Gangtok eats differently from the rest of India. The food here is Nepali, Tibetan, Bhutia and Lepcha before it is Indian, which means momos and thukpa are not novelty items but the default lunch, and fermented greens turn up in places you would not expect. The town also has a genuinely good coffee culture, helped by the fact that MG Marg, its central pedestrian street, is closed to traffic and lined with places to sit.
Axomor lists 37 restaurants and cafés in Gangtok with verified ratings, hours and price bands. These are the ones worth planning around.
The Short List
| Place | Rating | Hours | Category |
|---|---|---|---|
| CDC - Cafe Da Casa | 5.0 | 8:30 AM to 11:55 PM | Chinese, Pizza, Italian |
| Grains Pure Veg by Udaan Woodberry | 4.9 | 7:30 AM to 10:30 PM | Vegetarian |
| SHAMBHALA WOK | 4.9 | 11:00 AM to 11:00 PM | Bar |
| Sikkim Coffee | 4.8 | 9:30 AM to 9:00 PM | Coffee Shop, Café |
| Himalayan Kitchen | 4.8 | 11:00 AM to 11:00 PM | Restaurant |
| The Travel Cafe Gangtok | 4.8 | 10:00 AM to 9:00 PM | Café |
| Flavours of Punjab | 4.8 | 10:00 AM to 10:00 PM | Indian |
| Queen’s Pod | 4.7 | 11:00 AM to 10:30 PM | Restaurant |
| Doma Restaurant Since 1963 | 4.7 | 11:00 AM to 11:00 PM | Restaurant |
| S’yuo Cha | 4.7 | 11:00 AM to 10:30 PM | Sushi, Japanese |
| Lhasa Newar | 4.6 | 10:00 AM to 10:00 PM | Restaurant |
For Coffee
Sikkim Coffee is the obvious first stop, 4.8 from 221 reviews, open 9:30 AM to 9:00 PM. Sikkim has been building a small speciality coffee industry alongside its organic farming push, and this is where to try the result.
The Travel Cafe Gangtok at 4.8 from 189 reviews, open 10:00 AM to 9:00 PM, is the one to sit in with a book. Gangtok’s cafés close earlier than the restaurants, so this is an afternoon rather than an evening plan.
The Institution
Doma Restaurant has been open since 1963, which in a town that has rebuilt itself several times over is worth something. 4.7 from 87 reviews, open 11:00 AM to 11:00 PM. Order momos.
Queen’s Pod carries by far the largest review count in the city at over 1,650, rated 4.7. It is the popular vote and it earns it.
Himalayan Food
This is the reason to eat out in Gangtok rather than at your hotel.
Himalayan Kitchen at 4.8 from 141 reviews, open 11:00 AM to 11:00 PM, does the regional range properly.
Lhasa Newar brings the Newari side of Nepali cooking, 4.6 from 319 reviews, which is distinct from the Tibetan food most visitors expect and considerably more interesting.
SHAMBHALA WOK at 4.9 from 245 reviews is the highest rated place in town with a meaningful sample, open until 11:00 PM.
What to order across these: momos, steamed or fried, pork or chicken or vegetable, with the fiery tomato and chilli dip. Thukpa, noodle soup, the best cold weather food in the Himalaya. Phagshapa, pork with radish and dried chilli. Gundruk, fermented leafy greens, sour and strong. Sel roti, a ring shaped rice bread. Chhurpi, hard yak cheese, which is chewed rather than eaten and lasts about an hour. Tongba, hot millet beer drunk through a bamboo straw, which is the local winter drink and genuinely good.
For Vegetarians
Gangtok is unusually easy for vegetarians. The Grains Pure Veg by Udaan group appears four times in our directory, at Woodberry (4.9 from over 1,100 reviews), Alpine (4.9), Keepsa (4.8) and Pride Sikkim (4.8), all open 7:30 AM to 10:30 PM. That is the earliest opening of anywhere in town, which makes them the breakfast option too.
Flavours of Punjab at 4.8 from 517 reviews covers North Indian.
Something Different
S’yuo Cha does sushi and Japanese at 4.7 from 206 reviews, which is not what anyone expects to find at 1,650 metres in the eastern Himalaya, and it is well reviewed enough to take seriously.
CDC - Cafe Da Casa holds a perfect 5.0, though on 20 reviews, doing Chinese, pizza and Italian, and it keeps the longest hours in town at 8:30 AM to nearly midnight.
MG Marg
Almost everything above is on or near MG Marg, the pedestrianised main street. It is clean to an extent that surprises people, there is no traffic, smoking is banned, and in the evening the whole town walks up and down it.
This makes Gangtok the easiest place in the Northeast to eat well without transport. Pick a place, walk to it. That is not true in Guwahati or Shillong.
What It Costs
Everything in our Gangtok directory sits in the ₹₹ band. Expect Rs 300 to Rs 600 per person for a meal, Rs 150 to Rs 250 for coffee, and a plate of momos for Rs 80 to Rs 150.
Sikkim is more expensive than Assam for accommodation and transport, but eating out is comparable and the quality is high.
When to Go
March to May and October to December are the best months in Gangtok. The town is comfortable year round but monsoon from June to September brings persistent cloud and landslides on the approach roads.
December and January bring cold nights and the possibility of snow, which is when tongba and thukpa make the most sense. Gangtok fills over Christmas and New Year, so book ahead.
Note that cafés here close earlier than you might expect, most by 9:00 PM. Restaurants run to 10:00 or 11:00 PM. Plan dinner accordingly.
Where This Fits in a Trip
Gangtok is the base for all of Sikkim. Day trips run out to Tsomgo Lake at 40 km and about 75 minutes, and to Rumtek Monastery, and the town is where you arrange permits for Nathu La and North Sikkim.
That permit requirement is worth knowing before you arrive, since it goes through registered Gangtok operators rather than being available on the spot. Details in the Northeast India permits guide.
Our Gangtok tourist places guide covers the sightseeing, and the best time to visit Sikkim guide handles the seasons.
Browse the Full List
The full directory of restaurants and cafés in Gangtok has all 37 places with ratings, hours, cuisines and maps. For the other end of the region, compare with the best cafés in Guwahati and the cafés of Shillong, and browse all Sikkim destinations.
Eat momos at Doma, drink tongba somewhere cold, and do not leave without trying gundruk at least once.
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