Are you in need of a decent place to hang out, on the hunt for different cuisine, or just want a more fulfilling dining experience in your life away from the traditional Butt Karahi and Old Lahore food scene? No matter your requirements, fear no more. Here is a list of places to eat at next time you’re in Lahore.
Sweet Affairs by Saniya Waqar
Expert of everything baked, from a range of tantalizing mini cupcakes to amazing chocolate oozing cookie skillets. If you want something foolproof, the Super Brick Oven pizza in thin crust never disappoints, and Fresh Garden makes the simplest vegetable taste like paradise! You might get a complimentary scoop of ice cream out of it too.
The Pantry
This is for all those who scroll down their food Instagrams yearning for a world with more mason jars. This is the place to go if you’re someone who loves exquisite salads and Panini’s done well. If there’s anything here that you can’t miss, it is the potato salad; crunchy on the outside, baked on the inside. Pay a visit and fall in love with some mouthwatering combinations of fruits and vegetables you never thought possible.
Café Page 102
The best stairs in the city lead up to this café; colorful, funky and a treat for sore (bookworm) eyes! The steps, painted to look like the spines of classic novels, are the best introduction to what is in store. While the books stabbed and hung from the ceiling might hurt your heart, the Fettuccini Alfredo served on a book-themed table will fix it right up for you.
Broadway Pizza
Do you like eating slices of Pizza twice the size of your palm? Do you love the amazing sight of melting cheese oozing out of your hand tossed stuffed crust? Are you a human with working taste buds? If so, a Wicked Blend 21’ incher with some scrumptious Potato Skins is what you need in your life. The best way to get the full experience is to order in instead of going out though, and also stream some nice Pakistani Netflix while you’re at it. You can start going out again when your Foodpanda Orders history starts to embarrass you, and your trash cans have zero space left for the huge pizza boxes.
Jade by ChinaTown
Best food, best price! This small cafe gives you the most quantity of excellent quality, along with some great interior; the black and white framed pictures on the turquoise wall are understated yet lovely. The Nutella Stuffed French toast is a specialty at Jade, and leaving without trying the Baked Spaghetti with Meatballs would be a gross injustice.
Café Aylanto
This is arguably Lahore’s favorite restaurant. Head here for a posh dining experience with scrumptious food and great lighting. Just make sure you eat at home beforehand, because the servings are quite literally bite sized. While everything here is great, Moroccan Chicken is an excellent choice.
Chai, Kaafee aur Siasat
Visit here more for the experience than the actual food. Just sitting around and sipping tea in the vicinity while gossiping about the latest non-event will have you feeling like you just finished mastering Kafka and made a mind-blowing philosophical breakthrough in the process. The Nutella Cappuccino and Crepes aren’t too harsh on the taste buds either, to be completely fair.
Zouk
The gauche décor leaves much to be desired, but the food is delicious. If you can get over the walls and the grotesque cutlery, the quantity and quality of the dishes is excellent, as is the service. The Sunset Jalapeno Chicken and the bread budding never disappoint.
Freddy’s Cafe
You can’t beat a classic. Freddy’s has been around for a long time and it is here to stay; and for good reason too. If you desire a taste of good food, excellent service and an overall great dining experience, Freddy’s the place. We recommend the Hi tea, the Butterfly steak, and preferably not filling up on the complimentary starters.
Ginsoy
Ginsoy is Chinese done right; albeit spicier and more expensive, the quintessential “Extreme Chinese” way. While Yum has long been the local favorite, Ginsoy will get there soon. Soup is amazing here. Take along enough friends and you can score a complimentary tray of mint margarita shots in the process too.
Dera Restaurant
In the mood for handi’s and roghni naans, but preferably far away from the crying babies that are part of the Family Restaurant starter pack? This is the place for you! Make sure you ask for the salted lassi; it is essential to the experience of filling desi food.
English Tea House
This is the kind of place you take out people in order to treat them because it is posh and nice sounding, and is pretty popular in most circles for quiet nights out. The Mars Cheesecake is recommended. However, if you’re not looking to impress anyone but your belly, I would recommend skipping this place and going somewhere that will actually put more than a measly tea spoon worth of cheese in dishes that are supposed to be stuffed with cheese, like you know, the Stuffed Chicken with Cheese.
Peeru’s Café
If there’s one way to sum up the experience, it is “Cultured.” Drop in on Qawali nights, or take a tour of the Puppetry museum while you wait upon the arrival of your ordered food, either way you will gain something out of it. It is dining out with an element that is sorely missing in most places: soulful entertainment. There are masks, mirrors and puppets hanging from the ceiling, and aromatic incense in the washrooms! Anything desi is safe to order here.
Maro Tandoors
If there’s a food place with a great marketing team, it’s this. From the pun-tastic tour of Lahore’s food scene to a designer lawn-style photo shoot, these guys know the power of good marketing. Meet the pioneers and inventor of the beloved Nutella naan! Head over here for original posters on the wall and yum naans straight from the tandoor! Definitely recommended: the Pizza naan and the mint margarita; the margarita because 1) it is to die for and 2) the cheese from the Pizza is molten and you will need the slushy ice. Not recommended: Tarragon naan and the baby Nutella naan (which is more of a zygote, really).
image credit: dostpakistan.pk