Arif Chatkhara as we all know serves the best Tawa Chicken in Lahore, if not, the world! It is for us a spicy taste of heaven and the one who hasn’t had it at their actual location…well we just feel sorry for you. But fear not as we have prepared a guide for you to make it easy to experience the actual essence of Arif Chatkhara House.
Jado-Jehad to get there
One thing you really need to understand is that good things don’t come in easily. So the most challenging thing is the location. It’s far if you live away from Old Lahore. Located in Shahi Mohalla, it comprises of a small 2 story building always bustling with customers. Be prepared to wait for ages as sometimes it takes pretty long to get a seat. However, they have renovated and added 2 decent looking family halls where you can eat in peace.
Order
Here, you won’t hear of what they have in store for you nor do they have any menus. You either want a chest piece or a leg piece. Spicy or extra spicy you NEED to tell that to them. Also, this beauty is meant to be eaten with a rotti. So don’t rant about getting a naan as it is pointless and well, you’ll just be ruining the signature Tawa Piece.
About the leg and chest problem, it’s better to get both if you can make room in your stomach. However, leg piece is claimed to be juicy even though it’s relatively small and less filling. However I’ve tried both and would vote for chest piece as it is more in quantity and for me, juicy enough as they add a lot of spicy sauce on it when it’s on the tawa.
Presentation
If you’re expecting it to look like a 5 star dish, please don’t. The chicken is tossed on a plate and at times has oil dripping as well. But that’s the beauty of it! For me, it can beat a 5 star dish anytime. With lemons and green chilies glistening on top of the spicy chicken; your mouth will water instantly and take this from me; you’ll even be ready to skip the process of taking a photo, choosing a filter to put it up on Instagram to flaunt. This baby makes you want to dig right in!
Tie your hair and grab tissues!
If you have long hair, tie them. I repeat, TIE THEM; as your hand WILL get dirty and you wouldn’t want to push them away with dirty hands then. Also, you might need tissue papers to wipe away that behti naak because of the spicy factor apart from cleaning your hands. Tee Hee, it actually happens.
Extra to bring up the spice level
If you’re a maniac like me who loves the chicken to be FULL of chilies, you can always ask them for more and they present a plate of masalay wali fried mirchain. However, try this ONLY if you have a stomach that can bear it.
To finish it off
Having sprite with it is one thing but do take spoonful of yogurt they serve with it to give your stomach a rest. And if you’re going from Mall Road, don’t forget to stop at the decades old Chaman Ice-Cream!
Total Bill
The best part about this is the bill. It costs one person around 300 rupees that covers for 1 piece of Tawa Chicken, 2 rotis, 1 bowl of raita, salad and drink. What more do you want. Additional piece of advice is to not get it packed as it won’t be the same as it is fresh!
Aimen Tofique- Desi Food Aficionado
