Pakistan: ③ Eating Out in Karachi

Crispy Beef Katsu (Cutlet) at Japanese Restaurant

Unfortunately I didn't have the chance to explore the Karachi restaurant scene as much as I'd have liked. Most major hotels and trendy shopping malls seemed to have a variety of international restaurants on site. Whilst I enjoy dining in those quality places, there's nothing much new to mention about their ambience or quality of food, etc, because it's all up to high standard, identical worldwide. This type of cuisine or restaurants are readily available in NY, Dubai, London, Bangkok, Tokyo, anywhere, everywhere. It's all the same.

I had dinner at a Japanese restaurant called 'Fujiyama' - a roof-top restaurant of the Avari hotel that afforded a panoramic view of the surrounding area. The head chef was from Japan, so the food was authentic and the quality was good.

'Dobinmushi' Soup Served in a Teapot

I tried a clear soup called 'dobinmushi'. It was very light yet seasoned to perfection and served in a single-serving Japanese teapot. Even in Japan the 'dobinmushi' soup is served only in those restaurants that are pretty traditional, so it was quite exciting to find it in Karachi.

High Tea - yummy!

The high tea at the Pearl-Continental Hotel was terrific and satisfying! We reached there just 10 minutes before the tea was over, so we were told to grab whatever we wanted first before the staff started clearing the buffet counter. This put us under psychological pressure and we were compelled to helping ourselves to far more food than we should have!

Sweets are all up to the western standard

Haleem

Yet it was indeed a fun fare and I'd always enjoy a good afternoon tea. Countless tiny bits of savoury snacks such as samosas, chaat, finger sandwiches, croquettes, meatballs to name a few, followed by a selection of mouth-watering pastries! I was totally stuffed!

I was certain I would skip dinner after the late high tea, but you really never know what will happen next – I was invited to dinner at a fancy members' club in the Clifton Beach area. The club was surrounded by a huge beautiful garden overlooking the bay, it had the feel of a country manor with an old British colonial touch with its high ceiling. You can always recognise the unmistakable colonial touch, whether in India, Malaysia or Sri Lanka.

Nice Juicy Steak at the Club

In the dining hall we had fried fish, some regional shawarma, steak and a 'Waldorf salad'. Never once in a million had I imagined to come across Waldorf salad in Pakistan! The steak tasted like Angus and I enjoyed the accompanying Madeira sauce in particular. Everything was yummy.

Out of all those restaurants I tried during my stay, the one that caught most of my attention was a local casual eatery. In front of the establishment and right on the street sat some 30 people (mainly young children and some adults). I was told there was a rather unique system that any customer or passer-by or anyone else is free to buy meals for those children who are indeed waiting for such sponsors to come by.

Bone Marrow Stew with Fresh Naan Bread

The food I tried here was a sort of bone marrow stew with a freshly baked naan. To be honest I was not quite used to this sort of local delicacy and can't really say it was to my liking.

However, my local contact sponsored the children and as the staff started serving them, every one of them looked so happy and delighted to be able to enjoy the very same dish as I was having.

The Boy...

I took a photo of a boy probably in his mid teens and then wondered if some of the children were 'regulars' of this eatery. If I ever happened to revisit the restaurant, what would be my chances of spotting this same boy again??

I guess, for a second I became somewhat curious to know what sort of life this boy was leading. Then I said to myself, "After all you'll never have difficulty in encountering someone like him, someone in his shoes here in this country." I just hope he will always be smiling just as he was when I saw him that day…