Put the Funk on with Café Zero Degree!

Café Zero Degree Entertainment Lounge reminds one of a modern day nightclub. Tucked in the corner of 6^th Commercial Street, the café is one of the latest to join the ranks of Zamzama’s thriving population of shisha lounges.

Ambiance

Cafe Zero Degree Entertainment Lounge

Spread over two storeys, Zero Degree can seat around sixty people. The dark interior drenched in hues of blue light denotes a bold touch with the café’s hip design featuring walls dotted with pop art and a roof iridescent with rectangular panels of LED lights.

Leather club sofas provide for ones sitting pleasure but are placed in such a manner that there is minimal privacy between neighboring tables. The loud sound system belts out a fusion of the latest hip hop and party jams making it almost impossible to talk yet setting the perfect backdrop to hang out with friends.

The Menu

The Trendy iPad Menu

In tune with its trendy and futuristic theme, the café uses iPad menus which are fun and easy to use. Displaying pictures of each dish, the iPad helps visualize your order in the absence of a written description.

The menu centers solely around white meat and offers a quirky mix of light fare and Mexican and Italian cuisine.     

Appetizers

Salsa Chips

As a refreshing break from the norm, the Café serves complimentary Salsa Chips instead of the usual bread basket. The crispy tortilla chips accompanied by a spicy tomato and jalapeno infused salsa was sinfully delicious. One simply could not have enough!  

Zero Degree Special Platter

For starters, we ordered the Zero Degree Special Platter priced at PKR 425 (exclusive of tax). Ideal for three people, the platter was a concoction of chicken fingers, onion rings, cheese sticks and chicken wings. Served with honey mustard, cocktail, tartar and cheese sauce, the items were fried to a crisp but coated with a batter too thick.

The chicken fingers were spicy, moist from inside and easily the best of the lot. The cheese sticks had minimal filling whereas the wings were undercooked and coated in a sauce so sour that it was a struggle to finish them. 


Entrée

For the main course, we ordered Italian Fried Chicken priced at PKR 535 and Zero Degree Special Pasta for PKR 449. All prices are tax exclusive.

Italian Fried Chicken

Italian Fried Chicken

The Italian Fried Chicken was cooked to a glorious golden crisp and coated with a rich layer of tomato and mushroom sauce. Dribbling with creamy cheese, the chicken was sprinkled with slices of capsicum, black olives and chicken salami.

Italian Fried Chicken

The sidelines comprised of a lavish helping of piping-hot masala-sprinkled fries, sautéed vegetables and a coriander chutney in dire need of some seasoning. The congregation of these flavors resulted in a spicy but tad sour dish with a helping good enough for one person.

Zero Degree Special Pasta

Zero Degree Special Pasta

The Special Pasta was hands down the best part of our order. Oozing with baked Parmesan and mozzarella cheese and a healthy dose of fried chicken and mushrooms, the pasta was scrumptious down to the last mouthful!

Served with a steaming bread roll fresh from the oven and seasoned with simple spices, the pasta had the perfect balance of flavor. If you prefer lightly spiced food then this dish will be right up your alley.

Dessert

To whet our sweet tooth, we ordered the Zero Degree Sizzling Brownie priced at PKR 225 (exclusive of tax).

Zero Degree Sizzling Brownie

Zero Degree Sizzling Brownie

After the customary 20 minute wait, much to our surprise the sizzler served to us contained nothing but a lone piece of brownie adorning the plate. The pastry chef had apparently forgotten to complete the dessert and skipped adding the scoop of vanilla ice cream topped with fresh strawberries!

The order was quickly replaced once we pointed out the omission but by that time the sizzle in the chocolate sauce had died down. The only redeeming feature of this casualty was that the confection tasted like manna from heaven - the warm, fudge chocolate brownie cake drizzled with hot chocolate sauce made the Zero Degree Sizzling Brownie nothing short of a rich gooey sinful indulgence.

Service

The service is average at best and plagued with management issues. The most noteworthy amongst them being: 

• Incorrect Billing: We were charged an extra amount of Rs. 600 which though rectified should not have happened in the first place.

• Quality of Waiting Staff: Most of the waiters seemed ignorant about the menu and answered the simplest of queries with “let me find out”.

• Fixed Service Fee: The Café charges Rs. 100 per person as a fixed service fee irrespective of the number of people on each table. This is a practice usually reserved for groups of six or more. 

Hit or miss? Somewhere in between!

The eatery offers good quality food with a wide choice of items to choose from. Its biggest shortcoming though is the low standard of quality control over operations and the fact that its menu does not cater to red meat eaters.

Also the ambiance my not appeal to those looking for a family outing. Go for it if you crave a dance/rave environment and are planning a fun night out with friends.

Go for it if you: 

1. Want a hip place to hang out with friends
2. Are looking for a per head cost (tax inclusive) between PKR 650 to PKR 1,050
3. Are on the lookout for good quality Mexican and Italian cuisine

Do not go for it if you: 

1. Prefer eateries with ample parking space
2. Are a beef lover
3. Are not a fan of shisha
4. Are going out with family and have children along

Rating 

• Service: 2/5
• Value: 3/5
• Ambiance: 4/5
• Presentation of Dishes: 3.5/5
• Zero Degree Special Platter: 3/5
• Italian Fried Chicken: 3.5/5
• Zero Degree Special Pasta: 4/5
• Zero Degree Sizzling Brownie: 4/5

My overall rating for Cafe Zero Degree Entertainment Lounge is 3.5/5.

Have you been there yet?

Just in: Zero Degree at Zamzama is closing down its operations by end August 2013 and relocating to P.E.C.H.S.

© Rabia J. and from-my-dressing-to-dining-table.blogspot.com, 2013. Unauthorized and/or duplication of this material without express and written permission from this blog’s author and/or owner is strictly prohibited. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to Rabia J. and from-my-dressing-to-dining-table.blogspot.com with appropriate and specific direction to the original content.

Extracts of this review have been published in Blush Magazine on August 21, 2013.

Solen Istanbul: From Turkey with Love

Solen Istanbul Outlet at Dolmen Mall Clifton, Karachi

Turkish food has witnessed a surge in popularity over the past few years. Known for its simplistic style and subtle use of spices, the cuisine recently made its foray into our side of the border with the launch of Şölen Istanbul. 

With a name that translates literally to feast, Solen (pronounced Sho-len) is part of a Turkish restaurant chain headquartered in Istanbul. The eatery opened its first outlet at Dolmen Mall Clifton in Karachi on 15^th February this year, making it the first Turkish restaurant in Pakistan. 

The Menu

The menu, though selective, promises popular Turkish dishes such as Döner, Köfte and Lahmacun (pizza). What dampens ones enthusiasm however is not the narrow choice but the fact that the menu is in the Turkish language! 

Solen Istanbul Menu - Front

Solen Istanbul Menu - Back

One can understand that retaining the original name of each dish will help create consumer awareness about the new cuisine; but for something that is yet alien to many in the general population, a brief description of ingredients in English / Urdu would have gone a long way in making the menu reader friendly. 

Soslu Tavak 

The Soslu Tavak (sauce chicken) with small chunks of fried chicken layered on a bed of thin pita bread looked appetizing but sadly was barely warm on arrival.

Soslu Tavak

Served with helpings of rice and pita bread, the dish caters to both rice and bread eaters. The chicken cooked in a sauce of crushed tomato, black pepper and red pepper flakes was doused with a heavy dose of olive oil which may make it unappealing for the weight conscious.

Typical to the cuisine, the dish was mildly spicy but did not do much to stimulate the taste buds. The rice sprinkled with tomato strips was underdone and the handful of fries/potatoes served on the side was soggy and stale. The salad of sliced cabbage and onion was also chewy and seemed to be recycled.

The helping was adequate for one person but given the quality, this dish did not score any points for value. It could have tasted far better had it been freshly prepared and served hot. 

Doner 

Crossing our fingers, we anxiously prayed that the Döner would be the saving grace of the day. A Turkish specialty, the döner is prepared using either beef or mutton and is fashioned around thin shavings of sliced meat seasoned with herbs, suet (raw beef or mutton fat) and spices.

Doner

With a generous serving of beef, fries and a salad of sliced tomatoes, cabbage and onion served on the side, the döner was a complete letdown. The vegetables in the salad were soggy and the meat was starchy and dry.

But worst of all - the beef was infused with the permeating odor and aftertaste of raw meat. The smell was so pungent that we could not eat it beyond a few mouthfuls! 

When we shared our feedback with the management, we were curtly told that the restaurant serves only the highest quality products to its consumers. Suffice to say, we did not linger long after that.   

Service 

The service needs to go up a notch. The waiting staff does not seem well informed about the menu; they need to be given that it is incomprehensible to diners due to the language barrier.

Also, the Turkish management needs to interact with patrons directly to address queries and complaints rather than directing them to front line staff. 

Hit or miss? A miss! 

Like any new venture, Solen faces a unique set of challenges. Its biggest task is to educate the common consumer and develop his penchant for Turkey’s unique taste.

I have a few suggestions that the management can follow:

• Adapt the menu in the local language and include a description for each item to increase clarity. People will not eat what they don’t understand. This will also decrease the long queue of confused customers looking for advice on what to order.
• Serving food at the right temperature is the basic standard that any eatery can follow – serve food hot and fresh and watch your sales go up.
• Expand the menu to include delicacies such as Sac Kuvurma, Mücver, Kurufasulye, Manti and Dolma.

A little heads up: contrary to what is advertised on the menu, the eatery has yet to start its home delivery service.

Go for it if you:

1. Prefer lightly spiced food
2. Have a budget of Rs. 300 to Rs. 500 per person

Don’t go for it if you:

1. Are looking for a fine dining experience 
2. Want a wide variety of dishes to chose from 

Rating

• Service: 2/5
• Value: 3/5
• Presentation of Dishes: 2/5
• Soslu Tavak: 2/5
• Doner: 1/5

My overall rating for Solen Istanbul, Karachi is 2/5.

Have you been there yet? 

Written by Rabia J. and published in Blush Magazine on March 29, 2013.

Biryani of the Seas (BOTS): Seafood on a Budget

There are always those days when one looks to having fun without taxing the last dregs of the month’s hard earned salary. And that’s where restaurants like Biryani of the Seas or more famously, BOTS fits the bill.

Biryani of the Seas, Clifton

Location and Ambiance

Outdoor Seating Area

Setup as an informal roadside eatery, BOTS is a seafood restaurant with two outlets in Karachi – Clifton and K.A.E.C.H.S. Reputed to be the better one, Biryani of the Seas, Clifton dwells between PSO House and the Clifton Bridge making it fairly easy to locate. 

The restaurant offers primarily outdoor seating with inexpensive plastic furniture spread over a broad lane in front of the premises. One also has the option of sitting indoors in the air conditioned double storey dining hall next to the outlet. 

Air Conditioned Dining Hall

Opting to sit outside, we were quickly shown to a grubby table and handed the menu by a hurried waiter. The black and white colored, double-sided four leaf menu is quite extensive and on first look baffles the diner on what to order.

With an eclectic mix of dishes ranging from biryani, soups, omelets, karahis, curries, barbeque, Chinese seafood, rolls, pizza and much more, the restaurant has something for everyone. You name it and they’ve got it. 

Main Course

We decided to order the Prawn Biryani (single) and Dhaka Fish Finger (250 gm.) priced at PKR 200 each and the Prawn Makhni Handi (single) priced at PKR 600. All prices are inclusive of tax.

Dhaka Fish Finger

The order was brought within 15 minutes but sadly in parts. The Dhaka Fish Finger was the first to arrive with a serving of eleven (11) pieces of fish.

Dhaka Fish Finger

Fried in a batter of flour and white sesame seeds, the fish was mildly spicy, moist and smelt fresh. It was served with two types of dips, one a spicy tamarind chutney and the second a tomato dipping sauce.

The tamarind chutney with pieces of coriander, green chilies and crushed red pepper corn was too watery to give any texture to the fish but the tomato dip with a concoction of thin strips of carrot, ginger and garlic went fabulously with the fish and enhanced its flavor twofold. The serving size was generous and suitable for two people. 

Prawn Biryani

Prawn Biryani

The Prawn Biryani which is considered the restaurant’s signature dish came next but was barely warm so we requested the server to replace it. After being reminded twice, he finally found his way back to our table with the biryani which this time was thankfully hot.

With a liberal serving of prawns, the biryani was very spicy and tasted like any other that one would find at a dhaba. The prawns were well cooked, soft and coated in a spicy masala. The tangy raita accompanying the biryani was blissfully cold and had the right amount of zing.

The serving was generous and filling for one person. If you are not one for spicy food, I would recommend that you steer clear of the biryani. I myself am a fan of all things spice, but I felt that the fieriness in the biryani eclipsed the overall taste of the dish. 

Prawn Makhni Handi

Prawn Makhni Handi

The Prawn Makhni Handi came last and turned out to be the better part of our order. Served steaming hot, the handi was a rich potpourri of cream and butter with a healthy but manageable dose of spice.

Roghni Naan

Garnished with white sesame seeds and crushed cumin, the dish tasted divine and was freshly made. The serving also did not disappoint with a helping of around 17 to 18 succulent prawns making this dish ideal for two people. The roghni naan ordered alongside the handi was also fresh from the oven and helped amplify its flavor.   

Service

The service is quite speedy and efficient but the staff is usually harried and prefers spending the least possible time per table. Also, the waiters are not very knowledgeable about the exhaustive menu and not well-trained in the art of guiding consumers on what to order or give their recommendations. 

Hit or miss? A hit!

With a price tag of PKR 400 - 700 per head, Biryani of the Seas is your typical dhaba-style roadside eatery offering seafood for the masses, average service quality, minimum fuss about hygiene and an abundant local population of stray cats.

It is no fine dining restaurant but therein lays its very charm. The laid back and unpretentious environment is what we all need now and then to de-stress. 

The emphasis on great value for money, a very diverse menu and simple but fresh, savory seafood is what makes BOTS a winner. The restaurant also delivers all over Karachi and is great for students and office goers who want wholesome food that is light on the pocket. 

The establishment however does not accept credit/debit cards and takes payment by cash only.

Go for it if you:

1. Love sea food
2. Are looking for a good meal at a great price
3. Have a penchant for spicy food 
4. Prefer to order from a diverse and wide selection of dishes

Don’t go for it if you:

1. Are not one for the informal roadside dining experience 
2. Want a wide variety of desserts to chose from 

Rating

• Ambiance: 2.5/5
• Service: 3/5
• Value: 4/5
• Presentation of Dishes: 2/5
• Dhaka Fish Finger: 3.5/5
• Prawn Biryani: 3/5
• Prawn Makhni Handi: 4/5

My overall rating for Biryani of the Seas (BOTS), Karachi is 3/5.

Have you been there yet?

Written by Rabia J. and published in Blush Magazine on March 8, 2013.

The Lantern - The New Chinese Restaurant on the Block

Chinese cuisine has always been popular with Karachites. It’s a cuisine which offers something for everyone with restaurants offering Chinese food it in its authentic form as well as with a desi twist.

One of the many new entrants in this mushrooming market is The Lantern located at 76 Old Clifton near the Two Swords roundabout. A fairly new restaurant, the Lantern opened its doors to diners on Monday, the 21^st of January this year with an inciting deal of 15% off during its first week.

The Lantern Karachi - Location

Offering both outdoor and indoor seating, The Lantern is housed in a small single story building with a seating capacity of 20 to 25 people. The interior is decorated simply but practically making use of every nook and cranny. Furnished with simple wooden furniture, the rectangular shaped dining area sports a sunny and inviting vibe mostly due to the large almost floor-length glass window overlooking the courtyard outside.

The Lantern Dining Area

The opposite wall of the room is adorned with a lush vertical hanging garden overflowing with a plethora of the Boston fern and dracaena and a small rectangular stone display of polished white rocks running under its length. 

Vertical Hanging Garden

The roof which is the most interesting aspect of the layout is decorated with a sea of beautifully lighted soft pink and white Chinese lanterns giving the environment an ethereal feel. A few paintings with softly lit contemporary wall lamps placed over each piece complete the look.

Going over the simple yet stylishly designed menu one notices that the choice of dishes is rather limited. For soup among the two options available, we ordered individual servings of the Hot and Sour priced at Rs. 175 (exclusive of tax) each. 

Hot and Sour Soup

The red colored, chili sauce infused broth garnished with a little green onion was served piping hot. Tasting predominantly of tomato and a lot of red pepper corn with miniscule wafer-thin pieces of chicken and egg, the soup was flavorsome but very spicy. It was also missing the wild mushrooms that the menu described it to contain which contributed to a lack of heartiness in the overall dish. The serving size though was more than enough for one person. 

For the main course we ordered Beef with Black Bean Sauce and Chicken Fried Rice priced at Rs. 525 and Rs. 325 (exclusive of tax) respectively. Garnished with thin strips of carrot and green onion on top, a cucumber fan on the side and pieces of red bell pepper and green capsicum, the presentation was simple and uncluttered. 

The beef prepared in chili oil sauce was cooked to perfection; the meat was succulent, soft and a little sweet to the taste which went along fabulously with the black beans and pieces of baby corn. The dish had almost no gravy but paired well with the rice. The Lantern also offers this dish with gravy so if you are not one for dry dishes, this option is for you. The helping was generous and was almost enough for two people.  

Beef with Black Bean Sauce and Chicken Fried Rice

On the other and, the Chicken Fried Rice disappointed in terms of serving size as the quantity was suitable for one person only. When one orders sidelines such as rice along with a main dish, it is expected that the quantity of both will be compatible. In terms of taste, the rice with small pieces of chicken and a garnishing of green onion, coriander and strips of carrot and green capsicum was average at best.

For drinks we ordered Fresh Lime and 7up priced at Rs. 83 (exclusive of tax) from a choice of cold drinks and mineral water. For dessert, the menu offered only one dish – the Fried Fruit Candy priced at Rs. 345 (exclusive of tax). The confection was designed around six pieces of fruit - kiwi, apple and banana – all fried in a light batter of sesame seeds and served with a golden sweet syrup and crushed whole red pepper corn.

Fried Fruit Candy

The Fried Fruit Candy was by far my least favorite item of the day for several reasons. For one, the helping was barely adequate for one person. Two, the pricing was not in correlation with the quantity. Six small pieces of fruit are hardly worthy of a whopping Rs. 345! Thirdly, the candy was served with small dessert spoons which made it a struggle to cut and lift the fruit. Serving this dessert with forks would have more appropriate especially since the fruit is supposed to be dipped in the syrup.

The basic shortcoming of this dish was its concept and a lack of harmony among its various ingredients; for example the slices of cucumber made no culinary sense as their bland flavor did not gel well with the rest of the dish. The plating also could have done with some oomph! and color. It would have looked more enticing had the all-pastel dessert included some bright red strawberries, oranges or even a chocolate dip.

The service was quick and closely supervised by the two very nervous but enthusiastic young owners who were quite keen on getting consumer feedback.     

Hit or miss? A hit!

The Lantern is a restaurant still in its infancy and needs to work out several  teething problems such as providing better value for money, improving the serving size and presentation of dishes, expanding its menu especially desserts and providing detailed and engaging descriptions of its fare in the menu. But it has one thing going in its favor - flavorsome and good quality Chinese food. Definitely a restaurant to watch out for in the days to come!

A word of advice - the restaurant does not accept credit/debit cards at present and nor is this information displayed anywhere in the premises so do have some cash handy.

Go for it if you:

1. Find the per head cost of Rs. 700 - 1000 reasonable

Don’t go for it if you:

1. Prefer to order from a diverse and wide selection of dishes
2. Have a sweet tooth
3. Like a lot of privacy when eating out

Rating

• Ambiance: 4/5
• Service: 4/5
• Value: 2/5
• Presentation of Dishes: 2.5/5
• Hot and Sour Soup: 3.5/5
• Beef with Black Bean Sauce: 4/5
• Chicken Fried Rice: 2/5
• Fried Fruit Candy: 2/5

My overall rating for The Lantern, Karachi is 3.5/5.

Have you been there yet?

Written by Rabia J. and published in Blush Magazine on February 1, 2013.