Table of contents for August - September 2014 in SAVEUR

STAY at the five-star Trident Hotel (tridenthotels.com). EAT homestyle Odisha dishes like kankada tarkari, whole crabs in ginger-garlic curry, at Dalma (dalmahotels.in), and sample the lassis at Lingaraj Lassi (near Saheed Nagar Mandap). EXPLORE the 12th-century Jagannath Temple, where Hindu worshippers partake of prasad, food offerings, in the afternoon. SHOP for Indian pickles at Capital Market, the main bazaar, or drive two hours south to the City Market Area of Brahmapur to shop for the city's famed achar pickles. STAY at the Taj Bengal (tajhotels.com). EAT the east coast's renowned fish dishes, including maacher jhol, Bengali fish stew, at 6 Ballygunge Place (savourites.in/flagship.asp). EXPLORE stunning architecture at the Ramakrisha Movement's Belur Math Shrine (belurmath.org). SHOP at the New Market on Lindsay Street, a 19th-century structure abuzz with cloth vendors, cheese…

STAY at the Lodhi (thelodhi.com), the elegant Taj Palace, or the Taj Mahal New Delhi (tajhotels.com) where Varq restaurant serves fine Indian fusion food. SHOP for saris and cookware at Khan Market. EXPLORE old Delhi with Kensington Tours (kensingtontours.com) or Cox & Kings (coxandkings.com). Pop into 113-year-old Chaina Ram for the city's best sweets, and stroll Khari Baoli, Asia's biggest spice market. Pamela Timms' eatanddust.com is a great guide to the area's street foods. EXPERIENCE langar, the giving of food, at the Gurudwara Bangla Sahib Sikh temple (dsgmc.in), where tens of thousands are fed daily. EAT at chef Manish Mehrotra's cutting-edge Indian Accent (indian accent.com). STAY at Vivanta by Taj (vivantabytaj.com) or the affordably priced Hotel Lineage (hotellineage.com). EXPLORE old Lucknow with Waltz Tours & Travels (waltzindia.com) to eat kebabs…

STAY at the ITC Grand Central (itchotels.in) for culinary pampering: organic teas, jams, and cookies in-room at tea time; honey-soaked almonds at turndown; five acclaimed restaurants; and champagne with caviar on the spectacular rooftop, featuring 360-degree views of the skyline and the Arabian Sea. At the Taj Mahal Palace (tajhotels.com), rare wines and whiskeys are sold under a private label, and Shamiana, one of 10 restaurants, holds extravagant Indian brunches. At the Oberoi's (oberoihotels.com) Ziya restaurant, Michelin-starred chef Vineet Bhatia serves modern Indian dishes. EXPERIENCE the manic energy of the Byculla Market, the city's largest vegetable market. Later, head to historic Metro Big Cinema (bigcinemas.com) to watch the latest Bollywood film. EAT local snacks at Chowpatty Beach's chaat stands. Come hungry to Ideal Corner (12 F/G, Hornby View), where the…

Like many remote places we visited in the making of this issue, the northeast is best navigated with the help of a local guide. Pradip Chettry, from Kensington Tours (kensingtontours.com), is one of the best. Make GUWAHATI your base in the region. STAY at the modest Kiranshree Portico hotel (kiranshreeportico.com). Drive to VISIT elephants and greater one-horned rhinoceroses at the Kaziranga National Park (kaziranganationalpark-india.com), a wildlife sanctuary founded in 1905. I was born in Assam and love teaching people about the diverse flavors of the northeast, starting in Guwahati, where I eat ASSAMESE cuisine like khorika, barbecued fish, pork, or vegetable skewers known as “stick barbecue,” at Khorika Restaurant on GS Road, or baanhgajor lagot gahori, pork with bamboo shoots, at Maihang at Shanti Palace. Namsing, opposite Commerce College, serves…

STAY in aristocratic style at Falaknuma Palace (tajhotels.com), a hotel on lease from the royal family. EXPLORE Indo-Islamic monuments, like the Mughal dynasty's Qutb Shahi Tombs, then head to nearby Golconda Fort ruins, which overlook the city. EAT delicately spiced Hyderabadi mutton biryani at a local favorite, like 61-year-old Paradise Hotel in Paradise Circle; Shadab Hotel near Madina Circle in the old city; or the bustling Cafe Bahar inside the Old MLA Quarters. STAY at the ITC Windsor (itchotels.in). EXPLORE Cubbon Park, built by the British in the 1800s, then EAT rava idli, a variation of the steamed lentil-flour dumplings made with semolina flour and served with coconut chutney at Mavalli Tiffin Rooms (mavallitiffinrooms.com). STAY at Vivanta by Taj Malabar (vivantabytaj.com), then SHOP for Kanchipuram silk at Nalli (nallisilks.com), open…