7 Best Restaurants in Dhaka

***Updated October 27, 2013*** I’ve tried over 100 restaurants in Dhaka. These are the seven that I keep returning to. I have now made a map of them so that you can find them. Read my reviews of the others here: roundup part one, part two, part three, part four, and part five. Or, read about where I find the restaurants to try. In very clear order, here are the seven best:

1. The best restaurant — Goong, the Castle, road 50, house 12, Gulshan (look for the wooden gate. Previously called Dae Jang Geum until another restaurant named Dae Jang Geum moved in on the same street. Also, not to be confused with the Dae Jang Geum in the mall downtown). Korean palace food. Best sashimi in the country. If you want raw fish, get it here. Great vegetarian options as well (vegetarian bulgogi called Kong Bulgogi is Chef Kim’s bean product which almost tastes better than meat). If you want to eat at the best restaurant in Bangladesh (even if you don’t like Korean food), then this is the place for you.

2. BBQ Tonite, Dhanmondi: Meat on stick. Delicious outdoor atmosphere and smoky grilled meat. Some of the meat dishes like “reshmi chicken” are incredibly spicy even to a Bangladeshi. The “Kandahari chicken” is not spicy. Great freshly made flat breads of which the “rumali” roti or “handkerchief” bread is my favorite for it’s thin stretchy warmth.

3. Bamboo Shoot, Gulshan Avenue, Gulshan: Chinese. Special Chinese only (written in Chinese) menu on weekends. Take someone Chinese and insist on seeing it. This place also does authentic hotpot (boiling pot of soup in which you must cook your own food) and it may be the only place in the country.

4. Roll Express, Gulshan: Flat bread sandwiches. Dhosa. Fuchka/Phoughka. It’s a popular brunch place although they do not serve American style brunch. This is a good place to take new visitors or newbies to this part of the world. There is a nice courtyard as well. They do have fresh juice and other menu items but I tend to stick to the “reshmi chicken roll,” “paper butter dhosa,” and “fuchka” as these are good introductions to the food of South Asia and Bangladesh.

5. Spaghetti Jazz, Gulshan Circle, Gulshan: Italian. Only some of the food is good but try it out. Very dark interior lit with candles so it could be considered romantic except that you’ll usually run into other people you know there.

6. Spitfire (and Saltz above it is a seafood place), Gulshan Avenue, Gulshan: Continental. Fresh rolls. But service is excruciatingly slow.

7. Istanbul, road 118, Gulshan: Turkish food. Fresh cheese and freshly baked bread. Weekend buffet for 1,000 taka. But apparently dropping in quality.

Plus, one coffee shop: Northend Coffee Roasters. This place is better than most coffee shops in the U.S. It is run by an expat couple. For those who like a “do-gooder” feel, this place also does philanthropic/development work in their staff development style, and goods sold (khanta blankets are made of old sharees by women as a form of income). Or just come for the cinnamon rolls and atmosphere.

There are some others that are okay like Diner 360 and Dhaba. Lastly, I have intentionally omitted Le Souffle/Wasabi at the Bellagio because their food is sometimes good and sometimes bad. I cannot recommend a place that is unreliable. Also, the Prego at the Westin Hotel is not good enough for the price.

Again, these recommended places are on my map. Enjoy!