HYDERABAD- THE LAND OF DECCANI GHIZAAYAT AND BEYOND

Hyderabadi cuisine is a royalty of its own kind, tracing its origin from the reign of Nizams, Qutab Shahi dynasty, local Telugu cuisine, and some influence of Marathwada delicacies. Although famous for these, the city has grown to be more cosmopolitan not only in terms of its infrastructure, people living there but also the palate of cuisines it offers to food lovers. So, in this food blog article, I will mention some of my favorites that this city presented to me.

• Here are some of my all-time favorite food joints in Hyderabad and their dishes:

1. Shah Ghouse - Chicken Special Biryani, Chicken Malai Kebab, range of Mandi, Badam Firni

2. Paradise - I know many Hyderabadis claim that this place is more hyped but I would leave it on to you all to decide. After all, your Hyderabad food tour is incomplete without the visit to this place it is known for 😜You can try their Chicken Biryani with Murgh Musallam (a rich gravy made of Haute spices, minced lamb, chicken pieces, and boiled egg)

3. Nimrah Café & Bakery - When exploring Charminar, do not forget to grab the popular Irani Chai with the delicate Osmani Biscuits from this place. You can also enjoy other snacks like masala bun, puff, pastries here

4. Karachi Bakery - Hyderabad’s world-famous bakery brand truly leaves up to our expectation with its endless variety of cookies, biscuits – including a sugar-free range for our diabetic patients-- and pastries. My personal favorites are Sugar-free Choco chip cookies, Shrewsbury, Osmania, Chai biscuit, Pista cookies. Among its pastries and celebration cake varieties, a chocolate truffle is a must-have.

5. Karachi Café - Café segment of the Karachi Bakery brand, this place’s retro interior and ambiance will take you to the yesteryear’s charm with its wall paintings after the name of old cinema, kettle, furniture, and so on. The least to say, its veg and non-veg menu are equally finger-licking. When this complement comes from an otherwise not-so-big-lover of vegetarian dishes, all my vegan friends out there, you can trust me and taste some of its dishes. My all-time favorites being Veg pasta sandwich, veg macaroni with white sauce, chicken pink sauce penne, mutton Keema pav, Bun Maska and Irani Chai.

6. Cream Stone ice cream - For all you ice cream lovers just like me 😉and also those who don’t indulge much in it, it's about time you try out this place. Personally, I can rate it higher and my absolute favorite than any of the foreign high-end brands. Based on the quantity, taste, and concept- this place is a “paisa-wasool” or “worth your money”. My top picks would be Chocolate Overdose, Willy Wonka, and Nutella Brownie.

7. Sardarji’s Dhaba - All my vegan friends who are worried about what’s in Hyderabad for them? Here’s an amazing Punjabi cuisine restaurant for you which I never mind stepping on my veg days as it is always a treat to my taste buds. My picks are malai paneer tikka, dal makhana, paneer butter masala, butter tandoori roti, mushroom cream soup, chats, and complementary Pani puri.

• Top dishes – Having talked enough about some of my favorite food joints, in this segment I will very briefly mention some of the highlighting dishes that I would surely suggest you try out irrespective of any place – Hyderabadi Biryani, Murgh Mussalam, Mandi, Qubaani ka meetha, Double ka meetha, Cream stone ice cream, Stuffed parathe from Punjabi Bytes DLF, Irani chai, Osmani biscuits, and Karachi bakery’s cookies. If visiting during Ramadan, then don’t forget to dive into Haleem especially the one from Pista House.

**Sweetlin’s Tip: This city would offer you good food, lumpsum quantity at a reasonable cost. So, I would suggest you can pretty much dive into any place even the local and other eateries.