Our Delhi-based team took us out for dinner at Karim's, a local favorite buried in the streets of Old Delhi a few steps away from the Jami Masjid mosque. This place is mentioned -- and recommended in the Rough Guide, but my co-worker Suzanne and I agreed we would probably NEVER have found it ourselves if we didn't have our trusty Indian friends to lead us there!
The decor is non-descript, and it was pretty hot and stuffy inside, although this was during the very hottest part of the year. The food was fine, but I didn't personally enjoy it as much as some of the others at my table did. Basically, it was a lot of meat-based stews and curries which all seemed extremely heavy and greasy to me, compared with the kind of Indian food I'm accustomed to in New York. It bore some resemblance to Indian food in NY (of which I am extremely fond!), but was just too heavy for my personal taste.
I learned later that I prefer South Indian cuisine and this was typical North Indian cuisine. I never knew the difference before! In any event, it was a nice place to sit for a few hours with friends, share some food and a few beers, and refresh our mouths afterward with those crunchy, sugary, candy-coated anise seeds at the end!
After dinner we walked the streets of Old Delhi for as long as we could stand it -- about 10 minutes! If we thought it was crazy and crowded and disconcerting during the daytime, we hadn't seen nothing yet. There were SO many people and street kids and animals and shopkeepers and rickshaws all colliding in these alleyways and teeny side streets, it was insane. Definitely worth checking out, but just be prepared; it is chaotic and a little overwhelming!