Kazakh food is built around the nomadic kitchen: meat (primarily lamb and horse), dairy, and bread. It is hearty, unpretentious food designed for people who spent most of the day in the saddle.
Beshbarmak is the national dish — the name means "five fingers" and you're meant to eat it with your hands. Wide, flat noodles are served under boiled lamb or horse meat, with a rich broth poured over the top. You'll find it at family gatherings and traditional restaurants; it's the dish to order when visiting someone's home.
Qazy is horse meat sausage, cured and smoked, with a rich, gamey flavor. It appears at most celebrations and on cold cuts plates. If you've never eaten horse, qazy is where to start.
Kumiss (fermented mare's milk) is a mildly alcoholic drink with a tangy, slightly fizzy character. It's an acquired taste but culturally important — refusing a cup when it's offered is impolite. Find it at roadside stalls and rural restaurants in summer.
Shubat is the camel milk equivalent of kumiss, thicker and more sour. More common in the west of the country near the Caspian.
In the cities, the food scene goes well beyond traditional Kazakh. Almaty has a genuinely diverse restaurant scene: good Korean food (Koryo-saram, the Kazakh Koreans, have been here since the Stalin-era deportations), Russian and Ukrainian cooking, Dungan (Chinese Muslim) cuisine, and plenty of Central Asian staples from Uzbekistan. Lagman — hand-pulled noodles in a lamb and vegetable broth — is everywhere and almost always good.
Tea (chai) is the default drink, served in bowls called piyala. It's usually drunk with milk and accompanied by nan bread, dried fruits, and sweets. Saying no to tea is not done.
Outside Almaty and Astana, restaurant options narrow considerably. In smaller cities, you'll find chaikanas (teahouses) serving basic Kazakh and Central Asian food, shashlik (grilled lamb skewers) stands, and cafes with menus in Russian. It's worth learning a few food words in Russian before venturing far from the main cities.