The biryani is very good at Lahori Gate. Photo: Lucy Ridge.
Lahori Gate is a relaxed neighbourhood restaurant at Weetangera shops serving traditional Pakistani curries. They’ve collected a fan base of local residents and Desi (South Asian) customers from all over town who visit to have a taste of home.
I grew up in Weetangera but haven’t been back for some years so I was really interested to see what has happened with the local shops, which were pretty sad for most of my childhood. There’s a neighbourhood gym, Oscar’s Cafe and Bakery has moved in, and Lahori Gate has been pumping out curries and biryani for the past seven or so years.
Owner Ahmad Khan (who took over the restaurant a few years ago) told me that they do a lot of takeaway orders to locals, and they had recently done a special menu during Ramadan for the local Muslim community. A Muslim himself, Ahmad doesn’t sell alcohol but the restaurant has a licence so he welcomes those who do drink to BYO.
I visited Lahori Gate with a friend for dinner during the week. I was worried to see it was fairly quiet just before 7 pm on a Tuesday evening but Ahmad explained that we’d come between ‘shifts’:
“Aussies eat early, and Desis eat late!” he told Region.
“And we are usually busier on a Friday or Saturday night.”
Former Weetangera resident Lucy Ridge was delighted to see so much life in the shops. Photo: Lucy Ridge.
More people arrived a little later and it worked well for us as food came to the table rapidly! We’d chosen a few classic Pakistani dishes: Haleem, Biryani, Seekh Kebab and Rogni Naan.
Haleem – often called the ‘King of Curries’ – is a dish of meat slowly cooked down with lentils to create a thick, comforting dish with all the ingredients melting together. Often made with beef, we tried the chicken version, which was hearty and yummy.
The rogni naan – recommended by Ahmad – is a version of baked flatbread with sesame seeds and was perfect for scooping up those tasty curries, or grabbing pieces of spiced kebab with yoghurt sauce.
The biryani was particularly good: fluffy, aromatic rice cooked with richly spiced pieces of chicken. I could have eaten that all day!
Checking out the Lahori Gate Facebook page, I noticed they do a buffet brunch on weekends and I was super curious, so I headed along the following weekend to give it a go. A hotbox was filled with delicious Nihari (slow cooked beef in a spicy gravy), rice, haleem, a lentil curry, veggie curry and halwa: a delicious sweet spiced with cardamom and studded with raisins.
Lahori Gate in Weetangera has a mix of ‘Desi’ and ‘Aussie’ customers, according to owner Ahmad. Photo: Lucy Ridge.
Ahmad also recommended the Lamb Paye: slow-cooked lamb’s hooves in a soupy broth. Slow-cooked, the cartilage turned gelatinous and deliciously unctuous. There’s little knuckle bones to navigate but the flavour is top notch! Ahmad says the dish is so popular that people eat it for breakfast, lunch and dinner in Pakistan.
We helped ourselves onto segmented paper plates, and Ahmad brought over delicious warm naan and fried puri bread for us. We also ordered some sweet milk tea to wash it all down with.
It’s a far cry from flat whites and smashed avocado, but if you’re looking for something different, then I’d recommend giving it a go!
Lahori Gate is located at Weetangera Shops, 2 Weetangera Place. Lahori Gate is open from 5 to 10 pm Tuesday to Sunday, and from 10 to 2 pm on Saturday and occasional Sundays for weekend brunch. Follow Lahori Gate on Facebook for more details.
Original Article published by Lucy Ridge on Region Canberra.
