Bangalore, the capital city of Karnataka is my second home, a place where I live when I’m not traveling. I moved to this metropolitan city for work 7 years ago from Mysore, the city that I grew up and have ever since grown fond of this amazing city. I want to share with you my personal Bangalore local food guide.
Being a foodie, I venture out looking for places to savor my taste buds with exotic food now and then. And yes, now I have a list of my favorite places for almost each kind of cuisine, and depending on my cravings, I keep going for some binge eating!
In this post, I’m sharing some of the best restaurants for savoring authentic Karnataka’s delicacies, plus two other unique places for desserts (bonus!). All of these serve only vegetarian food, which is of course very hygienic!
- I have listed these places in the order of the oldest to the recently opened places.
Bangalore Local Food Guide
01 | CTR
Shree Sagar, popularly known as CTR, is one of the oldest restaurants in Bangalore. Started in 1920’s, CTR is one of the best places for a scrumptious breakfast in the old Bangalore area. It’s a simple place serving delicious food. It is heavily crowded for the most part of the time, so make sure to get through the traffic and make it on time. Keep in mind the time to commute plus wait time. Yeah, it’s worth everything, because you’ll end loving the food here!
Must try: Benne (meaning Butter in the local language, Kannada) Masala Dose, Mangalore Bajji and Filter Coffee.
Other dishes: Idly-Vade, Poori-Saagu, Kharabath and Kesaribath.
Where: 7th cross, Margosa road, Malleshwaram.
Timings: Open on all days. 7:30 AM – 12:30 PM, 4 PM – 9PM.
02 | Vidyarthi Bhavan
Established in 1943, Vidyarthi Bhavan is another place in old Bangalore that has been serving excellent breakfast dishes to its lakhs of regular customers! Vidyarthi in the local language means a student, and back then it was a popular hangout place for the student folks. The restaurant has a website where you can see old photographs and some interesting facts about Bangalore. Check here.
It’s a small place and it’s super crowded almost all the time (especially the weekends). You have to plan ahead to score your table and food here, and again, you’ll forget the pain once you taste the food here!
Must try: Dose – Masala/ Saagu/ Plain, Rava Vade and Filter Coffee.
Others: Idly-Vade, Poori-Saagu, Kharabath and Kesaribath.
Where: Gandhi Bazaar area, Basavanagudi.
Timings: Closed on Fridays. Mon-Thu: 6:30 AM –11:30 AM, 2 PM – 8 PM. Sat-Sun: 6:30 AM – 12 PM, 2:30 PM – 8 PM.
03 | Veena Food Store
Veena Food Store is a small food joint in Old Bangalore, serving excellent authentic breakfast dishes at super cheap prices since 1977. The place is very simple and small and there is no seating. In fact, it can be hard to find the place. The food is simply awesome here. The only other place to compete with the soft Idlis of Veena Food Store is Brahmin’s Coffee Bar!
Must try: Idly-Vade served with amazing chutney, Bisibele Bath, Shavige Bath.
Others: Kharabath and Kesaribath, Sweet Pongal and Khara Pongal, Avalakki Bath and Puliyogre.
Where: 15th Cross, Margosa Road, Malleshwaram.
Timings: Mon-Sat: 6:30 AM – 12 PM, 3:30 PM –9 PM. Sun: 6:30 AM – 12 PM.
04 | Brahmin’s Coffee Bar
Brahmin’s Coffee Bar is another delight of Old Bangalore. This simple food joint is one of the few places in Bangalore that serves super food at very cheap prices. The soft Idlis just melt in your mouth and I’m sure, you’ll come back for the Vadas!
Must try: Idly topped with butter served with the delicious coconut chutney, Crispy Vade and Filter Coffee.
Others: Kharabath and Kesaribath.
Where: Near Shankar Math, Shankarpuram, Basavanagudi.
Timings: Closed on Sundays. 6 AM – 12 PM, 3 PM – 7 PM.
05 | Kamat, Bugle Rock
Kamat is a household name amongst people who love the northern Karnataka’s cuisine. The restaurant has a few branches in Bangalore, and the one at Bugle rock is quite famous. The place also organises traditional performance on the weekends sometimes.
The meals that you buy is unlimited, which is served traditionally on a plantation leaf, letting you enjoy the finger food. You get to try huge portions of a variety of dishes including the soft Jowar Rotis, rasam – a traditional sambhar delicacy of Karnataka, and a lot of vegetable curries. Head to this place for a filling lunch.
As a rule that’s best to follow while in Bangalore, plan well ahead!
Must try: North Karnataka Jowar Roti Special Meals. Don’t forget to try the buttermilk.
Others: Try their different variants of meals.
Where: Near Bugle Rock, Bull Temple Road, Basavanagudi.
Timings: Open on all days. 7 AM – 10:30 PM. Meals between 12 PM – 4 PM & 7 PM – 11 PM.
06 | South Thindies
South Thindies is one of the recently opened restaurants that is well known for its quality food at cheap prices. ‘Thindi’ in Kannada, the local language means ‘Breakfast’. The ambiance is modern and simple. There is so seating available and the place gets crowded in the evenings.
South Thindies is known for their signature dishes, and if you want to try some cuisines of Karnataka apart from the Idly and the Masala Dose, you should definitely visit this place. My favorite is Halbai, the sweet dish, which is hard to find elsewhere in Bangalore (a good one, I mean!).
Must try: Akki Rotti, Ragi Rotti, Bisibele Bath, Butter Masala Dose, Vade, Pesarattu Dose and Filter Coffee
Others: Halbai (a sweet dish), Shavige bath, Kharabath and Kesaribath.
Where: Basavanagudi.
Timings: Open on all days. 6 AM –3:30 PM, 4:30 PM –10:30 PM
For Drooling Desserts
07 | Cool Joint
Bangalore being the cosmopolitan city, it’s not short of cool cafes and dessert places. So I’m including Cool Joint because it is a class apart for two reasons – It’s a place that has been serving amazing food and beverages well before the city became home to the modern cafes. The other being surprisingly low prices and the totally simple ambience, albeit any fancy decor. Needless to say, it’s packed in the evenings and on the weekends.
Must try: Their special Ice creams, Faloodas, Milkshakes – Almond/ Cashew/ Fig/ Dry Fruits.
Others: Grilled Sandwiches.
Where: 4th Block, Jayanagar.
Timings: Open on all days. 8 AM – 10:30 PM
08 | Asha Sweet Center
Established in 1951, Asha Sweet Center is one of the oldest places serving sweets & bakery products to the people of Bangalore. It’s another popular landmark in the Old Bangalore area. Asha Sweets is THE place to go if you have a sweet tooth! Check their website for all delicacies that you can savor.
Must try: Badam Milk – Cold/ Hot topped with dry fruits.
Others: Sweets like Mysore Pak & Rabdi, Cakes and Chaats.
Where: 8th Cross, Sampige Road, Malleshwaram.
Timings: Open on all days. 8:30 AM – 10 PM
Have you tried any of these? If you’re more into fancy food, you can check out this fine dining guide to Bangalore. Let me know in comments if you have any other place serving exotic local food in Bangalore. I’m waiting to try something exciting!
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Hi Reshma,
Great to see you here! Big time food scene in Bangalore. We spent a week there in 2013. Loved the different local spots and even chain restaurants too, like Nando’s. A little change up from Indian cuisine when I needed it here and there. I see why it is The City of Gardens too. What a brilliant green scene, walking throughout the city.
Thanks for sharing :)
Ryan
Oh yeah, the city of gardens … it really is so green! Have you been to Mysore? It’s even better IMO!
Hey Ryan! Great to find you here as well! Yup, Bangalore is great for sure, but I agree with Rachel here! My hometown Mysore is so much better! Have you been there? :)
I didn’t know your hometown was Mysore, Reshma!! I love Mysore!