KARACHI, Nov 13: Families, who have planned grand feast on the occasion of wedding prior to Eid and those who are eager to do so after Eid, are in a fix. Most of them are indecisive whether to cancel the arrangement or keep their plans on the stand by.
They are waiting for the response from the hall and lawn owners in view of ban on serving meals by the Supreme Court.
According to a random market survey, based on the comments of hall, lawn and catering service operators, a number of queries from families intending to arrange receptions have come down markedly.
Some have called off such parties while, many families have yet to cancel the order by asking the caterers to put their order on the "stand by", to be decided a day before the function or the same day in the morning, depending on the situation.
Some families have decided to cancel the dinner arrangements planned on a big scale and instead they have placed orders for 100-150 close relatives and guests for an in house dinner.
Those families, who are yet to place wedding meal orders, are confused. They are opting to make arrangements for ice cream, soft drinks, Kashmiri Tea, etc. They are contacting the hall and lawn owners, asking for the arrangement for the dinner reception.
Caterers in various areas, interviewed by Dawn, said that people are avoiding even to take the estimate of 500-700 persons dinner receptions. "Many families are enquiring about the situation but are reluctant to place the orders," a caterer in Buffer Zone, who asked not to be named, said.
Owner of La Rosh Restaurant, also caterer and decorator, Khurshid Ahmad claimed that 60 per cent of the families are firm on their old booking orders while 30pc of the families have changed the menu to soup, cold drinks and ice cream.
He said that many people are still placing orders for marriage and valima parties after Eid. Some caterers said that the situation will clear after Eid when marriage season will get under way in a full swing.
Many hall owners are reluctant to give the actual picture whether they have let the families to hold dinner receptions or have clearly not given the green signal in this regard.
Officials in marriage halls in North Nazimabad said that no notification has come yet regarding ban on serving meal till Saturday as they have read only in newspapers.
It may be noted here that hall owners had not allowed the families to hold dinner parties in early months of the ban imposed in Nawaz Sharif Government. Later, the hall owners started allowing families to hold dinner freely. They probably managed by appeasing the law enforcers.
Some families contacted maintained that many hall and lawn owners have been assuring the families that they have already made a setting with the Police for holding dinner without any hesitation.
