Chaat Shaat –Desi Delight 

Chaat shaat is new desi hype in Islamabad. This place was opened in F-7 Jinnah super market which is the trending area for new restaurants. Chaat shaat is not a very big place and has few dinning seats indoor but it also provide outdoor seating facility and mostly people prefer to sit outside and enjoy the weather. The indoor walls have different pictures on it with funky quotes. The thing I liked there was the portraits of our legendary Pakistani singers like Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan and Begum Noor Jahan etc.

Chaat shaat is providing a number of desi dishes including Asian fusion and Indian/Pakistani food. These items include parathas, pani purri, handies, biryani and dishes for sweet tooth people as well. Despite the name, the restaurant is providing a number of items for all age group people specially focusing on youth.  People now a days are getting more conscious about their hygiene and food they are consuming and chaat shaat filled that marketing gap and provided good hygienic food with yummy taste to capture the market and stand out from the competitors.

I visited chaat shaat with my colleagues. We all ordered different items according to our taste. I ordered its chicken cheese paratha. The staff was very humble and took the order with courtesy. He mentioned us about the time and asked if we want anything in appetizers. The order came on time and it was hot and fresh. The order was accurate and all the food items were delicious.  My chicken cheese paratha was really awesome and being a foodie I loved the taste and representation of it.  It was hot and cheese and chicken were in proper amount. I had a lovely experience.

I would really suggest people to go out there and try their food items as they all are super yummy and delicious

Karamel Crunch – First Pakistani Cookie House

There is a saying that Cookies are the sweetest little bit of comfort food. They are very bite sized and personal. To all the people who have sweet tooth and enjoy dessert like anything, the first Pakistani cookie shop is now open in Beverley Center, Blue Area Islamabad for you. The place was referred by one of my friends who literally crave for their cookies and can't control herself buying cookies when that craving hit.

It is one of the most hyped dessert places of Islamabad. I was so curious to find out why people like it so much and thought to give it a try.  When I reached there, the red color décor caught my attention. One cannot resist entering this beautiful dessert shop due to the captivity of the saying written on the outer board (For the love of cookies)

Karamel Crunch differentiate itself by focusing on cookies, brookies mainly. All the cookies are at affordable rates, one can easily satisfy its sweet craving by having these crunchy munchy chocolaty delight at low rates.

Although I'm not a dessert person but when I tried Triple Choc Chunky Cookies, it was so yummy. Perfect crisp from the outside and soft from the inside. It literally was drool worthy. Karamel Crunch is offering many flavors other than this triple choc cookie and I heard good reviews about them as well. The one I bought is of Rs. 170 and worth the price in terms of taste, quality and of course ambiance. The environment there was cozy and the moving seating arrangement is the perfect combination of taste and joy,

So, if you want to go to a dessert place in Islamabad, you can give this place a try to get the sweet delight.

Rating: 8/10

Ginyaki- a new Hype 

Situated on Bhittai Street which has as of late turned into a center point of new eateries, Ginyaki has a brilliantly lit, squeaky clean inside with white furnishings, a lit up glass-like divider along one length and a splendid, snappy wall painting along the other length. The vibe is current and tasteful. The spot is very reasonable with obviously tasty menu items and genuine Oriental Cuisine with a range of single servings. The vibe of the eatery with delightful depictions and paintings on the walls has increased the value of my experience. Ginyaki also has open as well as indoor space for their customers

Ginyaki has an intriguing method to order food. The things on the menu come in single servings and are estimated in like manner; which will give you the possibility of the bill also. “Make Your Bowl Your Way”, the menu says and gives clients alternatives between an economy bowl and a grand bowl. In reality, the economy bowl accompanies one thing from the courses and either rice or noodles though the grand bowl gives the choice of additional items. In this way Ginyaki is giving the option and freedom to people to make their own food and customization always attract customers because they have the power over their food decisions. As we are living in Pakistan and to find good Chinese or Thai food is really difficult, Ginyaki is proving good taste, better food and excellent place to enjoy our meal.

In the wake of visiting this spot, I got persuaded on the point that Ginyaki is going to give extremely intense time to other Chinese eateries in Islamabad but as of now I highly recommend this place for a number of reasons this restaurant is providing.

Chicken Pesto - Tayto

When I moved to Islamabad from Lahore I was completely new to this city not knowing of any place or restaurants to hang out. At first, I went out to fast food chains which are common in every city but as everyone knows lahories are famous for their good taste in food so I got fed up of the same old fast food which I ordered every time I want to eat food outside my home.

To be very honest food of Islamabad is not as good as one can find in Lahore and also the variety is not much. Either one has to pay high cost for the food which is neither good in taste nor justify its cost. So after going to a number of places which people recommended, one day randomly I went to a place named Tayto in F-11 which no one recommended me but out of curiosity and its attractive ambiance I went in the restaurant anyway. The staff working there was very courteous and friendly.

I ordered their chicken pesto upon the recommendation of the staff, that this dish is their most running one. Honestly I was very nervous because of the past experiences but to my surprise the food was pretty amazing. It had good representation, food was of high quality and not just that it was completely justifying its price. I really enjoyed my food. It’s a place where you can go with your friends and family and enjoy because not just the place but also the number of items they offer.  They have also recently added more items to their menu. This place is totally worth one’s time and money.

Tenderloin Steak- (wild Wings)

Wild Wings is famous for variety of wings offering many spice levels so that one can have wings according to his taste and spice level. Apart of wings, this place is also good for quality steaks. This I knew after visiting the Wild Wings and having the steak myself.

Few days back, I have celebrated one of my friend’s birthday at Wild Wings. On entering this beautifully decorated restaurant, we were taken to our seats. The staff was well informed and patient in a way that we switched our places 3-4 times to get the perfect spot with perfect light for pictures.The staff was most cooperative. After giving order we were offered with complimentary basket of freshly grilled garlic bread. And of course, the main course was their famous Tenderloin Beef Steak with a side of fries and veggies.

Having given our orders to the waiter, we started chit-chat and needed Wi-Fi in the meanwhile, for which we asked one of the staffs for password that he gave but we couldn’t connect to that WIFI. That is the only short coming we faced there. The service was fast, and we got food on-time. I went for medium well steak, it was little chewie because I ordered medium cooked and the marinade was so delicious. One of my friends had a complaint in food, the staff cooperated and accepted their mistake and changed the order according to her will. Also, Manager himself came and apologized for the in-convenience. The behavior throughout was helping and the overall food taste, quality and hygiene was well done. And I highly recommend Wild Wings not only for wings but also for steaks. I would also like to share my general perceptions about steak while reviewing a particular restaurant.

While reviewing the food, I would also like to highlight the nutritional value of beef as the healthy lifestyle is also my concern for our youth. The Beef Steak is healthy as it contains protein which is helpful in muscle building and tissue repair. It is also enriched with vitamin B-12 that helps in making DNA and red blood cells. So, it's not only delicious but also a great source of Protein. Eating Steaks and that too from Wild Wings, is highly recommended from my side.

Rating: 9/10

Hyderabadi Chatkhara- A perfect scene for Paapri Chaat

Yesterday, I with my friends, was craving for desi snack (mainly Chaat), we started thinking of places which offer some of the most delectable crunchy-munchies for our tastebuds. And we ended-up going to Hyderabadi Chatkhara located at F-10 markaz.

Channa Chaat, Dahi Bhallay, Samosa chaat, Paani Puri, Laddu peethi and all the yummy delicacies are perfect snack for Chittora people. There are plenty of Chittoras like me, who are living in Islamabad and take pride in calling themselves chittora and enjoy eating such spicy and yummy snacks more often than not. But finding the perfect blend of spice and taste is as difficult task in Islamabad. As Islamabad is not considered as the place for such eateries. People here are not fond of such food, and there are more liking for it in Karachi and Lahore. It is quite difficult to have this taste in Islamabad. Eventually, after spending much time on discussing the place for savory snack, we finally reached to Hydearbadi Chatkhara.

When we entered the restaurant, the ambiance was quite old and we were not pleased in the first place. The seating arrangement, artificial flowers on walls and Television were quite outdated. Then we were given a menu card by one of the waiters and we found the prices reasonable and finally we ordered papri chaat and samosa chaat. The food arrived on time and  served in elliptical bowl which captivated us. The First bite said it all, it was a delicious chaat that I had ever taken in Islamabad. The crispy chaat topped with required amount of yogurt mixed with sweet chutney and imli chutney added more taste to it.  This place is highly economical and worth visiting if you ever find yourself in this part of town.
Rating: 8.5/10