Discovering North Indian Food in Hoan Kiem: A Guide for Food Lovers

North Indian cooking covers a wide range. The dishes most people are familiar with — rich tomato and butter-based curries, tandoori preparations, naan, biryani, paneer — are largely from this tradition. But the category includes considerably more than the popular standards.

Dishes prepared using lentils, kebabs, rice dishes made with flavorful combinations of spices, local breads, yogurt sauces. North Indian cuisine in Hanoi is diverse enough to provide an extensive experience of its cuisine on a complete menu rather than a limited one for someone trying it for the first time.

A centrally located restaurant is convenient in a way that is easy to underestimate until you are in a city you do not know well. For visitors based around Hoan Kiem or the Old Quarter, finding a North Indian restaurant Hoan Kiem within walking distance removes one logistical variable from an already full day.

It also helps with group dynamics. A well-situated restaurant that both Indian and international diners can find easily and get to conveniently makes coordinating a group dinner considerably simpler.

For the first-time diners, it is advisable for them to know why tandoori food is special. The unique tandoor cooking technique involves very hot temperatures that give a unique taste and texture to the foods that cannot be replicated by other cooking techniques. A naan baked in a tandoor is different from one baked on a flat surface while meat marinated and prepared using the tandoor method is different from the meat prepared using other cooking techniques.

Anyone looking to try authentic North Indian foods in Hanoi will find that tandoori food preparation is a perfect way to begin.

The usual perception about Indian cuisine is that the vegetarian items are more like the same items but without meat. It is not so in the case of North Indian vegetarian dishes. Paneer items, dals and veg curries are independent dishes which have an individual flavor and logic of their own. Explore our Vegetarian Indian Restaurant guide for dedicated vegetarian details.

On the other hand, when someone tries to search for a non-veg Indian restaurant in Hanoi, he or she will discover that there is a lot of variety in the North Indian non-vegetarian dishes as well. Chicken and mutton dishes form a part of such a diverse menu.

North Indian cuisine suits the concept of dining at the same table very well. Instead of everybody ordering one item on the menu, sharing more dishes allows for the table to taste different flavors and truly experience the cuisine.

Curry with naan. Rice with something else that isn’t in the rice form. An appetizer before the main courses. This kind of dining is the one which takes place in a North Indian restaurant in Hoan Kiem.