Amritsar operates on a different frequency from other Indian cities. The Golden Temple — Harmandir Sahib — draws 100,000 people on an ordinary day and twice that on festival days. The air smells of incense, marigolds, and dal. And everywhere, in the lanes of the old city and at small stalls ringing the sacred precinct, chai is being poured.
Punjabi chai is not subtle. It is thick with milk, sweet with unrefined sugar, heavily spiced with cardamom and ginger, and drunk from small glasses that leave your fingers warm long after the last sip.
Chai at the Langar
The Golden Temple's free community kitchen — the langar — serves over 100,000 meals a day to anyone who walks through the gates, regardless of religion or background. It is one of the great acts of communal service in the world. Alongside the dal, roti, and kheer, chai is served continuously.
Sitting cross-legged on the floor of the langar, accepting a cup of chai from a volunteer seva worker, is one of the most unexpectedly moving experiences Amritsar offers. The humility of the act — the reminder that everyone eats, everyone drinks, everyone is welcome — stays with you.
The Old City: Katra Jaimal Singh
The covered bazaar of Katra Jaimal Singh — a labyrinth of fabric merchants, spice traders, and street food stalls — has chai wallahs at almost every corner. Look for the stalls with a brass bhagona (wide-mouthed pot) on a gas burner, the chai simmering continuously throughout the day.
The best stalls here make their chai in a single vessel — milk, water, tea leaves, sugar, and spices all added together and brought to a boil, then strained directly into glasses. The result is denser and more flavourful than the separately-brewed method.
Lawrence Road and the Irani Influence
Amritsar's proximity to Pakistan gives it a cultural flavour distinct from Delhi or Lucknow. Some of the city's older cafes — particularly around Lawrence Road — serve Irani chai alongside the standard Punjabi brew: a lighter, more delicately spiced tea, closer to what you would find in Hyderabad, a legacy of pre-Partition cultural exchange.
“In Amritsar, a cup of chai is never just a drink. It is an act of welcome — offered to pilgrims, to strangers, to everyone who passes through.
Makhan Fish & Amritsari Kulcha + Chai
The classic Amritsar breakfast pairing is Amritsari kulcha (flaky flatbread stuffed with spiced potato, cooked on a tandoor) with chole (spiced chickpeas) and a glass of thick chai. The kulcha-chole stalls of Kesar Da Dhaba and the century-old stalls around the Golden Temple clock tower open at 7am and the line starts forming well before that.
📍 North India