10 places that make the best biryani in Hyderabad

                                         Biryani in Hyderabad  

A handi of biryani, with rice, meat (or vegetables), and spices, is a complete meal in itself. Be it a formal gathering or an informal meet among friends, a handi of biryani suffices. Each spoonful of this traditional dish is suffused with aromatic spices and rich flavors. Lovers of the dish swear by its distinctive taste. However, a key fact most biryani lovers don’t know is that despite its various local varieties, the dish did not originate in India.

The Indian subcontinent has a history of foreign rulers, with each ruler introducing the country to various cultures and traditions as well as cuisines. The Turks, Afghans, Persians, and Arabs have left behind a rich culture of foods and feasts, while the Europeans have introduced the country to the popular vegetables such as potatoes and tomatoes. Even the tea we swear by had been growing wild in the northeast until the Britishers started its commercial production. Staking the claim to fame loudest among all such dishes is biryani. Traditionally made as mutton and chicken biryani, the dish was introduced to the subcontinent by Arabs and Persians.

Here are the places you can get the best biryani :-

1) Paradise

The world-famous Paradise brand has its origins in a small Canteen and a Café in a cinema theatre called Paradise in Secunderabad in the Year 1953.

A small 100-seater restaurant started serving typical Hyderabadi cuisine like Biryani etc. from early Sixties. The Café also used to sell general food items to the people as a one-stop Food Store.

In 1978, Mr A Hemati took complete charge of the Restaurant from his Father & Uncle and set about renovating the Restaurant to suit the changing social trends and the evolving food habits of people in India.

In 1983 an Air-cooled multi-cuisine Restaurant called Paradise Persis Family Restaurant and the highly popular Paradise Takeaway came up at Secunderabad.

Address: SD Road, Sappu Bagh Apartment, Jogani, Ramgopalpet, Secunderabad

Phone: 00-91-8977011117

Cost For Two: Rs 800

2) Jewel of the Nizam - The Minar, The Golkonda

the lofty confines of the opulent Jewel of the Nizam–The Minar, various generations of Nizams gaze down at diners from black and white photographs on the gilded walls, as peacock-blue crystalware glints under the chandeliers. Perched atop a minar, 100 feet off the ground, the restaurant offers dazzling views out across the Osman Sagar Lake, particularly striking at sunset to go with their authentic Kacchi Dum Biryani, spiced and slow-cooked in a sealed degh. While you’re there, sample their Hyderabadi haleem, available year-round, and the crowd favourite, Barkas Patthar Gosht, (mutton tenderised with papaya and grilled on hot stone).

Address: 

Sagar Mahal Complex, Gandipet, R R District, Near Osman Sagar Lake

Phone: 00-91-40-71328038

Cost for two: Rs 3000

3) Chicha’s

Keeping things comical, Chicha’s serves local fare with a liberal dose of Hyderabadi Urdu and caricatures of local monuments on the side. Find a seat at one of the simply laid tables and settle down to their old-timey dishes. For anyone who’s grown up in the city, the food will trigger sepia-toned memories of family breakfasts and happy gatherings, like the mutton biryani, a Hyderabadi wedding staple. At Chicha’s, it’s gently flavoured and surprisingly light (courtesy the exclusion of the easy-fix ajinomoto). Then there’s the outrageously crimson Shaadi ka Red Chicken, or the saccharine sweet but phenomenal Double ka Meetha.

Address: 6-2-39, AC Guards Rd, opposite Kun Hyundai, Veer Nagar, Lakdikapul

Phone: 00-91-9959911100

Cost for two: Rs 700

4) Hotel Shadab

Crammed somewhere in the impossibly crowded streets of Charminar’s Ghansi Bazaar, Hotel Shadab doesn’t look like much from the outside. But skim past the grimy walls and slightly sticky tabletops and you’ll be rewarded with the kind of delectable biryani that could make a grown man cry tears of joy. It’s served in a copper pot that’s overflowing with fragrant brown rice, and a glistening boiled egg that sits atop the heaped mound with flair. Shadab is one of the few places in the city where the chicken biryani is as good as, if not better, than the mutton biryani.

Address: 21-1-140-144, Near High Court, High Court Rd, Madina Circle, Charminar, Ghansi Bazaar, Hyderabad

Phone: 00-91-40-24561648

Cost for two: Rs 550

5) The Spicy Venue

The simple interiors of The Spicy Venue belie its food, with a nod to traditional Andhra cuisine in all its fiery glory. The star of the show here is the MLA Potlam Biryani. With its origins in the Telugu kitchens of the region, this biryani is spicier than most. It comes wrapped in a paper-thin yet deceptively tensile omelette that holds the rice and minced mutton and prawns within. Follow it up with the spicy Kakinada Peethala Iguru (crab fry in a hot Andhra masala), and chase it all down with cooling buttermilk–call it damage control.

Address: 265/S, Near Diamond House, Road 10, Jubilee Hills, Hyderabad

Phone: 00-91-7207095522

Cost for two: Rs 800

6) Adaa, Taj Falaknuma Palace

You might want to dress up for this one. At Taj Falaknuma’s sensational Indian restaurant, you’ll be feeling quite Nizamesque by the end of your meal (and no self-respecting Nizam would be caught dead in jeans and a T-shirt). Located in the sprawling grounds of one of Hyderabad’s most glorious palaces, Adaa serves authentic Hyderabadi food with the pomp and splendour only royal heritage can muster. A majority of the recipes on the menu are derived from a century-old cookbook that was discovered during the palace’s restoration. The slow-cooked Hyderabadi Kacchi Biryani is lightly-flavoured with saffron and rose water, and makes other biryanis look a little scruffy around the collar. While you’re there, enjoying the spectacular sunset as you dine, try the Shikampuri Kebab–yoghurt-filled lamb patties grilled to perfection.

Address: Engine Bowli, Falaknuma, Hyderabad

Phone: 00-91-40-66298585

Cost for two: Rs 10,000, advance bookings required

7) Taj Mahal Hotel

Vegetarians, don’t worry, we’ve got you covered. The Taj Mahal Restaurant, a simple vegetarian eatery with the charm of a bygone era, holds a special place in the hearts of Hyderabadis, and was once even the haunt of MF Husain. Their Hyderabadi Subz Dum Biryani, slow-cooked in its own juices of fresh vegetables and herbs, does the biryani legacy justice, and even a purist would have difficulty faulting it. Round off your meal with a round of the special TMH Basundi, and you’re golden.

Address: 5-9-502, Gun Foundry Street Number 1, Gun Foundry, Abids

Phone: 00-91-40-24758250

Cost: for two: Rs 650

8) Tulips, Hotel Green Park

Biryani doesn’t discriminate. If you find yourself craving it at 12 in the morning, it will happily oblige–or the kind folks at Tulips will, at any rate. With an all-you-can-eat buffet of ‘Midnight Biryani’, late-night bingers can satiate their longings without compromising on taste. The delicately-spiced Basmati rice is served with its trusty sidekicks, the spicy mirchi ka salan (or baghare baigan) and dahi ki chutney (or raita, for the uninitiated), till well into the night.

Address: Green Park Hotel, Leelanagar, Ameerpet

Phone: 00-91-40-66515151

Cost for two: Rs 1500

9) Dum Pukht Begum, ITC Kohenur

What’s in a name? Everything, apparently. At Dum Pukht Begum at the ITC Kohenur hotel, where the deep purple interiors harken to an erstwhile era of royalty, the name says it all. Dum Pukht is a process of slow-cooking - food is tightly sealed in a degh where it marinates and cooks in its own fragrant juices. So, naturally, the eponymous Dum Pukht Biryani is their piece de resistance–rich in flavour, but so light you’ll be surprised at how quickly it’ll disappear. Other slow-cooked delicacies, like the Shahi Nehari (succulent mutton in a rich gravy), are equally popular.

Address: Plot No. 5, Survey No. 83/1, Hyderabad Knowledge City, Madhapur (HITEC City)

Phone: 00-91-40-67660101

Cost for two: Rs 2500

10) Bawarchi Restaurant

So popular is the mutton biryani at Bawarchi that impostors have sprung up around the city trying to ride its coattails to success. But don’t be fooled–the OG has no branches, and makes it clear! Simple, unfussy and with a no-nonsense attitude about its food, Bawarchi takes its biryani seriously and expects you to do the same. Prepare to down heaped plates of the stuff with the accompanying condiments, and expect to have to loosen your belt. If you have any room, try their legendary Tandoori Chicken.

Address: Plot No. 44, RTC Cross Rd, Opposite Sandhya Theatre, Chikkadpally, New Nallakunta

Phone: 00-91-40-27605308

Cost for two: Rs 700