India GOCooking classes and food tours in Chandigarh
We have not verified any cooking class or guided food tour in Chandigarh, so none is recommended here; the partner tours below the text can be compared with local operators. What the city does offer is Apni Mandi, the rotating farmers' markets that set up in a different handful of sectors each day, and market sectors where the best-known street food, sweets and dhabas sit close together, which makes a self-guided food walk easy to plan.
Apni Mandi
Rows of fruit and vegetable stalls go up on open ground in a different handful of sectors each day, where farmers from around Chandigarh sell next to the regular vendors and the neighbourhood comes to stock up.
free · Late afternoon on the market's day; the Chandigarh edition of The Tribune prints each day's list of sectors
Ad · affiliate links: if you book, we earn a commission at no extra cost to you.
Book a tour in Chandigarh
Ready-made tours and classes with free cancellation from our partners. Compare with the local operators in the text above.
Apni Mandi: the farmers' market that moves
Apni Mandi ("our own market") goes back to the 1980s and to the weekly markets of Cambridge, which a Punjab official wanted to copy: farmers were given open ground in town to sell straight to households, without middlemen. The idea came from Manohar Singh Gill while he was Punjab's Development Commissioner (from 1985) and head of the Mandi Board; small farmers from villages around the city were given badges so that only they, not hawkers, could sell. Today farmers from Chandigarh, Punjab and Haryana set up next to the city's regular fruit and vegetable vendors.
The market goes up in the late afternoon in a different set of sectors each day of the week. The market committee revises days and places from time to time, and the Chandigarh edition of The Tribune prints each day's list, so check it before you go. Entry is free. Produce is strongly seasonal, and the winter vegetable months are the best: sarson (mustard greens) for sarson ka saag appears only in winter.
A self-guided food walk
Each sector is designed to be walked end to end; between sectors take a cab or an auto. These three clusters work well on their own or one after another.
- Sector 17: coffee and the old centre
The Indian Coffee House, part of the worker-cooperative chain, for filter coffee and a dosa; Sindhi Sweets for chole bhature and lassi; Hot Millions, here since 1979.
- Sectors 22 and 23: the founding generation
Hotel Aroma (1953) for its house ice cream, Bansal Sweets on Himalaya Marg for desi-ghee laddoos, Gurbax Dhaba in 22-D for a pure-veg Punjabi meal, and Garg Chaat in Sector 23, running since the 1960s, for golgappe.
- Sectors 34 and 35: chaat and chole bhature
Ram Chaat Bhandar in Sector 34 for golgappe with seven kinds of pani; in Sector 35, Gopal's for chole bhature and ras malai, Chandigarh Chaat Co. for cook-to-order chaat, and Katani Dhaba for dal makhani and stuffed parathas.
Plan the menu
What the dishes are: what to eat in Chandigarh. Where to find them: street food, sweets and markets.
FAQ
Are there cooking classes in Chandigarh?
We have not verified any cooking class for visitors in Chandigarh. Compare the partner tours on this page with local operators and check what is included before booking.
Which market is famous for food in Chandigarh?
For street food, the market sectors 22, 23, 34 and 35; for fresh produce, the Apni Mandi farmers' markets.
Where is Apni Mandi today?
It changes by the day of the week. The Chandigarh edition of The Tribune prints the day's list of sectors.
Is Apni Mandi free?
Yes, entry is free; you pay only for what you buy.
Facts checked: 15 October 2026. Prices and hours are approximate; check locally.
The full catalogue, hidden spots and districts on the map, plus “nearby” mode.
Open in India GO