Biryani Centre, 26th Street, Defence phase 5

بِسْمِ اللَّهِ الرَّحْمَـنِ الرَّحِيمِ

Biryani Centre is a vintage fixture on main 26th Street in DHA phase 5, just behind the prominent petrol pump, a location that is also known as Tauheed commercial.

It now has reasonably clean and spacious dining halls for dine-in. 

Different types of fried fish have been recently added to the menu. 

Like I said, clean and spacious, with prominent menus on the walls. 

There is no air conditioning. 

And stray cats might stealthily graze your legs during the meal (which we don't really mind). 

The whole menu at a glance. Economical is the word!

Click here to get a closer look at the menu.

The recently added seafood menu items. 

Single chicken biryani - Rs 140

Fish finger, single plate - Rs 180

Puri paratha's and chapati's

Regular/single serving of chicken haleem, with accompanying garnishes- Rs 90

As you can see, the prices are easy on the wallet. The sum total of this bill equals the cost of a single-person meal at one of the foreign food franchises. 

Verdict: The food is really good, especially the fish! This is dhaba-style, no-frills desi-food dining at its traditional best.

The Pakistani culinary experience can never be complete without our quintessential, old-school, timeless favorites: biryani and haleem. 

All I can say is that I'm glad Biryani Centre (and it's lesser known fraternal twin, Haleem Centre) is still thriving after all these years, at the same location, without having been upgraded to a "classier" (and hence more expensive) eatery.

Contact numbers: +92-21-35838582, +92-21-35865137

Zameer Ansari Kabab House, Alamgir Road

بِسْمِ اللَّهِ الرَّحْمَـنِ الرَّحِيمِ

In a recent article in DAWN, about desi food in Karachi, I read that a Zameer Ansari Kabab House on Alamgir Road offers some good meaty stuff. 

So off we went on a recent slow evening, and our search brought us to the ZA Kabab Place that is located right next to the "Quetta Hotel" that offers a very famous variety of lachchay daar paratha's with omelet style eggs as early morning breakfast, which we have tried once or twice.

A review of that is intended in future, insha'Allah. Taking photos and simultaneously balancing plates of food whilst seated in your car is not easy. And sitting on the rickety roadside plastic tables and chairs outside Quetta Hotel on Alamgir Road, among thronging crowds of mostly men, is also not easy for a family with small children.

Anyhow, hygiene and cleanliness in this neighborhood is clearly not a top priority. You'll need to skip and hop over strewn bits of trash on the road, and then climb some really steep metal stairs to get to this "family hall" on the first floor of Zameer Ansari Kabab House.

It is well aired and neat, to give due credit. There is a standby generator and a huge "desert cooler" (Lahore style) in a corner on this floor.
However, don't be surprised that there is no air conditioning.

For some reason, there were a few huge, honeybee-type winged insects flying around, which made us somewhat scared. Thankfully, they'd gravitate towards the naked light bulbs and scorch themselves to death.
My kids were more entertained by them than scared. Heh! :)
Never a dull moment when eating out in Karachi, eh?

The menu, and their phone numbers.

White and red, both kinds of meat are on offer.
However, not all items on the menu are always available. The waiter told us that only the items visible on the left side of the menu (in the above photo) were available.

Nothing on the so-called "VIP menu" (visible above right), was available either.
Prices of mutton dishes are surprisingly reasonable, aren't they?
That none of these mutton dishes were available, was rather disappointing though.

Apparently they also have kabab rolls and halwa.

Zameer Ansari also caters Delhi wala's food for parties. :) 

Beef Bihari Boti a.k.a Bihari Kababs - Rs 176

Chutney and onions, complimentary.

Chicken Reshmi Kababs - Rs 220
Soft and spicy, these were melt-in-your-mouth tender and served piping hot, straight off the coals. 

Chicken Gola Kababs - Rs 220
A bit more spicy but just as tender as the other chicken kababs.
The mince inside was so fine, that it stuck to the plate and to our finger tips.

Puri Paratha's

All the food at a glance, besides the chapati's that we also ordered.

This was the star of the evening. Even though I am not much of a beef eater, these were totally out of this world! Better than even the Bihari Boti that I've had at Al-Kabab.

All in all, a no-frills, delicious meat-eating tryst with utmost simplicity.

Every bite of the kababs chewed with the crunchy, flaky puri paratha's, dabbed in chutney and the raw onions, was pure desi delight! 

This whole meal cost no more than a single entree offered by the fancier, "burgher", fine-dining places in Karachi.

Verdict: The service was not up to the mark, and our order got to us quite late, as just one (clearly weary and overworked) waiter was catering to the whole floor, which had quickly filled up with families comprising of 4-5 people at each table.

Aside from that, and the few scary bees flying around, the food was awesome! This Kabab house obviously does great business, and has a loyal clientele that keeps coming back for their great food.

So if you don't mind compromising on ambiance and cleanliness to partake in some great-tasting, affordable local desi fare, you'd love eating here, insha'Allah.

Keep a small insect repellent spray with you, just in case.

Usmania Restaurant, Block 2, Clifton

The term "Usmania Restaurant" brings back many childhood memories for me.

This restaurant has been around since the 1980's, when its only branch operated from Gulshan-e-Iqbal. We used to go out to eat there with extended family once every few years.

Now it has a prominent branch in Clifton, in the area opposite Bilawal House, en route to the Aga Khan Clifton Medical Services Center. 

Steamed Roast is a much-touted speciality.
They claim to be the largest Pakistani restaurant chain. For that, credit is surely due, because they have certainly not gone out of business, despite the increasingly stiff international competition.

As the menu shows, the dominant items Usmania offers are Pakistani and Barbecue dishes.

They have added a sprinkling of continental cuisines as well, such as burgers, sandwiches, steaks and a few other "gora" (English) food items .

Another aerial shot of the Pakistani main course menu.

The prices are not economical, but so what else is new? You can expect to spend the same here as other restaurants of the city, albeit less than the overpriced ones offering gourmet fare. 

The prices shown in the menu are inclusive of all taxes.

There are 2 floors, the upper one for families. Flanking the main eating areas on both, are huge air conditioners. The restaurant sports full glass walls on three sides, and a very clean washroom (always a plus point for our family!).

High chairs are available for the infants. 

All in all, a favorable ambience.

The restaurant decor is old-school Pakistani, well-lit and spacious. 

Every time we have eaten at Usmania, we happened to order barbecue items. 

So this time we decided to try their Chinese menu. 

Chicken Chilli Vegetable - Rs 475 (price inclusive of tax).

The quantity was abundant and the chicken chunks were huge, but the taste was definitely the typical Pakistani-Chinese that you find in every other local Chinese restaurant operated by Pakistani's employing local chefs.

Egg Fried Rice - Rs 250

Ample quantity and very satisfactory. The rice grains were not sticking together, indicating a perfect stir-fry, and tasted awesome (viz. authentic Chinese flavor). 

Brain Masala (a family favorite) - Rs 470

Dense, rich and super-soft -- need I say more? I have had brain masala in many local eateries, and have been disappointed when most serve it floating in limpid, tomato-based, watery curries. 

This kind of perfectly-fried brain masala is getting rarer at restaurants, which is why, in addition to barbecue items and steam roast, brain is what I like ordering most at Usmania. 

Puri Paratha - Rs 30 (each)

This was huge in size (one was enough, as we were having rice as well) and perfectly done - piping hot and crisp, yet light and fluffy; easy to break off from, yet not flaky and brittle.

Now for the desserts. :) 

Kheer - Rs 150

Don't know if the photograph does justice to it, but this single bowl was quite large for one person to polish off after dinner. We usually share desserts together. 

The kheer was great! Rich, dense and traditionally made to the core. The kind your Ammi makes at home when special guests are coming over. :) 

Tutti Fruiti ice cream cup- Rs 150

Once again, the quantity was more than enough to be desired. In most dessert eateries and bakeries nowadays, you get just one cupcake at this price.

The ice cream flavor and texture was decidedly vintage -- you could tell that it was made from pure, "desi" organic milk, and not the pasteurized, packaged kind (think Baloch ice cream of Boat Basin).

Strawberry and Vanilla 'mix' ice cream cup - Rs 130

The vanilla tasted like the popular desi version - called "Peshawari" ice cream - which is so quintessentially Pakistani, yet getting rarer by the decade. I loved it! The quantity was once again difficult to polish off, even with the children tucking in. 

By the way, we made this restaurant visit over a year ago. I just found time to fish out the draft of this old post to finally finish it off and publish it, so the prices might be higher by now, although I hope not.

Verdict: The authentic barbecue and Pakistani menu at Usmania still retains its taste and quality, which is why this vintage restaurant is still in business. I would highly recommend the tikka, kababs, brain, steam roast (we've had it before) and other local cuisine items at Usmania. The quantities of all items are more than enough for two people (i.e. the dishes at the prices quoted in the menu comprise of double-servings à la carte). 

However, you can find better Chinese at Yuan Tung, so you can easily give that a miss here.