PUBLIC SERVICE POST
Kal ‘Sundaa’ hai aur aksar Lahori boizez (and girlzez) nay bahir nashta karna hota hai .. lehaza below is a handpicked selection of my favourite chana places in Lahore (and Kasur).
Butt Chanay – Pilots School, Wahdat road
Butt Kay chanay, outside Pilot School, Wahdat Colony, Wahdat Road, Lahore
Bohat aala and very different chanay jo thanday ‘kumbal Walay’ naan kay saath bhi achay lagtay hain. Sochen Zara level. Aye haye haye. Subhan Allah Ustaad Ji (the maraasi face).
Very well cooked chanay with a nice ‘garam masala kick’ to it. The ‘tarri’ unlike other places is not ‘nirra laal rung ka tel’. Enjj kar Kay a very nice mixture of khushk methi and mota mota garam masala. This adds on to the flavour in each ‘Luqma’ (halaqq say nikal kay).
Kofta was very soft and was more like masala bhara kofta. Had pyaaz and Halka sa masala in the centre.
Place: Butt Kay Chanay
Location: Butt Chany
https://goo.gl/maps/w9foyoYKbNAnCHySA
Price: Rs. 70 for chanay. Rs. 20 ka aanda. Rs. 30 ka kofta shareef.
Timing: 7 am till 2 or 3 pm.
Rating: 9/10
Seating arrangement: Aik chatai Zameen pay ya phir paas khari motorcycles ki ‘gaddiyaan’. Khlo kay khao shabaaash
Agar nahin khaye Tay fer Dasti jao, chanay khao Tay luddiyaan paao. Shoonkria
Ameen Kay Chanay, Shamnagar, Chauburji
Ameen Chanay – Subhan Allah Astaad Ji (this is the marassi face) – Full of taste. Slight achaari type feel. Very well-balanced spice. Kofta quality and taste was very good. Garam garam ispayshall kulchay we’re spot on. Lassi was also very decent. Salad wala Raita is kay saath khana must hai. It further enhances the taste.
Location: Shaam Nagar Bazaar, Chauburji, Lahore
Google Maps: https://goo.gl/maps/gDJgjLUiKjjQjCjY7
Price: Rs. 75 ki saadi half plate (Anda 25 rupay ka and kofta 30 rupay ka)
Rating: 9/10
Seating: Aaj kal to gari mai hee hai.
Saleem Butt Mutton Chanay, Urdu Bazar kay bahir.
Kya khaya?: Mutton Machli Plate. Undoubtedly, one of the best mutton chanay in Lahore. Amazingly balanced spices where no flavour dominates the other and you can feel all the ingredients in each bite. No ‘aftershocks’, No heavy feelingzzzz and no heartburn.
Yeh ispayshall kulchay payyan Saleem kay nahin hain .. they serve saada naan, who jo kumbal kay wich kaar kar kay rakhay hotay hain .. not a big fan of that ‘kumbal naan’ therefore, apnay ispayshall kulchay khud lay gaya tha .. from Ghani Jee Restaurant (right next to Tooba Chanay in Lakshmi. Bohat aala kulchay).
Price: Rs. 600 for Mutton Machli, Kofta Chanay for Rs. 70 and Anda Chanay for Rs. 150.
Rating: 10/10 for me.
Seating: Saleem Payyan has 2 extremes when it comes to seating. You either have to sit on chatai on footpath or you have to stand and eat. Kharay huay hazraat kay liye they have these 2 relatively high tables jis pay ‘sharing is caring’ ki basis pay multiple banday eat in one go. Number of banday varies depending on the sehat of the people standing there . .. meray jaisay bus 3 ya 4 he aaa saktay hain
Timing: I went at 9ish and the pateela was nakko nukk bhara hua .. which means you can be a little late and go till 10 or 10.30 but having said that, mutton machli milnay ki koi guarantee nahin itni late.
Maps Link: https://goo.gl/maps/N3yBCzC54195RcUN9
Tips: Apnay kulchay saath lay kay jayen if you don’t like ‘kumbal naan’ and secondly, take the Mall Road wala route if you go on a Sunday.
Haji Billa Makhan Chanay, Kasur
Kasur ki aik zabardast dareyaaft. Haji Billa Makhan Chanay (Interesting naam hai hai?). Bohat he aala chanay with a generous topping of desi makhan which they make in-house.
Makhan chanay – Creamy textured, well balanced spices served with ‘Tandoori Makhni Paratha’ and trust me aap nay Lahore mai aisay tandoori paratha nahin khaya. Rs. 80 for half plate (generous quantity). Paratha for Rs. 80. Rating: 10/10 for the combo. Difficult to beat.
Maghaz – Very average. Yeh nahin khana aap nay kiun kay mehnga bhi hai aur aitna acha bhi nahin hai. Rs. 300.
Had the above items from Haji Billa. They are serving chanay since last 37 years now.
Location: https://goo.gl/maps/kiWCBTYPD8EpfE7v7
Timing: 7 am till 2 or 3 pm Daily.
Contact No. 0321 6802580
Bao Saleem Mutton Chanay, Qila Lachman Singh, Lahore
Quality: Mutton Machli with Chanaaz. Shorba style Bareek chanay in an amazing mutton Yakhni with a til-o-til garma gram ispayshall kulcha. Blown away in the first bite. Have never tasted better mutton chanay before. Mutton was ‘Makhan’. Bari mushkil say, diet ka khayal rakhtay huay, sirf 2 kulchay khaye .. very difficult to resist. Khabardaar kisi nay Ghulam Rasool ka naam bhi liya.
Qeemat: Their price range is from Rs. 70 (for saada chanay) to Rs. 670 (for Mutton Machli). Mai nay choonkay kuch maheenay say paisay jama kiye huay tay so I went for the mehngi item (you know ). Mutton Plate starts from Rs. 320 onwards.
Mahol: Pathan-o-pathan mahol tha because bilkul baaju mai to sabzi mandi hai .. no family seating/hall and be ready to share your table with 2 to 3 different clients of theirs as the place is crowded. I was told that families do come but pretty early like 6 or 7 am at max and are served in the car.
Timing: He said subah but I think us waqt raat he hoti hai .. as per his statement, subah 3.30 am say 11ish.
Location: https://goo.gl/maps/GWt7pPZU4h3BNEsp8
For more food adventures, follow me on www.instagram.com/alirehman
Ali Rehman 