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India
Indian & International Vegetarian Restaurants

***Govinda's Café
1408 South Street, Phila, PA 215-985-9303 Pure Gourmet Vegetarian International and Indian. Lunch and Dinner Buffet. Salad Bar.

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As I spent over seven years in India doing a spiritual travel guide on the country, the list of vegetarian restaurants that I have compiled is most likely the most detailed list of its kind. In my book India, A Practical Guide I give a very detailed description about eating in India. All of the over 3,000 restaurants listed in the book are vegetarian friendly. Meat, fish or eggs are never mentioned in the book except to tell someone how to avoid them. There are literally tens of thousands of vegetarian restaurants in India and I have listed many of the ones in the major tourist spots and major cities.

Listed below are over 500 either totally vegetarian restaurants or very vegetarian friendly places. To get the entire list of restaurants you can purchase my book from Amazon.com. Hundreds of people have told me that our India guide is the most vegetarian friendly and informative guidebook about India, especially if you are interested in the spiritual side of India.

India has by far the most vegetarians of any country in the world, both in quantity (there are around one billion people there) and by percentages. Many of the followers of Hinduism consider being a vegetarian to be one of the most important (if not most important) aspects of being religious. To understand sometimes of the philosophy of Hindus being a vegetarian you can check out our link: Spiritual Reason to Be a Vegetarian

Indian vegetarians are primarily lacto-vegetarians, which means that they do not eat meat, fish or eggs, but they do eat milk. A common cooking ingredient in Indian homes for frying is ghee, which is derived from butter. Because of its expense, usually even in high-end hotels it is not used for cooking, but vegetarian oil is used instead. So if you are a vegan you may want to ask what various foods are fried in.

When you order food in India you should be careful to make it very clear that you want pure vegetarian food. Even if a restaurant states that it is vegetarian I ask very clearly if they sell meat or eats.

There can be a huge difference between what you will get in most restaurants in India and what is cooked in an Indian family's home. The food in an Indian home is usually excellent, while most restaurant food is fair at best. In the smaller cities or while doing some heavy traveling, it can be difficult to get decent food. You will often only be able to get low-quality rice, dhal, and overcooked and over-spiced vegetables. In big cities, however, the restaurants can be excellent.

In South India, Bengal, and Orissa the main food is rice. The average Bengali would not know how to eat without rice. In the North, they eat much more breads and wheat preparations. South India is famous for its cuisine. The main delicacies are dosas, masala dosas, idlis, and uttapam. I would highly suggest trying a masala dosa and idli. You might find them to be one of your favorite foods in India. The coconut chutney that comes with them can be great.

A thali meal usually consists of a number of preparations, sometimes ten or more, and often you can eat all you like for a set price. It is usually the most economical and filling thing to get on the menu, and they can be very tasty. In a very cheap place a thali can be Rs 20. A thali meal in a normal place may be around Rs 40 for vegetarian and Rs 60 for non-vegetarian. In an expensive place a thali can be Rs 150 or more and they are usually excellent.

To get good western food in India is difficult. Getting a good pizza or veggie-burger is unlikely. Most attempts are not even close to being good by western standards. It is usually best to eat the Indian style food in most restaurants. Chinese and Tibetan food are popular in India, and can often be quite good in middle class and expensive places. In the less-expensive places, Chinese food is usually not very good. There are Tibetan restaurants in Dharamsala, Manali, Leh, Gangtok and Darjeeling. In the five-star hotels in the big cities there are often Thai, French and Italian restaurants. These places are usually very good and very expensive.

It can be difficult to communicate that you do not want chilies, onions or heavy spicing in your food. You have to make this desire very clear to the waiter.

Tandoori food, from North India, refers to food cooked in a clay oven. Sometimes the food is boiled or fried first, and then cooked in a tandoori oven. Tandoori food can be very good.

Food Types
Rice is the basic food in most parts of India, and many Indians will not have a meal without it. Basmati rice, which grows in the Dehra Dun area, is the best rice in the world. It has long grains and tastes great. The difference between basmati rice and the lowest grade rice is enormous. Pulao rice is specially cooked rice, usually with vegetables added, and it is usually a good bet in most restaurants. Biryani is also special rice with nuts and dried fruit. Kashmiri biryani is special rice mixed with fruit.

Chapatis, flat unleavened wheat bread, are the most commonly eaten and the healthiest bread for you. The deep-fried variety of chapatis are called puris. A nan is bread that you bake in a clay tandoori oven and is often excellent.

Dhal is a lentil (pea) soup, which is included in most meals. In some small towns dhal and rice may be the only thing you will find on the menu or the only thing worth eating, as everything else may be too spicy.

A meal will usually also include one or two subjis, or vegetable preparations. A normal side dish is raita, cucumber mixed with curd (yogurt). Dahi (curd or yogurt) is also a normal addition to a meal.

Samosas are the most commonly eaten snack. It is vegetable covered by pastry bread and deep-fried. It is a good food to carry while traveling, as it does not go bad right away. Bhelpuri is a famous Mumbai snack and is very good. Channa means chickpeas.

Fruits in India
For health reasons, it is advised to peel all fruit before eating it while in India. Mango season is from March to June. There are various kinds of mangoes. Alphonso and langra are usually the best. Banana, apples and oranges can usually be found year around and are usually good. Watermelons and other types of melons can be found during certain seasons. They usually are pretty bad, but watermelons can sometimes be good depending on where you get them. In Goa they are very good.

Green coconuts and pineapples are mainly only found in South India and in West Bengal. Peaches, grapes, strawberries, plums, and apricots can be found in certain seasons, but before buying these fruits you should eat one to test it, as often they can be substandard. Chiku is a dark colored fruit, which looks like a kiwi. It is usually a fruit that one likes or doesn't like.

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