The day we went to Karim's for Eid lunch

I was reminiscing about celebrating Eids at home in India and I thought of the day my sister and I went to Karim's, the famous Delhi restaurant for Eid lunch.

I had just moved to Delhi and my sister had been living there for a couple of years. We lived in South Delhi at the time and there was a small branch of Karim's in the vicinity. But according to her friends, for the experience you gotta go to the original restaurant, in Chandni Chowk, near the Jama Masjid. My sister is vegetarian and Karim's specializes in non-veg Mughlai dishes, but out of sisterly affection she agreed that we could have Eid lunch at Karim's.

So on the morning of Eid-ul-Adha we set out from our South Delhi house. I was eagerly anticipating eating biriyani, followed by Phirni (I was very curious about Phirni, having never heard of it until I moved to Delhi). Guess what, Karim's was closed. The vendors nearby told us that they are closed only on two days a year - on Eid-ul-Fitr and Eid-ul-Adha. What a shame. But it was Eid after all and we were determined not to be upset. We went to a smaller restaurant in Daryagunj which was full of kids who were spending their Eidi after watching Kabhi Kushi Kabhi Gham, the hit movie that year.

Oh and if you are curious... we did go to Karim's later when atha and amma were in Delhi visiting us. Atha and my sister, the vegetarians, had to content themselves with some Naan and mixed vegetable curry, but amma and I gorged on biriyani and kebabs. But later in the day, we went to Parathewali Gali, also in Chandni Chowk, a narrow street with Paratha-walas, so the vegetarians could have their gobi parathas.