The holy month of Ramzan is a time for abstinence and introspection. However, on a lighter note, it also brings with it a variety of mouthwatering delicacies in the form of the ‘Iftaar’ spread. Areas like Shivajinagar, Koramangala, KR Market and Bannerghatta Road are bustling with stalls offering the sweet and savoury festive specials.

A walk through any of these places and you will find many Bengalureans feasting on items like ‘samosas’, ‘chicken puffs’, ‘coconut naan’, ‘seviyan chutney’, ‘gulkand maska’, ‘seekh kebab’, ‘wheel kebab’, ‘masala kebab’, ‘shami kebab’, ‘stick chops’ and ‘stone chops’. Many other favourites in chicken, mutton and beef are also prepared fresh at each of the shops.

Wasim Ahmed, a stall owner in Shivajinagar, says, “Our speciality is ‘kalmi kebabs’. We set up our stall at around 2.30 pm and it’s open till 1.30 am. Foodies from all over the city flock the area to gorge on the food in the evening and it’s a pleasure to serve them,” he says.

Mohammed Riyaz puts up his stall especially during Ramzan and deals in sweetmeats. “We have around four main items in sweets. There is ‘phirni’, ‘carrot halwa’, ‘pineapple halwa’ and ‘shahi tukda’. No colour or preservatives are used in the preparations; we use a lot of ‘khoya’ and ‘badaam’ though. Everything is reasonably priced and people get a lot of stuff parceled as well,” details Riyaz.

Tanveer, a resident of HBR Layout, enjoys digging into the ‘Iftaar’ spread every year and this year is no different for him. “I do a recce of all the areas in the city to check out the different items. This time, I have been going to KR Market almost everyday. My favourites, though, are the ‘keema’ and onion ‘samosas’ in Shivajinagar. Another delicacy that’s doing the rounds this year is the ‘patthar gosht’,” he says.

A few shops in all the localities are also open round the clock, just to be able to cater to foodies at any time of the day. Many may be disappointed as there are no stalls on Mosque Road this time but the sheer variety in all the other areas will surely make up for that.

Shahfahad, another stall owner, is all too happy to speak about the grand variety at his shop. “We have ‘malai chicken’, ‘chicken Amritsari chops’, ‘chicken barbeque chops’, ‘kulfi chicken’, ‘ice cream chicken’, ‘Banarasi chicken’, ‘Singapuri chicken’, ‘hariyali kebab’, ‘mutton keema chicken’, ‘mutton grill chops’ and more. For those who’d like to indulge in sweets, we have the tempting ‘caramel pudding’. We are happy to work round the clock during the month of Ramzan,” he says.