Start with the abadha thali
the temple's midday mahaprasad is the meal this town is built around
Eating in Puri, honestly
Sacred food, coastal staples and street snacks — what this town feeds its visitors, and how to eat it well.
By the Hotel Sonar Bangla team · Published 1 October 2026
- At the hotel
- 2 venues restaurant + terrace cafe
- Must try
- Mahaprasad at Ananda Bazaar
- Local sweet
- Chhena poda and rasabali
- Seafood
- Best near the coast and at Chilika
- Meal times
- Earlier than you expect kitchens close early
Start with the sacred
Puri's most famous food is not a restaurant dish at all: mahaprasad, the food offering from the Jagannath Temple kitchens, sold at Ananda Bazaar inside the complex. It's cooked in earthen pots over wood fire, in one of the largest kitchen operations of its kind anywhere. Ask at our desk about etiquette before you join a queue — the rituals matter here.
The coastal Odia table
Odia cooking is gentler than the generalisations about "eastern Indian food" suggest — mustard oil, panch phoron, mountain rice and fish from the Bay. On a food-focused trip, work through: pakhala bhata (fermented rice, the summer staple), machha besara (fish in mustard gravy), chhena poda (the caramelised cheese dessert Odisha claims with pride) and abada sweets from the temple orbit.
Street snacks and beach hours
- Ghugni and chop — evening bazaar classics near the temple lanes.
- Jhalmuri — puffed-rice salad, made to order on the beachfront at dusk.
- Coconut water — the beach vendor economy runs on it; the morning cut is sweetest.
Where the hotel fits
Our multi-cuisine restaurant covers the safe-and-good base — breakfast before temple runs, dinner after beach days — while the Sundowner Cafe handles the between-hours snacks. Many guests eat their way through town by day and return for a familiar table by night; that's the intended rhythm.
Seafood note — freshness on the coast is excellent; ask what arrived that morning rather than ordering from a printed list.
Read next
A day of eating
How the meals actually fall
Odisha eats earlier than most of India, and kitchens close sooner. Knowing the rhythm saves you a disappointing evening.
- Early morning
Tea, then the beach
The in-room tea and coffee maker earns its place. Breakfast comes later, after the light.
- Morning
Breakfast
The hotel's multi-cuisine restaurant serves breakfast, lunch and dinner. If you are heading out early, ask the night before.
- Midday
Mahaprasad or a thali
At the temple, Mahaprasad at Ananda Bazaar is the experience. Elsewhere look for a simple Odia thali — rice, dal, a vegetable, and often a fish curry.
- Afternoon
Sweets
Chhena poda and rasabali are the two to know. Buy them fresh and eat them the same day.
- Evening
The terrace
Sundowner does snacks and beverages rather than full meals — the right choice for golden hour.
- Dinner
Early, and close by
The hotel restaurant or a place near Marine Drive. Do not plan on a late-night kitchen in Puri.
Food FAQs
The restaurant is multi-cuisine, so there is usually a vegetarian path through the menu. Tell the staff your requirements and they will guide you.
Absolutely — the town is the reason to eat out. Ask the front desk for what is good and open tonight rather than relying on a listing.
For the Sundowner terrace at sunset on a weekend, it is worth calling ahead on +91 76 8109 0103.
Before you eat
The short version
Fish here is coast fish
ask for the day's catch at the restaurant rather than ordering from memory
Vegetarians are spoiled here, not accommodated
Odia cooking is largely vegetarian by default
Keep planning: