Koshy's
Koshy's is a city institution: The air-conditioned half on the right serves food that's a throwback to an earlier era.
Budget
Koshy's
The left of Koshy's is the heart of the restaurant, serving very decent snacks and meals, coffee and beer.
Café Pascucci
Café Pascucci (Tel 91 80 40912134) is a convenient stop for sandwiches, burgers and coffees.
Empire
Empire on Church Street, is a favorite for chicken dosas.
Midrange
South Indies
South Indies, as the name suggests, does south Indian food, all vegetarian. Be prepared to be surprised.
Coconut Grove
Coconut Grove (Tel 91 80 25596149) specialises in Kerala dishes: try the wafer-thin appams with a fish or mutton stew.
Koshy's
Koshy's is a city institution: The air-conditioned half on the right serves food that's a throwback to an earlier era.
luxury
Olive Beach
Frequently voted the best standalone restaurant in the city, Olive Beach serves excellent Mediterranean food.
Karavalli
Karavalli, set in a faux Mangalorean house at the Gateway Hotel, draws from the culinary gems of the four southern states to present a menu that makes it hard to make up your mind.
Samarkand
If you miss north Indian food, head to Samarkand for a smorgasbord of kebabs and curries.
The Park
Round the corner from the Oberoi is The Park (from Rs 8600), a boutique hotel with cosy rooms and excellent service.
Budget
Hotel Empire
Hotel Empire (from Rs 1530) on Infantry Road has all the basic facilities and the bonus of an excellent location.
Woodlands
Woodlands Hotel (from Rs 1600) on Richmond Circle is another well-connected option.
Hotel Nandhini
A cheaper option is Hotel Nandhini (from Rs 2100) on St Mark's Road.
Midrange
I145
I145 (from Rs 4250) is well located for the stadium, economical and stylish.
Chancery
A short walk from the stadium, the Chancery (from Rs 5000 for early birds) is a well-equipped hotel that's complete value for money.
Museum Inn
Museum Inn (from Rs 3000), with comfortable rooms and earnest service, is very close to the stadium.
Luxury
The Oberoi
Right down the road from the stadium is The Oberoi Bangalore (from Rs 10,000), a five-star hotel with all the trappings and 2.8acres of gardens.
ITC Gardenia
The newest five-star hotel in town is the ITC Gardenia (from Rs 13,000), an architectural marvel with superb restaurants.
The Park
Round the corner from the Oberoi is The Park (from Rs 8600), a boutique hotel with cosy rooms and excellent service.
City Bar
City Bar, at the UB City Mall (Tel 91 80 42773636) has great drinks and a cool atmosphere.
Budget
Pecos
Pecos (Tel 91 80 25586047), a long-time favourite with beer-drinkers, plays classic rock.
Plan B
Plan B (Tel 91 9739902745) has a friendly atmosphere and lots of choice in short eats.
Midrange
13th Floor
The 13th Floor cocktail lounge (Tel 91 80 41783333), as the name suggests, lets its magnificent view set the tone for a night of partying.
Windsor Pub
Windsor Pub (Tel 91 80 22258847) has a great vibe, super food and serves only beer.
Luxury
City Bar
City Bar, at the UB City Mall (Tel 91 80 42773636) has great drinks and a cool atmosphere.
I-bar
I-bar at the Park Hotel hosts theme nights that are very popular with the city's happening set.
Café Mondegar
Mondegar's nightly traveller-based crowd is as 'colourful' as the wall caricatures by a famous Goan artist, but that could be our beer-goggle glasses talking. Expect to shout your draught beer (around Rs85) orders over the popular, non-stop CD jukebox.
Drive around
The first thing I would recommend to everyone is to get a feel of the city. Drive around. The roads are wide and the traffic is mostly not crazy. It gives me a sense of being at home again. You can rent anything: a bicycle, a scooter, a motorcycle or ...More details
Eat chaat
On your drive, you should stop off at the Sector 26 market, which should be easy to find. It used to be one of my favourite haunts because it serves up India's best golgappas (fried, hollow cupcakes filled with potato and tamarind water) - a snack that has to be ...Take in Tank
One of the places I always went to as a teenager while playing for Punjab is what people in Chandigarh call Tank, a war memorial which has a Pakistani tank won during the 1971 war. I used to hang around the memorial a lot with my friends after cricket practice, ...Visit the Rock Garden
They say if you throw a rock in Chandigarh it will land in a garden. I am not sure exactly how many gardens there are, but us Chandigarh folk seem to love gardening - there are gardens full of roses, hibiscus, and one that has only scented flowers. But the ...Get away to the hills
Chandigarh is an hour and a bit from the Shivalik range, the foothills of the great Himalayas. They are full of beautiful towns and one of my favourites is Kasauli, which has a lot of the British Raj left over in it, just an hour away from Chandigarh. There's a ...Getting around Chandigarh
Chandigarh is a fairly prosperous city, where every resident family has at least a couple of vehicles, so public transport isn't a strong point here. Cabs are your best bet for getting around. Call EasyCabs (Tel 91-172-43434343), preferably an hour ...
Weather in Chandigarh
Just like the rest of the country, in Chandigarh too temperatures are at a high during the summer months of April and May. During the day it's between 32 and 37°C, while evenings range between 28 and 30°C. Cottons are the way to go during this season in India's north.
Submitted by Rahul Bhasin
Submitted by Hari Kumar
Submitted by Sameem Rafiqi
