When it comes to Street Food in Lucknow, Chowk is perhaps the first name that comes to mind. Many newer places have come up in the last few decades, especially around the Hazratgunj area which serve good food, yet the charm of Chowk remains completely unmatched.
So what exactly is Chowk? It's an old market area located in the busy and bustling old Lucknow.Not very far from my home . The chowk area starts from Gol Darwaza on one side and ends at the Akhbari Darwaza on the other. It's a short stretch of a about 500m, yet it encompasses much of Lucknow's history. It's well-known for many things which are essentially considered quintessential Nawabi, including it's much renowned cuisine of Awadhi food.
I am a vegetarian myself, so all the non-vegeterian recommendations come from the person whom I discuss about Lucknawi food,and some of my meat lover friend also suggested me . I am a huge fan of sweets and since Lucknow is perhaps one of the best places to enjoy the North Indian mithai (sweets), the post focuses a lot on the sweets in Chowk.
Chowk is often known as jannat for all non-vegetarians, and the food here has often been referred to as the best non-vegetarians food on the country. Much of this comes form one single shop which has become an icon much beyond the city.
I am talking about the famous‘Tunday Kebab’ shop in Chowk. Now Tunday Kebab have a very interesting story. Long long ago there was a Nawab (of Kakori) who loved kebabs but was too old to chew on them. So he called for a competition to make a kebab so soft that anyone without teeth could also eat it. The competition was won by one man called Haji Murad Ali who had only one hand. Just as a man without legs is calledLangda in Hindi, a man without hands is called Tunda and that’s how the place got its name. With time these became the most popular kebabs, not just for the old and teeth-less, but almost everyone who took a bite out of them. Arguably they make the best and the most famous kebabs in the entire country. I am a vegetarian and can’t vouch for its taste, but I am told that one bite can take you immediately to jannat (heaven).
The most famous Tunday kebab is Galawati Kebab which basically comes from the term ‘gala’ or soft. The recipe uses papaya as a softening agent and also includes about 150 different ingredients in it’s preparation. It’s also a popular kebab with many Bollywood personalities who have been patrons of the food here for decades, including Dilip Kumar and Shahrukh Khan.
Another very famous must-have food to be had in Chowk is Nihari and Kulcha. It started off as the breakfast for the common man but has now caught on the imagination of everyone. The shop most famous for this is called Rahim ki Nihari and its located near the Akhbari Gate.
The non-vegeterian food story of the Street food of Lucknow will be incomplete without a mention to it's Biriyani. The Biriyani from Huyderabad is famous across the country, but my friends from Lucknow tell me that it's the Lucknawi Biriyani which will take any Biriyani lover by surprise. Cooked with secret Nawabi flavors and spices, the Biriyani here has much more influence from Persia as compared to it's southern counterpart and it's unique in it's own way. Two of the best places to try out Lucknawi Biriyani are Idris ki Biriyani and Lalla Biriyani; I would let my non-vegeterian readers to help me pick the best of the two :)
I recommend focusing solely on sweets and leaving the dinner to another evening. You won’t come to Chowk again and its very important to soak in all flavours of sweets here. Start with the royal halwas from the Ram Asrey sweetshop. It is one of the oldest shops and has been making sweets from 1805. The shop actually serves there different types of halwas and all of them should be tried out. The three types are - Kali Gajar halwa, Zuazi halwa and Habshi halwa. All of them very very unique in taste and must be all tried to pick your favourite. What was my favourite? Well, I will keep all prejudices out and let you experience them all to pick yours!
So what exactly is Chowk? It's an old market area located in the busy and bustling old Lucknow.Not very far from my home . The chowk area starts from Gol Darwaza on one side and ends at the Akhbari Darwaza on the other. It's a short stretch of a about 500m, yet it encompasses much of Lucknow's history. It's well-known for many things which are essentially considered quintessential Nawabi, including it's much renowned cuisine of Awadhi food.
I am a vegetarian myself, so all the non-vegeterian recommendations come from the person whom I discuss about Lucknawi food,and some of my meat lover friend also suggested me . I am a huge fan of sweets and since Lucknow is perhaps one of the best places to enjoy the North Indian mithai (sweets), the post focuses a lot on the sweets in Chowk.
Chowk is often known as jannat for all non-vegetarians, and the food here has often been referred to as the best non-vegetarians food on the country. Much of this comes form one single shop which has become an icon much beyond the city.
Tunday Kebab
I am talking about the famous‘Tunday Kebab’ shop in Chowk. Now Tunday Kebab have a very interesting story. Long long ago there was a Nawab (of Kakori) who loved kebabs but was too old to chew on them. So he called for a competition to make a kebab so soft that anyone without teeth could also eat it. The competition was won by one man called Haji Murad Ali who had only one hand. Just as a man without legs is calledLangda in Hindi, a man without hands is called Tunda and that’s how the place got its name. With time these became the most popular kebabs, not just for the old and teeth-less, but almost everyone who took a bite out of them. Arguably they make the best and the most famous kebabs in the entire country. I am a vegetarian and can’t vouch for its taste, but I am told that one bite can take you immediately to jannat (heaven).
Galawati Kebab
The most famous Tunday kebab is Galawati Kebab which basically comes from the term ‘gala’ or soft. The recipe uses papaya as a softening agent and also includes about 150 different ingredients in it’s preparation. It’s also a popular kebab with many Bollywood personalities who have been patrons of the food here for decades, including Dilip Kumar and Shahrukh Khan.
Nihari and Kulcha
Another very famous must-have food to be had in Chowk is Nihari and Kulcha. It started off as the breakfast for the common man but has now caught on the imagination of everyone. The shop most famous for this is called Rahim ki Nihari and its located near the Akhbari Gate.
Lucknawi Biriyani
The non-vegeterian food story of the Street food of Lucknow will be incomplete without a mention to it's Biriyani. The Biriyani from Huyderabad is famous across the country, but my friends from Lucknow tell me that it's the Lucknawi Biriyani which will take any Biriyani lover by surprise. Cooked with secret Nawabi flavors and spices, the Biriyani here has much more influence from Persia as compared to it's southern counterpart and it's unique in it's own way. Two of the best places to try out Lucknawi Biriyani are Idris ki Biriyani and Lalla Biriyani; I would let my non-vegeterian readers to help me pick the best of the two :)
Ram Asrey sweetshop
I recommend focusing solely on sweets and leaving the dinner to another evening. You won’t come to Chowk again and its very important to soak in all flavours of sweets here. Start with the royal halwas from the Ram Asrey sweetshop. It is one of the oldest shops and has been making sweets from 1805. The shop actually serves there different types of halwas and all of them should be tried out. The three types are - Kali Gajar halwa, Zuazi halwa and Habshi halwa. All of them very very unique in taste and must be all tried to pick your favourite. What was my favourite? Well, I will keep all prejudices out and let you experience them all to pick yours!
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