PUNE: Every evening, Kondhwa and Camp become bustling places for foodies wanting to relish Ramzan-special delicacies. These two areas are where maximum food stalls and hotels, some temporary, come up during the Muslim holy month of Ramzan where non-vegetarian varieties rule the roost.
Eating joints like Sharif Caterers, Imdadi, Madinah Restaurant and RC Kitchen are crowded with those wanting to feast. Traditionally, special dishes are so delicious that once the evening namaz is over, fasting Muslims can sit down to enjoy the feast. However, people of other communities too use this opportunity to try out a variety of dishes.
Sharif Caterers, a well-known name in Kondhwa, has put chicken sandwich on their menu this time.
“This Ramzan we have new offerings like chicken sandwich and chicken burritto. Our signature dishes like chicken kadhai, chicken seekh kebab, nalli nihari, mutton and chicken biryani are the bestsellers this year as well. Our stall starts at 5 pm and we are open till 4 am,” said Akbar Sheikh of Sharif Caterers.
TIME TO ENJOY
Sheikh said, “Every day, around 500 to 1,000 people come while on weekends around 2,000 people come to the stall. Around 80 per cent of the crowd is generally non-Muslim as it is the best time to enjoy the wide variety of non-vegetarian dishes which you can only find during Ramzan.”
“The food and ambiance is completely different during Ramzan. There are so many varieties in non-vegetarian category which you do not get on other days,” said Gautami Naik, an Aundh resident having dinner there.
Christy Mathew, in Pune from Kerela for a vacation was indulging for the first time in Ramzan festivity. He said, “I am extremely thrilled to see such a wide variety of non-vegetarian dishes and looking forward to indulge in the festivities.”
“The vibe and feeling of Ramzan is completely different and I make sure that I do not miss it,” said Tanaya Shinde (25) resident of NIBM Road.
NEW ON MENU
“This year, we have introduced dishes like chicken naan chaap and baida roti which is very popular among people. As desserts, specialities like malpua and phirni are much in demand,” said Faiz Sheikh of Bismillah Bombay Seekh Paratha (BSP), another eating joint in Kondhwa.
Madinah’s popular dishes are chicken tikka masala, chicken biryani, chicken tandoori and chicken mughlai complemented with offerings like chicken samosa and chicken crispy. “Mutton angara and mutton biryani are very popular among people,” said Bashir Sheikh, Manager, Madinah Restaurant.
“This Ramzan we have introduced raan tandoori and raan biryani while dishes like tandoori chicken, murg musallam, chicken biryani and mutton biryani continue to be the popular choice this year as well,” said Mustaffa Sheikh, member of Imdadi Group that is running stalls during Ramzan for past 35 years.
DESSERTS GALORE
Sheikh said, “We have four varities of faluda like Rose, Royal, Kesar and Karbhuja and a Kashmiri drink which is very popular. Every day 200 to 400 people visit Imdadi and they are mostly cosmopolitan crowd.”
Sakhi Cold Drink, which is 22 years old at Babajan Chowk, comes from Mumbai every year in Ramzan.
Siddiqui Akbar Ali, owner of the joint, said, “We have kulfi pyala faluda and rabdi faluda which is very much in demand. We have special varieties in kulfi which are fresh mango kulfi and kesar pista. Due to summers and the scorching heat, a lot of people are also demanding special milk cold drink.”
THE TREATS
Traditionally, once the evening namaz is over, fasting Muslims sit down to enjoy the feast.