PESHAWAR - Renowned for its hospitality, Peshawar’s famed food street, Namak Mandi, welcomed an influx of food enthusiasts on Sunday. Families and friends gathered to savor a variety of traditional dishes in a relaxed atmosphere, as cooler weather enhanced the dining experience especially at night. As temperatures dipped, Namak Mandi celebrated for its BBQ, Mattan Karahi, Chappli Kabab, and Peshawari rice Polao became a bustling hub for locals and tourists alike. Situated behind the historic Qissa Khwani bazaar, this vibrant street is a magnet for those seeking authentic flavors. Visitors often found themselves lounging on traditional charpoys at food stalls, indulging in the rich tastes of Chappli Kabab and Matton Karahi, complemented by fragrant green tea. “Chappli Kabab and Matton Karahi are my favorites; I can’t leave without enjoying them,” shared tourist Fayaz Khan from Nowshera. Many patrons echoed similar sentiments, relishing the experience while awaiting their meals. “After a year, I returned to enjoy Mattan Karahi and green tea here. Fayaz noted. Accompanied by his brother Nasir Khan who added, “I also ordered two kilograms of Chappli Kabab and three parcels of rice Polao for my son’s birthday party at home.” This weekend saw a surge of food lovers flocking to Namak Mandi, drawn Like Fayaz and Nasir, a large number of food lovers visited Namak Mandi and others food streets of Peshawar.
on weekend where they enjoyed traditional cuisines due to its excellent taste and deliciousness. Arif Ahmad, a famous Chappli Kabab businessman told
newsmen that demands of Chappli Kabab have increased manifolds during winter and autumn seasons. Besides enjoying appetizing traditional cuisines at hotels and open restaurants at night, he said most of Chappli Kabab lovers asked for parcels from two Kg to five Kg for parties at home. Inherited Chappli Kabab’s business from my father, he said, “my father Jalil Ahmad took over it from his father, Jumma Khan in 1950. Following the death of my father, all his (Jalil Ahmed) six sons had carried forward the legacy of this hard-earned business and continued till date with a lot of hope to transfer it to the next generation.” “My grandfather had started chappli kabab business from a single ‘Karahi’ 75 years ago and today with grace of Allah Almighty, we have six more shops including one at melody food street, Islamabad, two each at Firdous and University Road, one each at Gul Bahar and Faqirabad Peshawar,” he added. Bakhatzada Khan, Assistant Director, Archealogy Department said the people of united India were mostly vegetarians but all kings and invaders from the west including Mughals, Turks, Ghazni and Afghans who conquered India were carnivores. He said they introduced the habit of eating meat in new ways and customs in the United India where Mughals made meat-eating a cultural dish by making it a substitute for beef and buffalo’ meat by adding various spices and ingredients to it.” Before marching towards India, the kings, warriors and invaders had stayed in Peshawar by introducing Chappli Kabab’s recipe during Mughal dynasty, which had later gained international fame owing to its appetizing aroma and delectable taste. Later, its recipe was shifted to Karachi, Lahore, Quetta and other cities of Pakistan besides Jalalabad and Kabul in Afghanistan and Amratsar, Lucknow and Dheli in India. In Peshawar, Arif said more than 3,000 chappli kebabs’ small and big outlets were existed mostly in Firdus, Bakhshu bridge, Warsak Road, Ring Road, Nothia, Namak Mandai, Hastnagri, Ramadas, Faqirabad and Board bazaars flooded these days with consumers. Besides Chappli Kabab, Arif said takeaway service of traditional cuisines including Peshawari rice polao, paye, dampokh, namak mandi karahi, lamb chops, BBQ and others traditional foods have also shined. He said people also dispatch it to UAE, Saudi Arabia and other countries for their friends, relatives and loved ones besides used in walima, engagements and haqeeqa of the newborn. Qaiser Khan, a retired Wapda employee told APP that Namak Mandi was his favorite food place in Peshawar where he came for the last five years to enjoy its Matton Karhai and BBQ due to its unique taste and energy perspective. “It gave us an opportunity to spend some times with my old friends here in a relex environment as the orders generally take close to an half and hour to prepare, with customers. They urged KP Government to covert Namak Mandi a full fledged food street on the patterns of Gawal Mandi Lahore and provide soft loans to shopkeepers enabling them to continue and expand their businesses after Coronavirus pandemic and terrorism incidents.