“Accessible places to eat in Pondicherry”
Food is an important part of any holiday. More so when it comes to a city like Pondicherry which has different cuisines to offer from Indian, Goan, Mangalorean to French, Continental and so on. This trip was completely self-planned, so a big thanks to Zomato app that helped me explore the different, top-rated restaurants. We checked out a lot, but many were not accessible. Thankfully, I did stumble upon a few places to eat in Pondicherry that were wheelchair friendly.
Also read: Holidaying in Pondicherry on my wheelchair, to know about the different places I visited and their accessibility status.
Here is a list of restaurants where I enjoyed dining:
Villa Shanti
Located in white town, their restaurant is on the ground floor and completely accessible from the road. You can enjoy Indian and Continental cuisines for lunch and dinner. Villa Shanti also a boutique hotel but thanks to old French architecture the residential part is not accessible in a wheelchair. There are no lifts to go on the first floor.
The entrance of Villa Shanti
Dilliwaala 6
As it is apparent from their name, the restaurant serves North Indian food along with various other cuisines such as Continental, Chinese, street food and so on. If you’re feeling homesick, this is the place to eat dal and roti. They are open for lunch and dinner and located very close to Sri Aurobindo Ashram. This restaurant is also open for lunch and dinner.
*Disclaimer: this restaurant is purely vegetarian 😀
Dilliwaala6
Rendezvous Cafe Restaurant
I was craving to eat at a restaurant which had a nice sea view and was accessible. This rooftop restaurant with a bleak view of the sea came closest. We went for dinner and were floored with the ambiance and food. They serve French, Continental, Goan, and Mangalorean cuisine. The ramp at the entrance is steep, but the staff helps you out and there is a lift to go to the rooftop. This is also located in the white town area. They only open for dinner on weekdays and offer both lunch and dinner on weekends/ long weekends.
Ground floor entrance Café Rendezvous – Notice ramp in the center
Elevator to reach the rooftop restaurant
Rooftop of Café Rendezvous
The only food picture we remember to take because all of us were so hungry
Ginger Pondicherry / Café Coffee Day
The hotel is located centrally near most of the touristy places. Definitely a good place to stay and the food options at their ground floor restaurant are not bad either. They also have a Café Coffee Day inside so you can enjoy their brews and pastries. You can also read my review of their wheelchair accessible room here.
Restaurant inside Ginger hotel, Pondicherry
Café Coffee Day inside Ginger
Le Dupleix – not accessible, but made accessible.
When you search online for top restaurants in Pondicherry, this one comes up in almost every list of best places to eat in Pondicherry and is famous for its French fare. We went there for dinner and found a flight of stairs staring at us. However, this is India and help is never too far. The guard at the front door and the staff from the restaurant came outside and helped in lifting my chair. They have an indoor and outdoor option, we sat under the open skies and enjoyed a nice French spread.
Hope you find this list of accessible places to eat in Pondicherry useful. If you come across more restaurants which are not on my list, then please drop in their names in the comments section below. I’ll be happy to update.
Be assured it will help wheelchair users like me to have more fun with food in Pondicherry 🙂
