Jeddah Food Centre, Clifton

Jeddah Food Centre is located next to the famous Motta's Supermarket in Clifton, near Schon Circle, right at the beginning of the Boat Basin strip.

Their main offerings are Chicken Biryani, Chicken Shawarma, Shami Kababs, Kheer and ice cream.

Jeddah Food Centre has been around since at least more than a decade, as far as I can remember.

A few meters down, a kiosk offers Jeddah ice cream. This outlet is operated by the brother of the owner of Jeddah Food Centre. They have some great flavors at very economical prices.

A single plate of Chicken Biryani, Rs 100

A teeny bit on the spicy side (just as we Pakistanis love it), Chicken Biryani doesn't get any better than this. The serving is huge and the price is lower than what you'd pay for a single plate of the dish anywhere else in the vicinity.

Plus, they always give a half-potato in the plate, unlike other eateries that think nothing of conveniently skipping the potato.

This plate of biryani also comes accompanied by a large sachet of green raita at no extra charge. Beat that?!

If you'd like to have a Beef Shami Kabab with your biryani, they are also available, priced at just Rs 10 each.

  

Chicken Shawarma, for Rs 90
Its always soft, fresh and oozing with juices from the chicken and vegetables inside. 

A cup of Peshawari ice cream, priced at Rs 55 (only).

Traditional ice cream at a great price, with the quantity enough for two - in my opinion!

Verdict: Jeddah Food Centre has been doing successful business for years. If you do not mind eating in your car, you'd love having their food. Their waiter-boys serve you eagerly.

Jeddah Food Centre also provides daigs (large pots) of their biryani for events.

Jan's Broast, Clifton

I have memories of eating fried chicken during my childhood at the extremely crowded Jan's Broast outlet in main Saddar, Karachi.

Clifton now also has a big, brightly lit outlet of Jan's Broast near Hanging Gardens Apartments.

Lots of light bulbs adorn this eatery at night.
I think this extravagant usage of electricity is preposterous, considering the grave energy crisis in our city.

The restaurant has self-service like KFC/McDonald's.

The menu comprises of fast food and barbecue items, with chicken broast ruling the roost. If you peer closely at the above picture, you'll be able to read the items.
Their fried fish is actually quite good.

This outlet is airy and spacious.

This branch of Jan's also has a family-only room next to the staircase on one side. 

This is the outdoor seating area, situated under the canopy of light bulbs.

Club Sandwich for Rs 150

French Fries

This was a peculiar item. Called Grilled Chicken Vegi Steak, at first it looked mysteriously like half of a Chicken Tikka.
When I tore off the upper pieces of barbecued chicken, the inside unleashed steamed potatoes and peas. Interesting. If only the chicken had been grilled as stated, and not barbecued, it would have been quite perfect.
Its price was Rs 215.

Puri paratha's. 

Verdict: Jan's is a popular outlet that does thriving business. Broast is its prime offering. The rates are quite reasonable.

Thali Inn, Boat Basin, Clifton

If you would like to visit a place where you are served all kinds of food belonging to Arabian, Pakistani and South Indian cuisine in large, sometimes sizzling and smoking platters, then Thali Inn is the stop for you and your family.

It is located at the end of Boat Basin that is closer to the Karachi Grammar School campuses, next to the - ahem - open air "river". 

It is in line with the famous Qasr Al-Nakheel and Hobnob bakery. 

Most of the items on the menu are served in the form of platters or thali's. 

A few entree's are individual too, but the serving sizes of most are enough for two people or a small family.  

You can see how unique some of the entrees are. I can tell you, they really did sizzle and let off smoke! 

The decor of the family hall is rustic, colored in hues of matted beige and rust. 

The furniture is made of carved wood! That was a hit with me. :)

The walls are textured to give the impression of a village hut with mud walls. 

It sounds a bit of an anti climax, but we were not in the mood for meat. Rather, the idea of having a South Indian type of thali with different kinds of vegetarian curries, motivated us to visit Thali Inn.  

Therefore, we ordered this Vegetarian Thali for Rs 285, and one chicken tikka.

Garlic Nan and Puri Paratha's. 

The Vegetarian Thali had boiled rice, channa curry (the kind you get with halwa puri), Kadhi (gram flour and yogurt curry), achar (pickles) and moong daal.  

It also had mixed vegetable bhaji/bhujia (visible on top left corner). 

The whole offering was more than enough for two people. The dumpling (pakora) in the Kadhi was not very soft, but the rest was great! 

I especially love how our local Pakistani cuisine offers the greatest variety of naans. The garlic naan served fresh and piping hot, was just out of this world! 

Our bill came to Rs 530, including 2 drinks.

Verdict: On the adjoining tables, we saw some appetizing, smoking and sizzling platters being served to families, having meat ranging from kababs to whole fish! 

Next time, we intend to try one of their family-sized, sizzling, meaty stuff, insha'Allah. 

Qasr Al-Nakheel, Boat Basin, Clifton

This eatery on one corner of Boat Basin has been around since I was a kid, which means a good two decades. Qasr Al-Nakheel means "Fort of the Date Palm Trees" in Arabic (which  also implies that I learned something in these two decades, because as a child I always wondered what on earth such a complex-sounding name actually meant!)

 Anyway, of late this place was recommended to me by many. I kept hearing  here and there about how good it was, so one day we decided to try it out, especially since it has a nicely-decorated family room.

The menu shows that its prices are actually quite economical.

They offer a wide variety of cuisines: from the Lebanese shawarma to Arabic hummus. All Afghan and traditional Pakistani BBQ items are also available.

The ambience is alright. At least the AC was working, and that is what really matters the most at times, in Karachi's heat!

We ordered their Bar B.Q thali, which had meat of all kinds thrown in. This cost Rs 350 and was more than enough for our family. 

It had Afghani Pulao (pilaf) in its centre, one Chicken Tikka, Seekh Kababs, Fish Tikka, and Mutton Boti along with tamarind chutney and salad. 

Everything was fresh and tender.

The garlic naans were piping hot and, as you can see clearly, quite out of this world in taste!

Overall verdict: The thali was so good and economically priced, and the staff was so polite (something that makes a big difference to our family), that we will definitely try this place again in the future, insha'Allah, especially if we are in the mood for "meaty" BBQ.

Nihari Inn, Boat Basin, Clifton

Doing good business since many years on the Boat Basin strip in Clifton is a moderately-priced restaurant called Nihari Inn.

On the night we paid it a visit, it had rained heavily, so the outer baithak's of tukhts and gao takya's that have become a landmark of this strip of eateries, had been wound up, with tents erected in their place, as is obvious from the picture above.

The restaurant has an open air terrace upstairs.

The menu is reasonably priced and offers all variety of typical, popular desi food.

As you can see, the economic rates of the restaurant food combined with sustained good quality gives Nihari Inn  an edge above its overpriced counterparts tucked away in remote corners of Defence.

This below was their single serving of sumptuous Mutton Kunna priced at Rs 170:

And this was a single serving of plain Beef Nihari, priced at Rs 160:

 More shots of the succulent Kunna and Nihari. The meat in both was extremely tender!

The serving size was huge. We had to get the leftover packed to take back home.

Fluffy, hot naans were the best accompaniment to the meat curries:

This Kulfi in a clay pot priced at Rs 30, on the other hand, was a complete disaster. Avoid it! :)

The kheer was great in taste.

All in all, dining at Nihari Inn is a pleasurable experience, because of the good quality of the food combined with economical rates. 

Tandoori Hut, Boat Basin

Tandoori Hut is an increasingly popular eatery located in Boat Basin, Clifton Block 3. It has been doing roaring business since the last few years, resulting in its fast expansion across the Boat Basin strip.

On any night, groups of young men and boys mainly dominate the dining area outside, whilst families are seated inside the air-conditioned family rooms visible in the background.

Don't know about everyone else, but the one item on the menu at Tandoori Hut that is the biggest hit with everyone I know, is this Chicken Makhnie, or Butter Chicken.

Eaten with this Garlic Naan that comes piping hot from the tandoor, or puri parathay, the creamy Chicken Makhnie has to be tried to be believed!

This handi of Half Chicken Makhnie cost Rs 450. It suffices 2 adults easily. Be warned though, that it is made with oodles of cream and butter that lend it its unique taste and smooth texture, which means it is full of fat and cholesterol.

Breakfast

Tandoori Hut also serves breakfast on Sundays. The usual halwa puri, paya, nihari in addition to omelets, paratha's, and doodh patti chai (brewed tea).

The outdoor sitting area outside Tandoori Hut on a lazy Sunday morning.
I warn you: the environment is not hygienic and clean when you dine outside under the cloth awnings dancing over your heads in the wind, along a flimsily covered sewer running on the ground on one side of the tables (yeah...ew...but what else is new?!), not to mention, stubborn beggar urchins persistently interrupting your meal!

If you have issues with all of this, you can avail Tandoori Hut's air-conditioned rooms to have your breakfast.

Omelet: Rs 50 (one egg), Paratha: Rs 30, Doodh Patti Chai: Rs 50

We prefer the traditional anda paratha breakfast over halwa puri.
No exaggeration: the food is worth the extra price. From the first bite, you can tell that the omelet is fried in good-quality cooking oil, and the paratha's - ah, what can I say? - every crispy curl that you unfold with your hands becomes pure delight when crunched in the mouth! These paratha's might just give your Mom's homemade ones a run for their money. :)

Sooji halwa (sweet, greasy stir-fried semolina) - Rs 50 (per half plate)
This was average. Nothing special.

Total breakfast bill: Rs 530 (the prices are a bit on the higher side)

Verdict: The menu at Tandoori Hut is very extensive, with all dishes that are part of traditional Arabic and Lebanese cuisine on offer as well, in addition to the usual barbecue, Chinese and fast food items .

Please note that, despite being located in the more economical area of Boat Basin, the food at Tandoori Hut is not cheap. However, taste and quality are guaranteed at the extra cost!