Like every year, Movenpick, Karachi has introduced its lavish iftar menu that ranges from the standard iftar delectables, like spring rolls, chana chat, pakoray, samosay, jalebi, to continental and Pakistani main varieties as well as an elaborate dessert counter. Starting with the former, I opted for some chana chat and mini spring rolls. The chana chat was absolutely delicious, especially with the tamarind chutney! The spring rolls there are not like the ones you get from the market; loaded with vegetables, chicken, chillies and black pepper. ‘Light’ is the word that perfectly describes them, as they had no excess oil or harsh flavours to it. Moving on to the main course, I tried a number of dishes that looked mouth-watering, including beef Bihari boti, chicken kung pao and sweet and sour fish. The Bihari boti was in sharp contrast to other dishes; it was spicy and soft. The kung pao didn’t have any over-powering flavours as you would expect; the cubed onion and capsicum provided crunch and juiciness to the gravy. As the name goes, the sweet and sour fish was, indeed, quite sweet but combined well with the plain rice available with the Chinese dishes. Alongside, there was a live shwarma counter as well where you could get one made just to your liking. The pita pocket I had contained chicken, bar-be-qued and shredded, sliced onion and tomatoes and loads of tahini sauce. This item was a refreshingly delicious change in the iftar menu there.

There are a number of fresh juices, cool drinks and lemonade that can beat the heat and quench your thirst. I went for a lemonade and an apple juice; the chilled drinks were a much-needed relief at the end of fasting, although the latter was topped with a bit too much froth. On the whole, the iftar buffet at Movenpick gives one plenty of options to indulge in and almost all of them are finger-licking good. – Sidra Khan