What to eat Rajasthan? culinary specialties and gastronomy

Restaurants are open 7 days a week, usually with continuous service from 8am to 10pm for smaller eateries. More elegant restaurants are open for lunch and dinner, between 12 and 3pm and 6:30pm and 11pm, or even longer.

A meal in a dhaba, a small roadside restaurant, won't cost you much more than a hundred rupees. For a more traditional restaurant, you should expect to pay between Rs 300 and Rs 500, depending on your appetite. In the best restaurants, prices can reach (but rarely exceed) Rs. 1,700 per person.

Many restaurants in Rajasthan are vegetarian, and in some cities, such as Pushkar, it's downright impossible to find meat or alcohol.

Many restaurants are not licensed to sell alcohol. As a result, it's rare to be able to accompany a meal with a glass of wine (very expensive and bad) or a beer, except in restaurants for tourists or at the tables of large hotels.

Tipping, while not obligatory, is greatly appreciated. It's usually 10% of your bill. Service is often included in larger restaurants. If this is the case, it will appear on your bill.

Indian cuisine may be spicy, but it is rarely very hot. Restaurateurs, accustomed to Western tourists, adapt their dosages to our delicate palates. However, if you're not a fan of chilli, be sure to specify " not spicy " or " medium spicy " when ordering.

In local restaurants and gargotes, it is customary to eat with the right hand. Your hosts will appreciate your efforts and feel honored if you comply.

Traditional Indian cuisine consists of two or three preparations served on a large plate and mixed by crushing with the fingers. Indians will tell you that the flavors are all the more exalted.

If you're invited to eat at a local's house, remember to take off your shoes at the entrance, which is as sacred as a temple. You may be asked to sit cross-legged on the floor and eat with your hands. Always use your right hand, as the left is for impure acts.

If you have a weak stomach, avoid ice cubes, ice cream or kulfis. On the other hand, drink only sealed bottled water or water filtered with an RO system.

Children are welcome everywhere in India, and occupy such a central place that they may seem ill-behaved from our Western point of view. You can take them everywhere with you, except in bars, where they have no place.

Officially, smoking is prohibited in public places, including restaurants. Although this rule is becoming increasingly respected, you'll probably be able to enjoy a smoke after your meal, provided the room is well ventilated or you're on the terrace.

There are no known restaurant scams in India. The only risk of going to air-conditioned restaurants designed for tourists is paying a lot of money for very bad food.

With the exception of Delhi, Agra and Jaipur, nightlife is limited to a minimum. In these cities, you'll find trendy bars, where the music is often cranked up to the max. They open at around 4pm and close at midnight or later. In Delhi, there's a 24/7 bar called Kitty Su.

In medium-sized towns, you can find places to have a beer, often small restaurants for Western tourists.

In the villages, nightlife is non-existent and people go to bed early.

Alcohol is expensive in India, and of poor quality. All strong spirits are distilled in the country: vodka, whisky, gin, rum. You can also find wine produced in the Nashik region of Maharashtra or around Bangalore. It is very expensive and of poor quality. Beer is also brewed in India.

Imported spirits are only available in palaces and certain trendy bars.

In India, 18 years of age is required to drink alcohol. Women's consumption of alcohol is highly frowned upon, especially in rural areas.

Indians may not drink much alcohol (in public), but there's one tradition you won't want to miss: chai. This spicy, very sweet milk tea is drunk by Indians at all hours of the day. There's even a quasi-official break at 10 a.m. in government offices. The best chai is served in disposable clay cups and boiled in copper pots.

Children are not welcome in places where alcohol is consumed. On the other hand, you can take them anywhere else, including small cafés.

Smoking is officially prohibited in public places. Some bars and nightclubs without terraces have a room reserved for smokers, equipped with powerful smoke extractors, as in airports.

There are no notorious tourist traps when it comes to cafés and bars. On the other hand, never accept illegally produced alcohol. Some adulterated spirits can literally blind you.