Date of visit: June 02, 2021 12:26 pm. The restaurant opens at 10:15 am. My friend and I were in the mood for some Indian food and this smaller Pakistani/Indian/Nepali restaurant was only about 400 yards away. We decided to try a little bit of several things and just bring leftovers back to the room. We first tried ordering off the menu chicken biryani but were told it wouldn't be ready for a 1/2 hour. We then tried ordering off the menu butter chicken, which wasn't available. Then the lahori mutton karahi which also wasn't available. We ended up being able to order the peshawari chicken karahi, chicken tikka paratha, 2 vegetable and 2 chicken samosa, the chicken biryani, an order of French fries and a banana and a mango lassi. We asked that the main entrees be brought out closer to when the biryani would be finished. Our lassi drinks were brought out and our fries. The lassi were perfectly, and correctly made might I add, and fresh ingredients vs canned. A tart yogurt was used as its compliment to its fruit to offset the sweetness of the fruit. We both enjoyed them, however I would have liked a banana a bit more ripe, but that is simply personal preference. The French fries were fried to a perfect crispness. No salt tasted like it was added so that we could determine our own appropriate level for that. I felt the French fries could have used a very light dusting of spice, but again, personal preference and they were fine. Then was brought the samosas. Holy wow, the veggie samosa was absolutely fantastic. The spice flavor combination was flawless for anyone who likes a prominent spicy taste in the veggie samosa. I tried the chicken samosa and it was very mild in flavor, but also perfectly made and perfectly cooked. Between the two though, I will take the veggies samosa hands down each time. The next items brought out were the chicken tikka partha and our biryani chicken with a side of chicken on the bone. The sliced piece of chicken brought out was great. The light dusting of coating was very nice and complimented the chicken flavor well. The meat was neutral like a great piece of chicken should be versus a processed taste. The biryani had a bit of spice to it and was very well made. Chicken tikka partha I had never had before and was made very similar to how a quesadilla would be presented. A home run on this item. It is a bit on the spicy side for most people, but I found its spice level to be very appropriate for my preferences. By the time we reached the previous course we were both already pushing our food capacity and requested the leftovers to be boxed and the remaining food on its way out to be also packed up to go. Apparently the peshawari chicken karahi was very good because by the time we returned home later in the day after dropping off our leftovers earlier our other roommate had totally eaten all the leftovers. While we were there we struck up conversation with the owners son. He said they had been in business for about a year and much of their customers were word of mouth. Everyone there was extremely nice. All the food is hand made on the spot in front of you and not pre-made. It is a, smaller 4-5 table restaurant but I have a feeling that the more people that eat there will be returning very quickly for additional meals. My recommendations to the owners would be to maybe add some Pakistani/Indian/Nepali traditional sweets to supplement their main business and draw in more guests. Maybe some jalebi, milk cake, or gulab jaman. Thank you for a wonderful experience. The only reason I didn't give 5 stars is because several of the dishes we wanted on the menu, very early after opening weren't available. read more

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Stay away from this place. The food was terrible and the service was worse. Everything was greasy and lacked flavor. The owner responded to another customers review in Google and said he served them DOG meat! This place should be shut down! Lucky he's not operating in the United States. read more

Ali Baba Büfe Pakistani Restaurant Taksim - Himalayan/Nepalese Near Me - İstanbul, 34

We visited Istanbul in June 2022, so this is a month late. By the time we got into Istanbul, checked in to our hotel, it was already 10:30. We were starving! Upon our research we found this place nearby our hotel and walked to it. They were closing at 11, and it was 10:50P now, but the husband and wife owners were so gracious and welcoming. We saw the extensive menu and honestly everything at that point sounded good, and as our eyes are always bigger than our stomachs. We ordered away. Our order: chicken samosas; chicken karahi; chicken biryani, chicken & beef seekh kababs, and naan. For dessert we got kit kat shake and kulfi. Everything was SUPERB. I was literally eating the karahi out of the skillet it came in. The only time I've had karahi like this is in Karachi. The chicken biryani was so so good - basically we were licking our fingers, yes, we ate with our hands - the Pakistani way! We went again for lunch on our last day in Istanbul. Didn't disappoint again. The owners are SO sweet - checking up on you, making sure everything is fresh (and they do make it fresh when you order). Please go here!! You will not be disappointed. read more

Cutest little Pakistani restaurant! We really appreciated that the menu was thoroughly explained to us. Most of the items on the menu are homemade so they take around 20-25 mins to be served but we didn't mind it at all because the food was amazing. They can even customize the spice level since they make those dishes fresh. BEST Peshawari chicken karahi and probably the best Pakistani restaurant in Istanbul. Definitely recommend!! read more

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