Having been in Karachi only two months, I have since been on a mission to try as much desi food as possible. And so, when I heard about the two-day Karachi Eat Food Festival, I was delighted!
Accompanied by my friend KC, I arrived at the Frere Hall to an entrance ticket of an affordable Rs200; as a bonus, I discovered that the stalls inside too sold discounted food.
There were close to 50 stalls that had been set up across the lawn area outside the Frere Hall selling a spectrum of cuisines: Desi, Chinese, Western, Italian, and the list went on.
Upon entering, we did what anyone at a food fest does: make a beeline for the food! First on the list was beef nihari, only because my friend insisted it was his favourite of all desi cuisines. And rightly so, my gluttonous trail started with a bang.
The dish had beef slices thickly coated in curry, topped off with ginger and green chili slices. I liked the spiciness that came in hints and the tenderness of the beef that was shredded to thin strips.
After trying the nihari with hot naans, I also dipped my dosa into it and found the softness of the dosa perfectly clothed by the thick curry of the nihari.
It was an extremely tough call for KC and I to leave some room in our stomachs to try out other dishes. But one we finally made after a rough calculation of the varieties present before us.
As we walked on, an entire lane was filled with stalls of fried food being prepared right in front of us.
When I looked behind these counters, I also found men preparing the batter, ready to smile for my camera.
After such a savoury meal, dessert seemed like a natural progression. We were spoilt for choice because there were sweet treats anywhere from pie in the sky, to the mad hatter’s tea room, to the cakery, etc.
But since I was here for a cultural experience, I decided to stick with some sweet chaat.
I was a little disappointed, however, because the chaat lacked sweet chutney. The crispy paapri flaked on top gave it a good crunch but it would have been better if there were more sauces mixed in it.
While trying to walk off all the food we had ingested, we walked along rows of stalls that had fun art and craft activities.
There was also a station that combined both food and art – where I tried my hand at making cake pops with glitter and colours.
It was delightful seeing families coming in together; watching people reunite over a good meal. Most of whom were agreeable to getting their photographs taken.
Contrary to my desi food mission, one of the last meals I had at the festival, which in my opinion was also the best, was a burger!
Perhaps I had not tried enough desi food yet, or the burger just outdid all of it.
The classic burger stole the night for me. The meat was juicy, tender and well cooked.
The onions were sautéed well, then sandwiched together with cheese and a seemingly ordinary but still wonderful tomato-based sauce. I must also add that their sweet potato fries are known as a good pairing for it.
The food festival was not just a crazing eat-only sort of event but it also had lounging areas to relax and sit around with friends.
KC and I took a stroll around the park and watched the sunset amongst the thickening crowds. It was interesting how he said to me that it was rare to have an open, safe area to relax and hang out with friends and eat the way we had at the Karachi Eat Food Festival.
And that’s when it dawned on me how much safety was compromised in usual situations in the city. The festival itself was a remarkable reminder of how ‘life goes on’ with people enjoying themselves apart from the very real dangers they are surrounded by.
As the day neared an end, I was glad to have experienced Karachi’s attempt at highlighting small but significant ways of keeping its people happy.