Karimbek Restaurant

Karimbek Restaurant is a restaurant at 194 Gagarin Street, Samarkand, Uzbekistan, serving Uzbek food. It occupies a two-level oriental-style hall, and large shashlik platters are served on public holidays; live music and dance shows are reported. The kitchen focuses on traditional Uzbek plov, shashlik and lamb dishes, which suits visitors wanting a classic meal with entertainment. Opening hours are listed as daily 09:00–23:00. The phone number given for the venue is +998 90 284 30 30; numbers on listing sites sometimes differ from reality, so a call before a special trip is sensible. A typical meal costs about 80,000–220,000 UZS (~$6.7–18) per person at the Central Bank rate of roughly 12,000 UZS per US dollar, with tea usually inexpensive and drinks extra. Booking by phone is advised on weekends and holidays. It is on Gagarin Street, away from the Registan, so a taxi is the easy way to reach it. Payment is by cash in Uzbek som or by card at most sit-down venues, and a service charge of about 10 percent is sometimes added to the bill, so a glance at the receipt avoids double tipping. Lunch tends to be calmer than the evening rush, and the Samarkand summer heat from June to August makes shaded or air-conditioned seating worth asking for.