Al Jannat Delhi Zaiqa House is a real mouthful to pronounce, and mouth-fulls of sheer barbecued decadence is what you will get when you visit Al Jannat, situated smack in the middle of the Maskan food street in the Block 6 area of Gulshan-i-Iqbal in Karachi.

You may have had barbecue from the more or lesser-known restaurants over K-Town, but trust me when I say this: nothing compares or even comes close to what you get served at Al Jannat, making your long trip here from any part of town well worth the effort.

For starters, their melt-in-your-mouth super-flaky puris (deep-fried flatbread) are the stuff a foodie’s dreams are made of, but that’s just the beginning. Dig deeper and you find their lip-smacking fry kebab to be no less than manna from heaven, or the juicy and tender gola kebab, seekh kebab and malai boti, as well as their bihari boti (beef and chicken both).

The popular barbecue, katakat and assortment of karrhais and handis at Karachi’s Al Jannat Delhi Zaiqa House will leave you coming back for more

The same goes for their chicken tikka, crispy and charred on the outside and yet, soft, tender and juicy on the inside. The secret lies in just the right temperature of the barbecue pit and knowing when it’s done, thanks to the chefs at Al Jannat, who get it just right every time.

But wait, it gets even better when they roll up that great and delicious boneless barbecued goodness in one of their super-flaky puris with some onion rings, splash a dash of green chutney on it and serve it to you fresh and piping-hot from the kitchen, with some of their trademark sauce. Just thinking about it makes my mouth salivate. Trust me, it doesn’t get any better than this. The best part is that you can upsize your meal to ‘jumbo’ by paying a few extra rupees!

But that’s just their barbecue menu. Skip over to the katakat, brain masala, karrhai and handi section and you certainly won’t be disappointed here either. Al Jannat has a mouth-watering selection to choose from, such as the traditional brown or white karrhai with just the right amount of grease and seasoning of freshly ground spices. The freshly prepared mutton organ meat katakat and its wafting aroma leaves you squirming in your seat, eager to dig in with their fresh sour bread naan or chapatis.

Al Jannat Delhi Zaiqa House does not have any branches, and is managed by authentic Delhi-gharana scions since long, hence the edgy taste and delicate preparation process that leaves you wanting for more and has you coming back to try out the rest of the items on their menu. It’s not an extensive one though, but they certainly excel at what they do... and do it to the best of their Delhi-origin cuisine ability.

The writer is a member of staff.
He can be contacted at quraishi.faisal@gmail.com

Published in Dawn, EOS, April 27th, 2025