Iftar shops in Old Dhaka: Sep 2008

Chawkbazar Shahi Masjid on left




Shuti kabab

Bakerkhani


Halim









In Chawkbazar, the old quarter of the city, residents throng the makeshift Iftar shops that sprung around Chawk Shahi Masjid, bazaar and the lanes around from noon. The rush gather momentum in the afternoon.

Iftar items have become pricey this year. The prices of jilapi, an integral part of iftar, was sold for Tk 80-100. The price of the chhola boot (fried and spiced chickpeas) also rose and sold at Tk 80-100 per kg. Puffed rice (muri) also marked a sharp rise this year.

Chawkbazar, in the old quarter, witnesses a huge rush of consumers every year to buy Gourmet and traditional special items which are rare in other areas of the capital. "Boro baper polay khai" (a mixture of chickpeas, brains, minced meat, potatoes, chira, eggs, chicken, piyaju, beguni, 13 spices and ghee), a popular iftar delicacy sold in Old Dhaka, giant beef and chicken roasts, shuti kabab (marinated minced meat), shahi doi bora (fried and spiced lentil balls dipped in yoghurt), mutton and chicken cutlet, kima roll (a roll of chopped meat), different types of kabab, kima parata, hilsha eggs, shahi jilapi, faluda, borhani, mattha and different sweet items are the Chawkbazar specialities. Most of the shopkeepers there were seen selling traditional iftar items some of which trace their origins back to the Mughal era.