FOOD: A dessert safari in Karachi
What are the best desserts in town? We recently sampled sugary treats and delights at cafes across Karachi to find out. Food consultant Humaira Iqbal and I ventured to countless cafes and eateries. After several weeks and a big dent in one’s bank balance, we’ve come up with a master list.
While many cafes are experimental and creative with their desserts, most menus include go-to dessert fares such as chocolate molten lava cake or cheesecake.
Here’s a list of what we think is worth splurging on if you’re craving something sweet.
A round up of desserts in the city but be warned: this piece seriously threatens to harm your diet!
CHOCOLATE LOVERS
If chocolate is your thing, there is a dizzying array of options to choose from. Everyone in Karachi is familiar with Nando’s Chocolate Cake — it has after all inspired copycats across the city. While we do recommend it, we think there are a number of delicious desserts that are any chocoholic’s dream come true.
Chocolate Tart
Craving chocolate tart? The three best ones in the city are Café Xander’s Chocolate Tart, Rowtisserie’s Double Chocolate Tart and Côte-Rôtie’s Chocolate Tart
Xander’s chocolate tart has a wonderful balance of toffee and chocolate – and you won’t be able to stop at a few bites.
Côte-Rôtie’s chocolate tart hits all the right notes: lots of dense chocolate with a hint of raspberry and a crunchy biscuit base. Perfection in a tart!
But there’s something for those chocolate puritans out there too. Rowtisserie’s other desserts aren’t much to write home about but the one thing that stands out in their dessert menu is their Double Chocolate Tart — dense, balanced and chocolate heaven in a slice.
Lava Cake
Every café seems to have spun out a version of the now renowned Chocolate Molten Lava Cake. We think high-end cafes can afford to venture beyond this well-treaded dessert to something more creative but if you’re looking for this familiar, go-to dessert, most cafes (Pompeii, The Deli, Okra) serve a delicious version. The winners in our books, however, are:
Butler’s Cookie Lava Cake: a delicious twist on a classic favourite and after taking a bite you’ll want to keep on coming back for more.
Del Frio’s Lava Cake: This is the molten lava cake to have in the city — the sponge, the gooeyness and the chocolate is balanced as it should be. An added benefit: it’s light on the wallet.
Worthy mention: Bella Vita’s Melting Chocolate Dome. Remember those videos of melting chocolate domes that went viral last year and had foodies all over town drooling? Well the chefs at Bella Vita have attempted to create this dessert with some success.
It’s slightly on the sweet side and the sponge is a tad dry but in one spoonful you get chocolate cake, a rich caramel sauce, crushed biscuits and chocolate. What more can you want?
Chocolate Cakes, Cookies and Brownies
There are many fancy desserts one can choose from but sometimes nothing beats the good old chocolate cake. The ones we liked the best are:
Gelato Affair’s Dare Devil: Soaked with warm chocolate ganache and served with ice cream, it is a perfect mix of hot and cold and one of the best chocolate cakes in town. The best part? It won’t burn a hole in your pocket.
Del Frio’s Ferero Rocher Cake: Nutty with a soft sponge and rich, generous layers of chocolate. A chocoholic’s dream come true.
Pantry’s Brownie Cake with Chocolate Cream Cheese Frosting: A delicious homage to the classic brownie with none of the bells, whistles and sprinkles that counts as brownies these days.
Bella Vita’s Gooey Gateau: This concoction of chocolate with crushed shortbread cookie is a bit on the sweet side and dense but in a good way.
Café Mew’s Triple Chocolate Skillet Cookie: Isn’t the reason to eat this in the name itself? A chocoholic’s paradise on a plate: delicious, chocolaty and heavenly in every bite.
While many cafes are experimental and creative with their desserts, most menus include go-to dessert fares such as chocolate molten lava cake or cheesecake.
Mocca’s Chocolate Macaron: A fan of macarons? Mocca café serves one of the best in town — there are a lot of flavours to choose from but the one to have is the chocolate one.
FRUIT FANATICS
If you like a bit of fruit in your dessert, this is the perfect time to have some. If there’s only time for one dessert, you should try Café Flo’s apple tart. A bit expensive (it’s Café Flo after all) it’s delicious, simple and you’ll want to finish every crumb on the plate.
Espresso’s apple crumble: Served warm with vanilla ice cream, it’s crunchy and baked to perfection.
Café Flo’s or Café Mew’s Lemon Meringue pie: Like your desserts with a burst of citrus? Then head over to Flo’s or Café Mew’s for lemon meringue pie. Both are good and citrusy with a crunchy tart base. If tangy is your thing, however, nothing beats Café Flo’s Lemon Meringue.
Pantry’s Orange Tart: While this is a seasonal dessert, it’s worth making a trip just to try. Different from the usual fare offered at cafes, the chefs have paid genuine homage to the orange: lots of fresh orange zest went into making this tart and you can taste it in every bite.