Islamabad vs. Rawalpindi: Battle of the Food Streets

Rawalpindi Food Street Melody Food Park

Stadium Road Rawalpindi G-6 Markaz, Islamabad

Rating: 2.5/5 Rating: 3/5

It was about time that we did this. Two big cities of Pakistan with amazing food and amazing people, but which city has got better variety and taste in their famous food streets? This curiosity led the Food Surfers to Stadium Road Rawalpindi. As I entered Rawalpindi Food Street, the aroma of freshly cooked karahi filled my heart with joy and suddenly I find myself surrounded by cute children with amazing marketing skills trying to persuade their customers to buy flowers. In my case, they were successful.

Habibi Restaurant, Rawalpindi Food Street

I roamed around to look for some variety in the types of food we can try but could not exactly find what I was looking for. Although the variety of desi food was endless, it had enough authentic variety to satisfy anyone with extreme desi food cravings and appetite. As we started exploring, there was a never-ending variety of Karahi;

1. Mutton Karahi

2. Chicken Karahi

3. Chicken Koila Karahi

4. Hara Masala Karahi

5. Mutton Dhaba Karahi

6. Mutton Suleimani Karrahi and the list goes on.

You can even have a single variety in whatever way you like, normal Chicken Karahi or special Chicken Karahi cooked in butter. You can also order barbeque dishes like kebabs and Tikka Boti with Raita and Naan and have them cooked in butter as well to be served with your Karahi, the options were seemingly endless.

The aromatic spices seared into freshly made Karrahi blesses customers all around, Rawalpindi Food Street

It was nearly impossible to stop oneself from going towards the freshly made naan due to the pleasant aroma it had created all around the street. It lightens up your mood in such a way as if you have never been this hungry. It is a neat trick to attract customers. The tandoors had their own class with so much richness in the taste of their freshly made naan that it made the whole dining experience extraordinary. Rawalpindi Food Street stands out by boasting its variety and classic taste of “Tandoori Naan”, “Chicken Roghni Naan”, “Mughlai Naan” and so many more.

Customers can find barbeque at every corner of the market, Rawalpindi Food Street

For any visitor to Rawalpindi Food Street, the flood of people at Savour Foods is unavoidable. People just keep on coming to have their special Pulao with their famous kebabs. One of the customers at Savour Foods, Mr Ali told Food Surfers that he has a lot of foreign friends who wanted to taste the traditional Pakistani food, so he brought them here to the Rawalpindi Food Street.

Crisp Parathas served at Melody Food Park

On the other hand, Melody Food Park in the G-6 Markaz, Islamabad had a better variety in types of actual street food. Apart from the great variety in desi food, you can have the Anda Shami, Chicken Shwarma, Samosa Chatni, Gol Gappay, Samosa Chaat, Lacha Paratha, Chicken or Vegetable Roll, Dahi Bhalay, Paan and so much more. In the current extreme cold weather of Islamabad, Melody had a lot of food mongers hawking the customers and telling them the never-ending variety of grilled fish, Makhni Chana, Saag and barbeque wares, ready to capture you as soon as you step in to park.

Andha Burgers, consisting of Shaami Kebabs and Fresh Vegetables, Melody Food Park

Melody Food Park was established in 2002 and gained instant popularity. It used to be the favourite food spot for people of the twin cities for years, but now it has lost that charm. Although Melody still had better food variety than the Rawalpindi Food Street; the ordinary taste, little parking space and above all the competition from a lot of other economical and better eateries available in other parts of the city made both food streets lose the popularity it once had. I would rate the experience in Rawalpindi Food Street and Melody Food Park a solid 2.5/5 and 3/5 respectively.