51 Best Restaurants in Delhi, India

A favorite amongst the city's fashionable set and couples celebrating special occasions, this rooftop restaurant at The Leela Palace serves delicious Franco-Italian fare with a twist. The menu celebrates some of the freshest and finest produce of the season from Italy and France---try any of their handmade pastas.

This Indian restaurant at Taj Palace is dedicated to North Indian cuisine, covering the entire region from Delhi and northwards. The environment is modern but traditionally decorated, with warm-colored fabrics, tapestries, and wall paintings. The bar, offering a thoughtful menu of drinks, is attractive with a stream of water flowing through the bar counter.

Japanese for "play with your food," cheery Mamagoto, hidden behind a yellow door in the middle lane of Khan Market, is indeed a fun place for a low-key meal. This is a great spot to have a couple of cocktails and share several Pan-Asian dishes.

This vibrant and colorful Mediterranean restaurant offers an extensive choice of small and large plates like kebabs, labnehs, flatbreads, tagines, and more. The top floor has an ambient terrace, and a shimmery disco ball hanging over the bar.

An easily accessible South Delhi outpost of the iconic Old Delhi Moti Mahal, this old-fashioned family restaurant serves Punjabi and North Indian comfort food in an old-school dining room--style setting. Loyal customers continue to flock here for the tandoori kebabs and prompt service.

This dark, soothing restaurant, with South Indian decor and gold-embossed paintings designed by artisans from the Tamil Nadu town of Thanjavur, specializes in Udupi food, a vegetarian cuisine from a town near Mangalore. South Indian staples like uthappams and idlis are served in traditional style, on a banana leaf.

This city institution with several branches offers quick-service vegetarian snacks and meals in a clean, fuss-free setting. There's a very wide selection of breads and sweets, with more than a dozen options in parathas alone; go for the ones filled with mint or cauliflower.

Located at The Diplomat Hotel in Chanakyapuri, NOE has a lovely alfresco area, cozy indoor dining, and a menu that offers gourmet to elevated comfort food—all with a twist. On plush velvet chairs, you can dine on Aglio olio with a splash of prosecco, succulent prawns in brown butter served with black garlic mayu, and grilled koji marinated leeks with tomato tamari sour cream.

In the shadow of the Qutub Minar, this sprawling Mediterranean restaurant with elegant white-on-white decor is reminiscent of Santorini. Delhi's most fashionable congregate here for a sumptuous Sunday brunch, and it's one of the best spots for French cheese platters, hearty Italian soups, and hand-rolled pastas.

A tiny restaurant tucked away in the Malviya Nagar neighborhood, Plates celebrates technique-driven global plates from homemade pastas and delicious focaccias to chicken wings stuffed with prawns and pulled lamb-crumbed steaks—all presented beautifully in textured layers.

From chaats to biryani, nihari, and even appams, Pot Pot is your one-stop shop to try an array of Indian dishes from various parts of the country. Even the drinks on offer include seasonal favorites from different states---kokum juice to masala banta soda---that'll keep you cool in the summer. Sliders with galauti kebabs and palak patta chaat are amongst their most popular dishes.

Located in a tony shopping mall, this popular restaurant draws large groups with its innovative twists on hearty Punjabi classics. For a wide sampling, order a range of chicken, mutton, fish, and vegetarian small plates.

This no-frills vegetarian family joint bustles nonstop, serving up South Indian dishes like crispy dosas (rice-batter crepes) and fluffy idlis (rice cakes) with fresh coconut chutney and hot sambar (lentil soup). A long-standing favorite since the '80s, this neighborhood market delivers quick service and attracts a steady stream of locals looking for a pocket-friendly bite.

Delhi's most rarefied Italian restaurant is known for its playful, sensuous dishes, relying heavily on black olives, Parmesan cheese, and fresh local produce, and for its excellent service. The small wood-panel rooms are inviting; in winter you can dine on a terra-cotta patio in the fabulous garden.

Although a fine-dining restaurant, Sorrento has an easygoing vibe that will instantly transport you to a trattoria in Italy. It offers an extensive menu of antipasti, handmade pastas, pizzas, and succulently grilled meats, and may just be the top choice for your Italian craving in Delhi. The charming al fresco seating overlooking the spacious lawn is ideal for enjoying balmy evenings or sunny lunches.

This gorgeous restaurant at The Imperial New Delhi offers Southeast Asian dining at its finest, with authentic Thai and coastal Indian dishes. The opulent decor represents the journey from Kerala to Thailand, with elaborate hand-painted murals from South India to a beautiful Thai-style pagoda in the alfresco area.

Delhi's original Mangalorean restaurant—specializing in seafood from the western coast between Goa and Kerala—is outstanding for seafood served in prim, softly lit dining rooms with good service. Choose your sauce, then decide between fish, prawns, or crab, and mop up your food with appam or neer dosa, soft South Indian rice breads.

This contemporary Indian restaurant at Taj Mahal New Delhi churns out traditional dishes presented with a classic fine-dining spin. The white-tablecloth setting is cozy, but luxurious, serviced by attentive staff.

Delhi's insomniacs love this super-bright, tiny 24-hour coffee shop with blinding-yellow striped wallpaper, vintage French-colonial posters, and distressed-yellow tables. The extensive menu features everything from tandoori to Thai, along with several vegetarian choices and a decent bar menu.

This is one of the best spots to enjoy Chinese fare in Delhi. Try the truffle edamame dumplings, mapo tofu, and any prawn-based dishes, paired with the handmade noodles---they're an in-house specialty.

In Khan Market, this café serves light Western salads, pastas, and desserts and refreshing cold drinks in an airy contemporary setting.