Between May and October each year from 1864 onwards, the entire machinery of the British Indian government relocated from Calcutta (later Delhi) to Shimla, a ridge in the outer Himalayas at 2,200 metres. The Viceroy, his council, the Commander-in-Chief, the heads of all departments — they came for the cool air and stayed for the season.
Shimla's character is shaped permanently by this history. The Mall (the main promenade), the Gaiety Theatre, Christ Church, the mock-Tudor Wildflower Hall — the colonial architecture is intact and the town still has the slightly frozen quality of a place that was once the centre of the world and has been very gracefully adjusting to being less so ever since.
Its chai is emphatically of the mountains: heavy on ginger, heavy on black pepper, thick with milk, and drunk at all times because at 2,200 metres in October, the cold is honest.
The Ridge and the Mall: Outdoor Chai Culture
Shimla's pedestrianised Mall and the Ridge (the open esplanade with views of the snow peaks) are the social heart of the town. The chai stalls here — some indoor, most effectively outdoor, sheltered by canvas awnings — do a continuous trade from early morning through the tourist season.
The best chai on the Mall is served by a stall near the Scandal Point junction (named for a 19th-century incident involving a princess and the Maharaja of Patiala that was never fully resolved). The vendor's chai is the mountain standard: ginger and cardamom forward, sweetened heavily, brewed in a large aluminium pot.
Lakkar Bazaar: The Wood Market and Its Chai Stalls
Lakkar Bazaar (literally: wood market) is Shimla's craft and woodwork area — wooden toys, walking sticks, and carved household items are the speciality. The chai stalls here serve the construction and market workers as well as tourists, and the tea is considerably better and cheaper than the Mall cafes.
A stall at the lower end of the bazaar makes chai in a samovar — a legacy of the Russian-Central Asian influence that reached Shimla via the colonial trade routes. The samvar-chai is lighter and more aromatic than the standard bhagona version.
Wildflower Hall and the Luxury Chai
The Wildflower Hall (now operated by Oberoi Hotels) sits 13km from Shimla at Mashobra, at 2,600 metres, with views of the snow peaks that are genuinely breath-taking. Its afternoon tea service is the colonial tradition at its most refined — Darjeeling first flush, Nilgiri orthodox, Assam second flush, and a full masala chai on request, served on a terrace with the Himalayan range spread out before you.
This is not how most people drink chai in India. But it is worth knowing that the finest version of this particular tradition exists here, doing justice to the landscape.
The Toy Train to Shimla
The Kalka–Shimla Railway — another UNESCO World Heritage mountain railway — climbs through 102 tunnels over 96km from the plains. The chai service on this train is a genuine pleasure: a vendor moves through the carriages at intervals with a flask and small cups, the tea sweet and milky, the tunnel darkness making each reappearance of mountain view more dramatic.
“📍 North IndiaShimla has been through the loss of extraordinary importance and come out the other side with remarkable composure. Its chai is like that — understated, reliable, quietly excellent.