Glenary's, Darjeeling

==Going for an English==

Fans of the BBC's hit show 'Goodness Gracious Me' will no doubt recall the classic sketch where and Indian family go 'out for an English'. This was about poking fun at the British habit of going out for Indian food and being obnoxious to the Indian waiters and the sketch turned the tables on the norm by showing a group of Indians competing to eat the most 'bland' food on the menu and complaining they wouldn't ...
...after. I couldn't help but imagine that a place like Glenary's might have been their inspiration. This is a classic example of 'Old England' transported direct to the Himalayas and it's popular with visitors both Indian and international.

== A Darjeeling Must-Do ==

During our trip to Bhutan the week before we went to Darjeeling, we met an American lady of Indian origin who told us she had been to school in Darjeeling. ... more

Going for an English

Fans of the BBC's hit show 'Goodness Gracious Me' will no doubt recall the classic sketch where and Indian family go 'out for an English'. This was about poking fun at the British habit of going out for Indian food and being obnoxious to the Indian waiters and the sketch turned the tables on the norm by showing a group of Indians competing to eat the most 'bland' food on the menu and complaining they wouldn't be able to go to the toilet for a week after. I couldn't help but imagine that a place like Glenary's might have been their inspiration. This is a classic example of 'Old England' transported direct to the Himalayas and it's popular with visitors both Indian and international.

A Darjeeling Must-Do

During our trip to Bhutan the week before we went to Darjeeling, we met an American lady of Indian origin who told us she had been to school in Darjeeling. We asked her for her top tips of things to do in the city and she launched into a diatribe about how things just weren't the way they used to be and nothing was as nice as when she was a kid. But then her eyes lit up. "You just have to go to Glenary's" she told us, "everyone does. It's a Darjeeling must-do"

Location

And so, being good tourists, we did what we were told to and hunted down this legendary bakery-café-restaurant. Fortunately it wasn't hard to find because Glenary's is on Nehru road, one of the main central pedestrian shopping streets which was very close to our hotel. It's set slightly off the road down a slight dip. You head down the slope to enter the café/bakery or can head up some stairs to get to the restaurant. We'd booked our hotel on a room only basis and so Glenary's became our breakfast stop.

Time-Warp Tea Shop

From the outside you'll see typical architecture dating to the days when Darjeeling was a favourite with the British who escaped the heat of Calcutta to take advantage of the cool Himalayan breezes in Darjeeling during the stifling summer months. Architecturally, Glenary's looks like a cross between a cricket pavilion and a village tea shop. The name is painted in bold red letters on the front - complete with the very British apostrophe S. Cute little multi-pane windows on the upper floor are painted in bright white and it's all very neat and trim in a red-gingham sort of way with little pot plants to jolly things along.

Once inside, you'll find a large bakery counter where you can order food to take away, a few tables on the less fashionable Nehru Road side of the room and a scrum of people fighting for the best seats in the conservatory-like room on the back. These tables are in very high demand because they offer spectacular panoramic views of the city and the mountains beyond. With true eccentric contrariness, the wonderful windows all have net curtains to obscure the view - it's crazy. In this room the furniture is wicker or cane and the clients tend to linger for as long as they can stretch out a pot of tea. We experienced both the front and back rooms and I'd have to say that it is better at the back but sometimes you just can't be bothered to queue for a cup of tea.

Also on the ground floor you'll find an inexpensive internet café where you can while away your time on the web for just 30 rupees per hour (about 40p). Of course, that depends on whether Darjeeling has any connection at that time or whether there's a power cut so you can't completely rely on service. On our last morning the city had no internet access at all. In the middle of the ground floor, just beside the staircase, you'll also find an old red English telephone box with a public phone inside.

If you take the stairs down, there's a basement bar or take them up to a restaurant that's popular in the evening when the main café is closed.

Our Experience

Having 'scored' a table on the less popular side of the café we were then faced with wondering how you are supposed to get served. Eventually after watching everyone else, we realised that there was a 'food and beverage counter' where we had to go to order drinks and any hot food. If you want bakery products, you then go to the counter, tell them you are eating in and ask for what you fancy, paying there and then for any items. After a week in Bhutan where we didn't eat anything sweet at all, we went a bit crazy and polished off two pieces of chocolate cake before our drinks even arrived. I won't lie and say it was fantastic chocolate cake (and I have a professional interest in cake so I can judge the good from the mediocre) but it was entirely adequate and filled a sweet gap.

I probably broke every rule of Darjeeling etiquette by ordering coffee because I just don't like tea. A comment like that could probably get me arrested in the city that claims its tea is the world's best. My husband fortunately does love tea so we didn't completely disgrace ourselves. The tea and coffee came in large metal pots with a monogram and the name Glenary's etched on the front. I guess they were once silver plated but have since worn down to a more brassy-looking finish. I believe these crested metal pots probably date back to before Indian independence.

Anyone who's familiar with metal tea pots won't be surprised to hear that they came with paper napkins wrapped round the handles to prevent finger burn. They've probably been burning fingers since the 1920s but the napkins seem to do the trick. With so much tea and coffee to get through (easily enough of each for two or three people) I had to pop back to the bakery counter for two muffins. The total cost for two pieces of chocolate cake, two muffins and large pots of tea and coffee was around £2.

On our second visit we timed our arrival well and got a table at the back. We also realised by then that we'd better ask for small pots of tea and coffee in order to have any chance of finishing them. We ordered toast and scrambled eggs, sat back and read the papers, taking regular and longing glances at the mountains and we also learned that small pots come with neat little fabric handle covers that have also probably been getting patched up since the Queen was just a little girl.

Worth it?

You can certainly get breakfast, a snack or a meal for a lot less money in other Darjeeling establishments but you could also blow the budget and have afternoon tea by a roaring fire at the Windamere Hotel. But for an authentic taste of how locals and tourists alike enjoy passing an hour watching the mountains, it's hard to beat the Glenary's experience. 

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