I' ve had a certain affinity and fondness for Lahore’s New Garden Town’s Babar Block and its adjacent landmark Barkat Market for quite a while now.

First of all, it is central, getting me easily to wherever I want to commute to in Lahore, be it Moon Market in Allama Iqbal Town to meet friends or to have the world-famous nihari (more on that later), or to Mall Road and beyond. But it also has the Luxury Palace Guest House run by Aamir Zaman — where I always stay when I visit Lahore.

The familiar faces greeting me with warm smiles all around makes Lahore feel like a second home. Not to mention its cosy, spic and span rooms and its kitchen serving a variety of desi dishes.

But every once in a while, during my extended stay there and despite the complimentary breakfast comprising crispy parathas with the option of half-fry eggs or omelette, and butter and jam, followed by steaming-hot karrak doodh-patti chai (mixed tea) served in a chainak (miniature teapot), I also like to venture out to every foodie’s paradise — Barkat Market.

Goga Naqibia Murgh Chanay & Bong Paaye in Lahore’s famous Barkat Market belongs to the breed of eateries that have been serving lip-smacking breakfast to a loyal clientele for generations

This is how I was first introduced to the breakfast bonanza that Goga Naqibia Murgh Chanay & Bong Paaye has to offer its customers.

If you’re in the mood for a morning stroll to enjoy the cool, crisp morning breeze after offering fajr ba’jamaat (congregational prayers) at the Dar-ul-Quran Jama Masjid Ghousia next to the guest house and adjacent to Goga Naqibia Murgh Chanay & Bong Paaye, you can enjoy an added bonus, for the establishment opens up for business as early as 5am!

Goga Naqibia is now run and managed by the third generation of the senior Gogaji, who has now retired to rest and relax at home after serving customers for a better part of his well-lived life.

They start by displaying on their glass counters the prep carried out the night before, such as the boiled paaye (trotters). Huge cauldrons of chanay (chickpeas) and paaye gravy stand nearby, while the tandoor (clay oven) is fired up to make kulchay (milk-infused flatbread) that goes extremely well with both the murgh (chicken)/anda (egg)/kofta (meatball) chanay and also the paaye.

Loyal customers who have been coming to Goga Naqibia know that they’re better off arriving early, because it becomes quite a challenge for latecomers to find their way to the counter even after a long wait or to find parking space for their cars in the narrow lane scattered with food outlets.

The waiter who served us, Mastana, was a person with special needs but very prompt and hands-on. They deliver your order in what seems like no time at all for dine-in, which includes a separate hall for families and women.

My photographer and I ordered a rather generous serving of murgh, anda and kofta chanay along with a single serving of paaye and kulchay with sweet lassi (buttermilk). We chased it down with karrak doodh-patti chai. The main course was lip-smackingly good. The silky creaminess of the tender chanay gravy was packed with flavour and done to absolute perfection.

It was like a taste bomb going off in our mouths. One look at each other and we knew we were hooked for life!

The writer is a member of staff. He tweets @faisal _quraishi

Published in Dawn, EOS, April 23rd, 2023