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As the month of Ramazan continues, not to forget the searing heat, among the best ‘Iftari’ offers, amazingly, come from the so-called posh eateries, and none better in content and quality than ‘Andaaz’ on Fort Road next to the Badshahi Mosque.

So it was that I recommended this place to a friend and his large family of 11 persons. Imagine eleven hungry persons climbing up all those stairs waiting for the exquisite ‘azaan’ from the nearby Badshahi Mosque. It is a special feeling to say the least. My recommendation every year to our readers is to have a tasty healthy ‘iftar’ meal and then have a very light snack of a dinner after ‘taraveeh’. The problems start when people go for a massive dinner, which I often tell friends is ‘soul-crushing’.

So the beautiful Badshahi Mosque ‘azaan’ rang through and the waiters brought in ‘plumb and moist’ Ajwa and Medjool dates, they claim are from Madina. Without doubt they are excellent. With them they provide two small glasses of Almond Milkshakes. Gosh, for me this would be where one should stop. The sugar levels soar and the milkshake calms the nerves.

The route is now open depending on how you feel about different types of food. My route would be to try out a grilled ‘paneer tikka’ which is marinated in ‘achari’ spices. Gosh, they are good and just the sort of light ‘tikka’ that opens the inner eye. You can try a ‘samoosa’ but they are best avoided. Also enticing is the chicken masala with fresh ‘roti’, but that is best left to the super-hungry.

My route was the ‘paapri chaat’ which was an excellent mix in a ‘paari’ case. How intelligent, but then this is a fine dining place. Alongside this the cool freshly-pressed juices make an exciting mix, and for a normal person this should be just enough. To add to this, if you have the space, you can taste the chicken drumsticks and the cocktail mutton and chicken kebabs. Rest assured they are done to utter perfection.

But ‘No’, in Ramazan, especially in Lahore, we like to end such an ‘iftari’ meal on a sweet tone.

This place presents a ‘roasted pumpkin halwa’, which reminds me of my late mother for she often did make solely this for dinner. It is an organic end, sweetness that lingers. All said and done a very well thought-out menu. In my book this is one that does not put you to sleep as the ‘taraveeh’ verses pour forth. Not a bad idea to spend that time in the grand mosque, and please do not attack the nearby Food Street afterwards.

Let me mark this experience on the Michelin Scale of one to nine. For food quality it gets seven, for food taste another seven is well-deserved. For variety and balance of the menu it gets eight, probably the highest possible. For quality of crockery and cutlery it gets six, for cleanliness a seven is justified, for prices a six is fine, for waiting service seven and finally for ambience it surely gets seven (what a view!!). These eight variables average out to an ‘Eating Out’ score of 7.6 out of nine, which is excellent. Highly recommended.

RAMAZAN PRICES: It is sad that all over the Western world, supermarkets lower prices to help Muslims during the holy month of Ramazan. In ‘Islamic’ Pakistan they double them. So how can the faithful fight off this menace? Make it simple. Stop buying chicken completely for three weeks. That might dent a few. But then the devil never relents.

Originally published in Dawn, June 12th, 2016