Where to Eat in Tashkent: 8 Restaurants Locals and Travellers Love

Tashkent is the best place in Uzbekistan to eat your way through the whole country: wedding plov cooked in giant cauldrons, hand-pulled lagman, tandoor meat and modern takes on the classics. Here are eight places worth the trip across town, from a simple local canteen to some of the city's smartest dining rooms.

Prices are a rough guide: $ is a simple local meal, $$ a sit-down dinner at tourist-friendly prices, $$$ one of the more expensive places in town. Most places take cards, but carry some cash, especially in teahouses and plov centres.

1. Besh Qozon (Central Asian Plov Centre)

Tashkent's best-known plov centre stands at the foot of the TV Tower in Yunusabad and has been cooking since 1999. Plov is made in huge cauldrons in an open kitchen, so you can watch the cooks at work. Order the Tashkent wedding plov (to'y oshi), the signature, or try the Samarkand-style plov or plov with raisins. Price: $. Official website · Open in Google Maps

2. Caravan

A Tashkent institution for more than 25 years, Caravan fills an old courtyard house with ceramics and suzani embroidery, with tables in a shaded yard and on a terrace. It is popular with travellers and expats and often has live music and folklore evenings. Try the wedding plov, pumpkin manti, lagman and dolma. Price: $$$. Official website · Open in Google Maps

3. Afsona

Afsona serves contemporary versions of Uzbek classics in a stylish setting, with a branch on Taras Shevchenko Street and a newer one on the Tashkent City boulevard. Look out for pumpkin or trout manti, its plov (including fruit and vegetarian versions), shurpa and samsa. A good choice for a first, polished taste of Uzbek food. Price: $$. Open in Google Maps

4. LALI

Opened in 2024 in Yunusabad, LALI is one of the city's newer upscale Uzbek restaurants, known for its interior and a long list of shashlik and regional plovs. Come hungry and share a selection of skewers. Price: $$$. Open in Google Maps

5. Navvat (Broadway)

A modern take on the traditional chaikhana on Sayilgoh Street, Tashkent's pedestrian "Broadway". Portions are generous and the menu covers the national dishes: plov, lagman, shashlik and samsa with pots of green tea. Useful to know: this branch is listed as open around the clock. Price: $$. Open in Google Maps

6. Anjir

A simple, local place on Shota Rustaveli Street for plov and tandir-gusht, lamb slow-cooked in a clay oven. The clientele is mostly local and the menu is mostly not in English, so it is a good place to point at what others are eating. Price: $. Open in Google Maps

7. Boboy

A cosy, teahouse-style eatery with a wide choice of national dishes, with branches on Taras Shevchenko Street and in Tashkent City Mall. Choose it for the atmosphere and a relaxed lunch of manti, shurpa or lagman with tea. Price: $$. Open in Google Maps

8. National Food

A long-time favourite opposite the Tashkent circus, where dishes are cooked in cauldrons by the door and you order at the counter, which makes it easy to see and choose. Expect plov, shurpa and shashlik. Check that it is open before you go. Price: $. Open in Google Maps

Opening hours and prices change, so check before you set off. Spending a day in the capital? Our Tashkent city tour shows you the old town, the metro and Chorsu Bazaar, and your guide will happily point you to their favourite lunch spot.