Travel Destinations » Hyderabad Fact File

An attractive city, Hyderabad offers major attractions like the Char Minar monument and its surrounds, Mecca Masjid, Salar Jung Museum, Nehru Zoological Park, Lion Safari Park, Osmania University, a drive along the Musi river and Hussain Sagar Lake, Public Gardens acreage, Birla Mandir complex, Birla Planetarium, Lumbini Park, Tank Bund Promenade, Elles World amusement park, Shilaparamam crafts village, etc. About 11 km west of the city lie the Golconda Fort and Qutb Shahi Tombs.

Fresh water pearls, attar and textiles are major draws where shopping is concerned. Pearls and jewelry are now available in the Basheer Baug area but the best place is Pathergutti at Char Minar. Andhra Pradesh is also famous for its kalamkari, bidriware and handlooms. These are available in the arts and crafts emporiums which include products from all over India.The three-floor Kalanjah emporium on Hill Fort Road, Saijabad, offers a stunning and reasonably priced variety.

With a changing lifestyle and increasing number of visitors, there are now restaurants all over town in a city where people at one time rarely stepped out except for nihari kababs and paan. They offer vegetarian and non-vegetarian, Indian, Hyderabadi and Chinese cuisines. To supplement these there are the newer fast-food joints in the Begumpet and Amirpet areas as well as old style “hotels” and bakeries in the old town.

Redolent of a past steeped in saffron and rosewater, when armies of speciality cooks conducted operations in nawabi kitchens where dishes simmered on low wood fires or coals, authentic Hyderabadi cuisine is an art in itself. Though kababs and biryani are available in most restaurants, few places serve the complete complement of sikampuri kababs, dum ka murg, kah mirchi ki machli, pathar ka gosht, charcoal chicken, mirch ka salan, baghare.baigan et al, not to mention the sweet dishes. A few restaurants like the neat little Dastarkhan in Basheerbaug and the five-star Dakhni at the Taj Residency are particularly good. The latter also serves interesting Andhra fare.