This little café tucked away at the England Cluster of International City is a great snacking venue for the unpretentious diner out for a quick bite. The place is neat, well-lit, and features simple décor, a large TV screen, a few tables and two baithaks (low or ground level seating) for those who wish to dine the traditional way.
Never one to like surprises when dining out at a restaurant for the first time, I checked out Café Aisha’s menu online, and found a couple of things I thought I could really order and enjoy. Knowing most of the items are South Asian in origin (mainly Pakistani and Indian), I didn’t expect much other than lots of spice from the food.
Frankly speaking, I am not a great fan of the biryani because first, I find it too oily, and second, it is too oily for my taste. However, since the dum biryani is their specialty, it was a must-try; and try it I did – the beef version, that is.
But before the biryani came, my dining companion and I were served vegetables, which are part and parcel of restaurant eating in Arabic and South Asian food joints. The biryani was not at all greasy, and I found it spicy but tasty. And watch out for the spicier gravy served with it!
We also tried their chicken boti (desi fajita) served pleasantly warm, with some vegetables neatly tucked into the wrap. Aisha’s chicken omelette is nice and fluffy, served with two slices of toast (it’s an all-day breakfast place after all!).
To top off the meal, for dessert, we had the highly recommended, rainbow-coloured gola ganda (snow cone) which turned out to be a really cool treat after a spicy meal.
Finally, we had to try the doodh patti chai, which is a rich milk-and-tea-only chai. All in all, my companion and I left with satisfied tummies.
