still prefer it over digital payments.
Go with an appetite to sample rather than to feast; half the joy lies in tasting a little of everything.
Don’t miss local favourites like khopra pattice, bhutte ka kees, garadu, jaleba, and mawa baati.