We rate the most hyped food at Karachi Eat
Karachi is eat, eat, eating this weekend as the popular food fest comes to town with eager chefs and culinary enthusiasts serving dishes both classic and experimental.
On Day 1, the event went off without a hitch at Beach Park with reasonable wait times at the entrance and stalls prepped and ready to serve early in the day.
Also read: 20 new food stalls at Karachi Eat 2019 that we're dying to try
Here's what we loved — or didn't — on Day 1 of Karachi Eat:
1) Nutella Chimney Cake from Rigo's Chimney Cakes
Price: Rs300
Rigo's chimney cone looks pretty and is totally instagrammable. But taste-wise, it let us down. It spent a little too much time in the heat as it was too hard to chew off. A chimney cake may have a crisp exterior but it's still meant to be soft on the inside and we didn't get that at all.
Rating: ★ ★ ☆ ☆ ☆
2) Grape Jolly Rancher Cotton Candy from Sweet Escape
Price: Rs150
With excellent flavour and texture, this was a nostalgic deliiiiight. This puffy sweet treat is great for kids and adults alike.
Rating: ★ ★ ★ ★ ☆
3) Butter Beer from Sol
Price: Rs250
The butter beer at Sol had a creamy froth we loved, and we wish the creaminess blended into the rest of the beverage because the drink itself, while having sweet notes of butterscotch and vanilla, needed a bit of a non-soda texture to make it feel like what we've read about it from Harry Potter. We did like the distinct taste, we just wanted something more.
Rating: ★ ★ ★ ☆ ☆
4) Mandarin Tart from Le Saint Honore Patisserie
Price: Rs350
This dessert was in a league of its own at Karachi Eat and chef Tabby Gull says they will never be available at this price again!
The false-real fruit is all edible (no, it's not an actual orange!), breaking apart to reveal creamy, citrus-y mousse inside. The shortbread underneath was a little tricky to eat given the plastic cutlery but was an excellent complement to the fruit with just hints of orange to tie the whole dessert together.
Rating: ★ ★ ★ ★ ★
5) Hunter Beef Buns from Shrooms
Price: Rs200
Truth be told, this wasn't exactly a hyped item at Khi Eat, but we feel they should be. Soft, warm and densely filled with shredded hunter beef, these buns made for the perfect comfort food. And the serving size was just right.
Rating: ★ ★ ★ ★ ☆
6) Shrimp Tacos from The Pantry
Price: Rs350
Utterly satisfying and stuffed with shrimp, these tacos were a meal on their own and we wouldn't mind seconds!
Rating: ★ ★ ★ ★ ★
7) Funnel Cake Sandwich from Lady Marmalade
Price: Rs350
A twist on the donut burger and similar sweet-savoury amalgamations we've seen in the past, this funnel chicken sandwich let us down with its underwhelming filling. The fried chicken patty and sauce inside was too reminiscent of KFC for us to appreciate its taste.
Rating: ★ ★ ☆ ☆ ☆
8) Canadian Fried Chicken Poutine from No Lies Fries
Price: Rs300
Loved the cheese in the poutine and the fries and chicken were just fine. We preferred No Lies' pesto fries to this!
Rating: ★ ★ ★ ☆ ☆
9) Red Chili Tacos from Sweet Greens
Price: Rs300
Several textures and flavours blended well to form the red chili taco at Sweet Greens. Full of greens and marinated chicken, topped with peanuts and sesame seeds, we enjoyed all the flavours, especially the light heat that came as the aftertaste! For the price, this was a win.
Rating: ★ ★ ★ ★ ★
10) Glazed churros from Churrosity
Price: Rs300
Not to hype it up too much, but we think we found the best churros in K-town. Light and crispy with the perfect amount of sweet, we loved both the stuffed and glazed variety at Churrosity. Also, major shout out to their tech and organisation!
Rating: ★ ★ ★ ★ ★
11) Margarita Pizza from Pizza L'Oven
Pizza L'Oven's 5 cheese pizza was a welcome addition to the fest, with a well done blend of cheeses giving it a unique flavour and a lightweight marinara all on a thin crust.
Rating: ★ ★ ★ ★ ☆
12) Cronut from Hobnob
Price: Rs200
With the flakey texture of a croissant and doughnut-like sweetness, Hobnob's cronut lives up to its name but the chocolate ganache filling had us wanting more!
Rating: ★ ★ ★ ★ ☆
13) Dahi Bara Burger from Chatoora
The dahi bara burger might pique your curiosity but it's essentially just chaat with a couple of dahi bara patties thrown in. The flavours were fine but not mindblowing. Skip.
Rating: ★ ★ ☆ ☆ ☆
14) Corndog from Red Volks
The corndog at Red Volks had too thick a batter surrounding a boiled breakfast sausage. The coating had become mushy and was overall a disappointment.
Rating: ★ ★ ☆ ☆ ☆
15) Pulled beef sub from Khurram Steak & Grill
Price: Rs350
Made by Khurram (of Steaks by CFU fame) himself, these subs were one of the best items on offer at Karachi Eat. The subs were warm and topped with a generous amount of meat, along with mint sauce and grilled stubs of garlic, which were a fantastic addition.
Rating: ★ ★ ★ ★ ★
16) Fried Chicken Burger from Burger Bros
We couldn't get to the wagyu beef burger so settled for the fried chicken burger. With a soft bun, well cooked chicken patty and generous dousing of sauce, this is a safe bet if you have a craving for a burger. Plus, its size is small so you didn't get stuffed and can try out other stalls.
Rating: ★ ★ ★ ★ ☆
We'll keep updating the list as we try more at Karachi Eat! What was your favourite stall? Let us know in the comments below.