Oldest Food Chains/Restaurants in India

Take a trip down memory lane at these historic restaurants or food chains in India. Many of them date back to the pre-Independence era and are simmering with good food and great history:

1. Glenary’s Bakery, Darjeeling
This bakery-cum-restaurant located on Nehru Road is over 100 years old and is a hit with locals and tourists. You can see their various options out on display—yummy apple pies, sticky cinnamon buns and fresh meat pies. Their Darjeeling tea is a winner too.  They have two branches - one at Chowk Bazaar and other at Bagdogra Airport. This is the perfect place to sit back and marvel at the mountains and valleys.
What to Try: Hot Chocolate, Pizza and Tea 

2. Tunday Kababi, Lucknow
Globally famous for its exquisite Galouti kebabs, kormas and biryanis, Lucknow’s Tunday Kababi is believed to be established in 1905 by Haji Murad Ali, the one-armed star cook of the Nawab of Lucknow. Tucked away in the narrow gullies in the old area of Lucknow, the eatery still uses the same age-old intricate blends of spices to make its sensational non-vegetarian gourmet preparations. 
What to Try: Kababs without any doubt!

3. Indian Coffee House, Kolkata
Tucked away amidst the dingy by lanes of College Street (Kolkata’s academic hub), Indian Coffee House has long been an intellectual hangout and meeting place for students (and ex-students) of the Presidency College and other institutions since 1876. Great personalities like Rabindranath Tagore, Amartya Sen, Manna Dey, Satyajit Ray, Ravi Shankar and several others frequented this place. 
What to Try: Mutton cutlet and chicken kabirazi are the must-haves on the still-very-cheap menu.

4. Mavalli Tiffin Room (MTR), Bengaluru
Founded by Parampalli Yajnanarayana Maiya and his brothers in the year 1924, MTR is a culinary landmark in Bengaluru. Serving wholesome fare that has its origins in the Udupi cuisine of the coastal Karnataka, MTR has quite a reputation for its high standards of hygiene and cleanliness. During World War II, a significant shortage of rice supply resulted in MTR inventing the Rava Idli, a much-loved breakfast dish of south India.
What to Try: Rava Idli

5. Samco, Chennai
Established in 1962, it’s known to have been a haunt over its 5-decade-long existence for all sorts of Kollywood film industry folks. Whether it’s a biryani, Chettinad chicken, or perfect, flaky parathas (South Indian style) their loyal customers have long since learned that their consistency will always remain worthy of a visit. And surprisingly, their Chinese isn’t half bad either!
What to Try: The special chicken 65 Biryani, Pepper Paya and Kutthu Paratha 

6. Delhi Mishthan Bhandar, Shillong
Located in downtown Shillong’s bustling Police Bazaar, Delhi Misthan Bhandaar has been serving the locals with mouth-watering sweets, savouries and a lot more since 1930. The dedicated sweets section serves arguably the best jalebis and gulab jamuns one can get in town. The shop entered its name into the Guinness Book of World Records in the year 2008 for frying the world’s largest jalebi ever that was 75 inches in diameter and 15 kgs in weight.
What to try: Jalebis!

7. Shaikh Brothers, Guwahati
Established by Shaikh Ghulam Ibrahim way back in the late 1800s, this eatery is one of the most popular bakeries in Guwahati. This place was a favourite with Nehru’s family and set out by selling bread loaves and biscuits. The assortment of bread, cakes, biscuits and cookies at the bakery is now being run by the third generation of Shaikhs. 
What to Try: Cheese Straws!