15/07/2026
North Indian cuisine, by contrast, has one of the most developed vegetarian traditions in the world. Centuries of cooking for a population where vegetarianism is common, not a preference to accommodate but a mainstream way of eating, produced a repertoire of dishes that stand entirely on their own rather than reading as the meat dishes with the protein removed.
Walking past Chulia Court on Lebuh Chulia, most people assume it's a meat-forward restaurant. The tandoor images, the tikka platters, the grill-heavy menu descriptions and the visual language of North Indian cooking tends to centre protein. But spend five minutes with the full menu and a different picture emerges. Over twenty vegetarian dishes, organised across starters, mains, bread, and dessert. Paneer prepared eight different ways. Three mushroom preparations. Dal in two distinct styles. A tandoor that handles cottage cheese and vegetables with the same seriousness it brings to chicken.
Vegetarian diners in Georgetown are used to being an afterthought. At Chulia Court, the vegetarian menu runs to over twenty dishes — paneer eight ways, mushroom tikka from the clay oven, dal that takes time to make well, and bread that arrives warm from the tandoor. This one is for them.