Every year during Ramzan, the lanes around the Minara Masjid in Mohammed Ali Road come alive with mind boggling varieties of street food for Iftar. During this period it is clearly turns into a haven for foodies. From haleem to kebab, phirni to malpua, fruit shake to chicken soup, you name it and Mohammed Ali Road has it. After two years of pandemic induced hiatus this Ramzan, the neighbourhood has once again become the cynosure of gastronomic activities. In today's episode we have embarked on a food tour across this place. As we reached there, we found a sea of people all excited for Iftari.
The first stall that we visited was a stall selling sharbat mix that simply has to be mixed with milk and consumed as a refreshing drink. Next we visited the Famous Restaurant where they were selling some fancy fried stuff like chutney kabab, chicken crispy, spinach pakoda etc.
From there we headed to a chicken shawarma stall which has evolved into a popular Iftari option. Then we went to Salman bhai's shop to see the plethora of treats being sold there. From here we got some chicken sizzlers for Iftari.
Then we went to Marhaba Fast Food Center. They too had a tempting range of fried stuffs mostly non veg ones. From there we went to Babu bhai's chana batata shop to get a serving each of chana batata and ragda.
The next stop was another cold beverage stall selling different kinds of shakes and juices. This was followed by a traditional steamed rice cake called saandal. We got some packed for Iftari and headed to Noorani Milk Center to enjoy iftar with the owner. Sharing the food with friends amidst all the festive gaiety was a surreal feeling.
Next we headed to the legendary Bademiya shop to try their special chicken soup. The tender leg piece dunked in a peppery broth was comforting. From there we headed to Hindustan to try their baida mein cheh which is tiny mutton balls based fluffy omelette.
The following destination was Chinese N Grill. Contrary to it's name, the place is famous for an awesome Nahari. On the recommendation of the owner we tried their mutton chop nahari. The meat was super tender and the gravy was highly flavourful.
We followed it up with a soft and fluffy bhandoli prepared by a young hardworking lady whose mother had started the stall. This Gujarati sweet was quite a revelation. Then we tasted some balli malai from a local vendor and Hyderabadi style badami haleem from Hyderabadi Badami Haleem.
The penultimate destination was Suleman Usman Mithai wala where we tried the Ramzan special malai khaja and phirni. Their luscious taste were a testimony of their fame. Finally we ended the tour with a paan from Shabbir Ahmed paan shop.