Looking for the best restaurant in Dharamshala? The Divine Hima is a multi-cuisine restaurant, cafe and bar in Sidhpur, directly opposite the Norbulingka Institute and about twenty minutes below McLeod Ganj. Everything is cooked from scratch, which is unusual here and is the whole point — the kitchen turns out traditional Kangri Himachali food, wood-fired pizza, Tibetan thukpa and South Indian dosas, often on the same evening.
The menu took years to write and is still not finished. It runs to hundreds of dishes across Italian, Chinese, Tibetan, Indian, South Indian, Continental and local Kangri cooking, and each section is named after a film. Read it in full on the Divine Menu.
The Dining Hall
Reserved for overnight guests. An interactive breakfast buffet in the morning, and a fine-dine dinner in the evening. We suggest a Today’s Special, but the blackboard has chalk and a duster on it for a reason.
The Cafe
Open to walk-ins, all day, every day. Fresh-bean coffee, hand-rolled Kangra oolong, smoothies and the full menu. Free WiFi, indoor heating through winter, and an art gallery and library to wander while you wait.
The Pizzeria & The Bar
Wood-fired pizza from our pizzeria, and a proper drink at The Bar By Far — a small, serious bar a staircase from your table.
The Himachali Dham, Done Properly
The Dham is the festive thali of the Kangra valley: a sequence of dishes cooked slowly in yogurt and mustard oil, traditionally served at weddings and village celebrations by a hereditary cook called a botti. Most visitors to Dharamshala never eat one, because almost nobody cooks it for tourists. We do, every day, and it is the dish we would put in front of you first.
Ours comes with the classics of the valley — teliyen maa (black lentils spiked with mustard oil), khatta, rice and a sweet meethay chaul to finish. Alongside it we serve the rest of the Kangri repertoire, most of which you will not find on a menu anywhere else in Dharamshala:
- Sidoos — steamed poppy-seed-stuffed bread, eaten with melted ghee or buttermilk. Advance order.
- Guchhi — chickpeas and wild Himalayan morels in yogurt.
- Khatta maura — the famous Kangra dish of mutton simmered with mango powder and spinach.
- Lungroo pakoras — seasonal fiddlehead fern fritters fried in mustard oil.
- Chaa maas — free-range goat, slow-cooked in thin yogurt and whole spices.
- Patrod — seasonal colocasia leaves layered with gram flour, steamed, sliced and fried.
Some of these are seasonal and a few need a day’s notice, so mention the Dham when you book a table and we will have it ready.
And Everything Else
The rest of the menu goes a long way from the valley. A few things people come back for:
- Wood-fired pizza from the pizzeria, and pesto pasta with wild morels and pine nuts.
- Tibetan momos and thukpa, from the community that has shaped this valley for sixty years.
- Whole baked trout and river catfish, seasonal, from the Kangra streams.
- Dum biryanis, tandoor kebabs from the clay oven, and a raan-e-sikander on advance order.
- The pickle bar — the achaars and chutneys guests keep writing reviews about.
- Kangra oolong, hand-rolled, served as a set. Kangra is one of India’s oldest and least-known tea regions.
Vegetarians and vegans are properly looked after rather than tolerated, and the kitchen is happy to cook off-menu — the raita section literally ends with “you name it, we’ll make it”.
Finding Us
We are in Sidhpur, opposite the Norbulingka Institute, in the quiet lower valley between Dharamshala town and McLeod Ganj. That puts us roughly 20 minutes from McLeod Ganj and the Dalai Lama Temple, 15 minutes from the HPCA cricket stadium, 10 minutes from the Gyuto Monastery, and a two-minute walk from Norbulingka itself — which makes us the obvious lunch stop after visiting it.
- Open: 8:00 am to 10:00 pm, every day.
- Walk-ins: welcome at the cafe. The dining hall is for house guests.
- Reservations: +91 86269 83777 or +91 98057 60677.
- Parking: free, on site.
- Address: Opposite Norbulingka Institute, Sidhpur, Dharamshala, Distt. Kangra (HP) 176057.
Planning where else to eat while you are here? See our guide to the best restaurants in Dharamshala and the best cafes in McLeod Ganj and Dharamkot.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is the restaurant open to non-guests?
Yes. The cafe welcomes walk-ins every day from 8:00 am to 10:00 pm, and serves the full menu. The separate dining hall is reserved for overnight guests. Calling ahead helps, particularly on weekends and through the summer and Christmas seasons.
Where can I eat authentic Himachali Dham in Dharamshala?
At The Divine Hima in Sidhpur. The Dham is the festive thali of the Kangra hills and it is rarely cooked outside homes and weddings, so few restaurants in Dharamshala or McLeod Ganj serve a real one. We cook ours daily, alongside the wider Kangri menu of khatta maura, sidoos and lungroo. Mention it when you book so we can have the seasonal dishes ready.
What cuisines does the restaurant serve?
Local Kangri and Himachali, North and South Indian, Italian including wood-fired pizza, Chinese, Tibetan and Continental. It is a genuinely wide menu because the kitchen cooks everything from scratch rather than working from bases.
Is there a bar?
Yes. The Bar By Far sits alongside the restaurant, a staircase from your table, and is one of very few proper bars in the Sidhpur and lower Dharamshala area.
Are there good vegetarian and vegan options?
Plenty. Large parts of the Kangri, South Indian, Italian and Tibetan sections are vegetarian by default, and the kitchen will adapt most dishes to vegan on request. Tell us when you order rather than after.
How far is the restaurant from McLeod Ganj?
About 20 minutes by road. We are in Sidhpur, opposite the Norbulingka Institute, in the quieter lower valley — near enough for dinner after a day in McLeod Ganj, far enough to actually hear the river.
The kitchen is downstairs from the rooms. That is not a coincidence.