Diwali in Northern Virginia 2026

Diwali Catering in Northern Virginia, from a kitchen in Vienna

Diwali is Sunday, November 8. We cook the spread, you host. Vegetarian-first, 100% Halal, made the way it is made at home. Pickup at 200 Maple Ave E in Vienna, or catered across Northern Virginia. Diwali orders close Thursday, November 5. “The exceptional Indian restaurant in a gas station.” The Washington Post Yes, the gas station on Maple Avenue. Also WTOP, 7News and Northern Virginia Magazine. People are surprised the first time, then they taste the food and it stops being funny.

Start your Diwali order

The five days of Diwali 2026

• Dhanteras - Fri, Nov 6. The day to buy something new, often gold or something for the kitchen. • Choti Diwali - Sat, Nov 7. Smaller lamps, early sweets, the warm-up. • Diwali - Sun, Nov 8. Lakshmi Puja, the diyas, the big dinner, the fireworks. The main event. • Govardhan Puja - Mon, Nov 9. Also called Annakut. In many homes, the biggest food day of all. • Bhai Dooj - Tue, Nov 10. Brothers and sisters. More sweets, naturally. Diwali itself lands on a Sunday this year, so most Northern Virginia parties will be Saturday the 7th or Sunday the 8th, with a second wave on the 9th. If you are hosting either weekend day, order by Thursday the 5th.

Diwali packages: pick a headcount, we do the rest

Diwali for 10
Two vegetarian mains, one chaat, naan and basmati rice, gulab jamun for ten.
Diwali for 25
Three vegetarian mains, two chaats, naan and rice, gulab jamun for twenty-five, masala chai.
Diwali for 50
Four mains (your mix of veg and non-veg), three chaats, naan and rice, sweets for fifty, mango lassi and chai. Delivered and set up in warmers.

What goes on a Diwali table

Diwali food is built for a crowd that arrives in waves. Nobody sits down at once, so everything has to hold: sweets on a tray, chaat you can assemble fast, curries that sit happily in a warmer, rice that stretches. This is the spread we recommend, in the order people actually reach for it. • Vegetarian mains - Palak paneer, daal makhani, pindi choley, paneer tikka masala and aloo gobi. • Chicken and lamb - Butter chicken, chicken biryani, lamb biryani • To graze on - Samosa chaat, pani puri, bhel puri, dahi puri • Breads and rice - Garlic naan, plain naan, basmati rice • Sweets - Gulab jamun, warm, plus whatever mithai you will stock for Diwali week • To drink - Mango lassi and masala chai, which disappear faster than you'd think

Not hosting? Send a gift card

Diwali is a gifting holiday, and a gift card is the honest answer for the cousin who has everything, the neighbor who keeps feeding you, or the friend with a standing order for samosa chaat. Pick any amount from $5 up, and you can schedule it to land in their inbox on Diwali morning rather than sending it now. It works for takeout and delivery.

Send a gift card

Why a Halal kitchen matters at a Diwali party

Northern Virginia tables are mixed. Family, neighbors, coworkers, kids' friends and their parents, and somebody in that group is checking. Our whole kitchen is Halal, so nobody has to ask which dish is safe, and nobody quietly eats only the rice.

What's happening for Diwali in Northern Virginia?

The biggest public celebration comes two weeks before Diwali itself. The Heritage India Festival, Diwali edition, runs Saturday Oct 24 (noon to 9pm) and Sunday Oct 25 (noon to 7pm) at the Dulles Town Center Expo Center, 21050 Dulles Town Cir, Sterling. Hundreds of booths of jewelry, clothing, decorations and handicrafts. Tickets are $5 cash at the door, children five and under free, parking free. This is where a lot of families do their Diwali shopping. If you are driving out to Sterling that weekend, Vienna is on the way home. Order ahead and pick up dinner on Maple Avenue so nobody has to cook after a day at the festival. Closer to the day, the temples and community centers around Fairfax, Loudoun and Prince William hold their own pujas and cultural programs. Timings are set locally and change every year, so check with your temple directly rather than a listings site. And then there is the version most people actually celebrate: somebody's living room in Vienna or Oakton or Fairfax with thirty people in it and not enough chairs. That one, we can feed.

Let us cook for your Diwali

Pickup in Vienna or catered across Northern Virginia. Tell us the date, your headcount and your spice level, and we build the spread. Orders for Diwali weekend close Thursday, November 5. No minimum.

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Diwali in Northern Virginia 2026 | Chit Chaat Cafe