You cannot take food into the Taj Mahal, the visit is longer than people expect, and almost everyone comes out hungry. Where you should eat afterwards depends mostly on what time it is when you walk back out of the gate. Here is how to think about it.
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After a Sunrise Visit: Breakfast
The best time to see the Taj Mahal is first thing, and most early visitors come out mid-morning. That is breakfast time, and Agra has a proper breakfast of its own: bedai and jalebi — a crisp, stuffed, deep-fried bread with a spiced potato curry, followed by hot jalebi. It is sold from early in the morning by sweet shops and street stalls across the city, and it is gone by lunchtime.
If street food is not for you, most of the hotels along Fatehabad Road serve breakfast to non-residents. Either way, eat something before Agra Fort; it is a long walk on hard stone. More on the local food in our vegetarian food guide.
After a Late-Morning Visit: Lunch
If you went in later, or went on to Agra Fort, you come out into the hottest part of the day. For much of the year the right move is a long, unhurried lunch indoors, somewhere cool, until the worst of the heat passes — our seasonal guide explains why.
Lunch is also the meal where the classic mistake happens: being taken by a driver or guide to a large restaurant they have an arrangement with. There is nothing wrong with asking them to take you somewhere you have chosen yourself.
After Sunset: Dinner
Late-afternoon visitors, and anyone who has gone on to Mehtab Bagh for the sunset view, finish their day as the light goes. This is the meal worth making an occasion of: the sightseeing is done, the heat has dropped, and there is no reason to hurry. It is also the meal most worth booking, especially in the cooler months and on weekends.
Where the Restaurants Are
Most of the restaurants tourists use are in and around Tajganj, the old quarter immediately around the Taj Mahal, and along Fatehabad Road, the road lined with the big hotels on the same side of the city. The lanes nearest the gates are full of small cafes with rooftop views. Fatehabad Road has more of the sit-down restaurants.
Our page on restaurants near the Taj Mahal goes into the area in more detail.
What to Order After a Morning in the Sun
Something cold first: a lassi, a fresh lime soda, a smoothie. Then something that will not sit heavily through an afternoon of walking — kebabs from the tandoor, a chaat, a dal with bread — rather than the richest gravies. Save the biryani and the koftas for dinner, when you can sit with them.
Eating With Us
Tajnuma is on the 2nd floor of Jobaaj Complex, Fatehabad Road, opposite Howard Plaza in Tajganj. We open at 12:00 pm, so we are a lunch and dinner stop rather than a breakfast one, and we serve until midnight every day. The kitchen is entirely vegetarian and Mughlai, with a chaat section for a lighter lunch and two tasting menus for a longer dinner. The full menu is online.
