Food is not at a premium in this region. Chicken is brought from Manali, no beef is available. Some restaurants offer mutton dishes. Eggs, rice, dal and a mixed vegetable are the usual options that one can look at in this cold desert. Needless to mention, the tastiest of the lot would be a curry made from fresh peas and potatoes. Thukpa is another popular dish available in Kaza, which is noodle soup with steamed vegetables, usually accompanied with a hot sauce for seasoning. Another popular offering of the Himachal mountain towns are momos steamed dumplings. They are commonly available in almost all eateries and are available in mutton, chicken and pork even though the mutton dumplings are probably the only ones made from locally procured meat in Spiti. The portions are quite generous in most places. Another local offering which you can probably ask for at one of the hotels if they don't have it listed as such on their menu is a bread called Tibetan bread or roti. Unlike the usual rotis in India, which are made from wheat flour, Spitian rotis are made from barley or other millet flours and some baking powder is added to the dough while it is roasted on a hot pan. It is very soft and fluffy in texture and a well-made "roti" can puff fully like a ball while on the pan. It is eaten with butter, jam or an omlette. It is surely one of the things to eat while in Spiti or around.An astonishing number of restaurants in Kaza also claim to offer Israeli, Mexican and Italian food. Most of these places however, are open and fully functional only after the arrival of summer, during peak tourist season between mid-June to August. The most popular beverage is boiling-hot, overly sweetened lemon tea made without milk, which is quite good after sunset, once the chill sets in.
