Dastarkhān
Aksakals by dastarkhān | |
| Place of origin | Afghanistan, Bashkortostan, Bangladesh, Fiji, India, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Nepal, Pakistan, Suriname, Tajikistan, Tatarstan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan |
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![](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:"Гап"_-_дар_сари_дастархон_(6).jpg){kind=link}
A dastarkhān (Persian / Urdu: دسترخوان, Tajik: дастархон, Bashkir: дастархан, romanized: dastarxan, Kyrgyz: дасторкон, Hindi: दस्तरख़्वान, Kazakh: дастарқан, Bengali: দস্তরখান, Uzbek: dasturxon, Nepali: दस्तरखान) or dastarkhwān is the name used across Central Asia and South Asia to refer to the traditional dining space where food is eaten. The term is a word of Persian origin meaning the tablecloth which is spread on the ground, floor, or table as a sanitary surface for food.
The Mughal Indian cookbook Dastarkhwan-e-Awadh, which details the Awadhi cuisine of Lucknow, emphasized the importance of the dastarkhwan.