Four people to a trami is the usual share. The rice sits in the middle. Dishes arrive and get replaced or added. You eat with the hand, not because someone wants a photograph, but because that is how the meal is built. If you need a spoon, ask. Do not apologise for it, and do not film the next table.
A full spread is more meat than most visitors expect. Say so before you order a “complete” wazwan for two. A smaller plate of one or two dishes with rice is a respectable meal and closer to how a lot of people actually eat on an ordinary night.
When
Any month. In summer you will be glad of a room with air. In winter it is one of the reasons to stay out.
Where
In Srinagar, both in the old city and in newer neighbourhoods. Choose a place that is busy with local families, not a lobby that advertises a folk dance with the rice. This guide will not name a “best” restaurant. Kitchens change, and a commission rank is not a review.
Doing it well
- Go as a group of four if you want the trami.
- Wash hands. Eat at the pace of the rice, not the pace of the camera.
- Gushtaba or rista at the end is a sign the meal is closing. You do not have to finish every gram to have been polite.
Skip these versions
- Ordering a wedding-sized meal at 2pm because a brochure said you must.
- A “cultural show” you did not ask for, billed as part of the food.
- Assuming every meat dish will be fiercely hot. Some are mild and yoghurty. Ask if you need it less spicy.