Food and local cuisine in Varkala
Varkala's food splits, deliciously, into two worlds. On one side is authentic Kerala coastal cooking, built around rice, coconut in every form, curry leaves, mustard seeds and the fiery-tangy notes of the region; on the other is the eclectic, traveller-oriented cliff-cafe fare that has grown up along the North Cliff. Most visitors happily eat across both.
Kerala seafood is the star of any coastal meal here. The daily catch — kingfish, seer fish, prawns, squid, mussels and the prized backwater fish karimeen (pearl spot) — turns up grilled, fried in a red masala crust, or simmered in coconut-rich gravies. Classic preparations to look for include a Kerala fish curry soured with kudampuli (Malabar tamarind) and thickened with coconut, a mild coconut-milk fish molee (moli), and simple fish fry in a spiced coating. On the North Cliff, many cafes display the day's fresh catch on ice and grill your choice to order — pointing at a whole fish and having it cooked with garlic, lime and Kerala spices is a Varkala institution. Freshness and price both vary, so it is fine to ask what's fresh and to confirm the cost by weight before ordering.
Appam and stew is the definitive local breakfast (and a fine light dinner): appam, a soft, lacy, bowl-shaped pancake of fermented rice batter and coconut with a spongy centre and crisp edges, served with a gently spiced stew of vegetables, chicken or fish in coconut milk. Alongside it you'll find other Kerala tiffin staples — puttu (steamed rice-and-coconut cylinders) with kadala (black chickpea) curry, idiyappam (string hoppers), and dosa — typically eaten with coconut chutney and sambar.
The sadya is the great vegetarian feast, and worth seeking out. Served on a banana leaf, it is a spread of rice with a dozen or more accompaniments — sambar, avial, thoran, olan, pachadi, pickles, pappadam and more — finished with the sweet payasam. It is the ceremonial food of Kerala, at its most elaborate during the Onam festival, and many places lay one on for lunch, especially on Sundays and festival days.
Cliff-cafe fare is Varkala's other signature, shaped by decades of international backpackers. Rather than name places, expect the type: relaxed multi-cuisine cafes serving big continental and "traveller" breakfasts (fruit bowls, banana pancakes, eggs, muesli and pressed juices), wood-fired and pan pizzas, pasta, Tibetan momos, and dishes catering to the long-staying crowd, alongside plenty of Indian classics and, of course, the grilled seafood platters. Fresh fruit juices, lassis, tender coconut water straight from the shell, and good filter coffee are everywhere. It is a genuinely cosmopolitan food scene for such a small town — just be aware that quality varies, that kitchens can be slow at the relaxed cliff pace, and that alcohol availability is limited and subject to Kerala's licensing rules, so it is not guaranteed everywhere.
Vegetarian and Jain travellers are very well served. Kerala's cuisine has a deep vegetarian tradition — the sadya, appam with vegetable stew, puttu-kadala, dosa, avial and thoran are all vegetarian — and the cliff cafes add plenty of international veg options. Jain-friendly food (without onion and garlic) can usually be arranged, but ask and confirm at the point of ordering rather than assuming. As anywhere, favour busy, high-turnover places, drink sealed or filtered water, ease into rich or unfamiliar dishes gradually, and be a little more cautious with seafood in the monsoon when the catch and the crowds both thin out.
Culture, festivals and etiquette
Varkala's culture runs deeper than its beach-town surface suggests. This is, first, a Malayali temple town with an ancient shrine and a role as a pilgrimage centre for rites of the dead, and, second, the spiritual home of one of Kerala's most important social reform movements. Over that base sits the international traveller culture of the cliff. The everyday language is Malayalam, though English is widely understood on the cliff and in tourist businesses; a few words of Malayalam are warmly received in the town and markets.
The town's most distinctive event is the Sivagiri Teerthadanam, the pilgrimage to Sivagiri held every year from 30 December to 1 January, when devotees dressed in yellow travel to the samadhi of Sree Narayana Guru to reflect on his message of equality, education and self-reliance. It is one of Kerala's great gatherings and turns Varkala into a sea of yellow at the turn of the year. The Janardanaswamy Temple's Arattu festival in March–April is the other major religious occasion, with flag-hoisting, processions and ritual bathing in the sea. Beyond these, Varkala shares Kerala's calendar: Onam (the harvest festival, around August–September, and the great occasion for a sadya), Vishu (the Malayalam New Year in April, with its ritual arrangement of auspicious items), and the temple-linked observances that punctuate the year. Confirm exact festival dates locally, as they follow lunar and regional calendars and shift from year to year.
Etiquette matters especially on the holy beach and at the temples, where reverence is expected:
- Respect the rituals on Papanasam Beach. This is a place of pilgrimage, cremation-ash immersion and last rites as much as a swimming beach. Keep a respectful distance from ceremonies, do not photograph mourners or rituals, and dress and behave modestly in these areas.
- Dress modestly at temples and the mutt. At the Janardanaswamy Temple expect a dress code — men are typically asked to remove their shirts and wear a mundu, women to dress conservatively; footwear comes off before entering, and non-Hindus may not be permitted in the inner sanctum. Photography inside temples is often restricted.
- Beach and cliff attire. Swimwear is normal on the tourist stretches of the cliff and beach, but Varkala is not a resort enclave — it is a working temple town, and covering up when walking through the town, visiting the temple, or near the pilgrim areas is both polite and expected. Topless or nude bathing is not acceptable.
- Swim safely. The Arabian Sea here can have strong currents and undertows; swim only where flagged safe, obey lifeguards and red flags, and stay out of the water in rough monsoon conditions.
- Mind the cliff edge. The unfenced laterite cliff is high and the rock can be crumbly and slippery, especially after rain — keep back from the edge and take care with children.
- Photography and people. Ask before photographing people, pilgrims and ceremonies; the pilgrimage and rituals are personal and sacred, not spectacle.
A general note on the town's rhythm: Varkala is relaxed and friendly, and serious hassle is uncommon, but agree auto-rickshaw fares in advance, confirm prices for activities and treatments before starting, and be a considerate guest in a place that is holy to many of the people around you.