VIJAYAWADA: The holy month of Ramadan has been ushering in the aroma of Haleem with more than 500 eateries serving Muslim delicacies set up across the city.
The ever-busy Panja centre, Labbipet, Autonagar and many restaurants were seen welcoming the food lovers to taste the most famous Haleem and Muslim traditional delicacies such as Qurbani Ka Meetha, Shahi Tukada, Firni Sweet, Kaddu Ka Halwa and others. Restaurant owners say that the twenty-nine days of the holy Ramazan month are a great time to relish Muslim delicacies.
The locals have been fortunate to devour the famous dish Haleem for a decade, thanks to many well-known Hyderabad-based food joints opening stalls and chefs being roped in for the preparation of Haleem and other eateries in the city during the festival season.
“Earlier, only a few restaurants in the city used to offer Haleem and other traditional delicacies during Ramadan month. Later, many restaurants from Hyderabad started offering their services and city-based eateries too started preparing Haleem with the help of Hyderabadi cooks,” said Abdul Basheer, owner of Golden Pavilion restaurant.
He further said that all measures are being taken during the preparation of Haleem strictly adhering to Food safety standards.
On the other hand, Hyderabad-based eateries like Pista House, and Bawarchi and city-based biryani points like Golden Pavilion, Southern Spice, and Star Biryani have hired chefs from Hyderabad to prepare the dish.
Now, Vijayawada is said to be the second city in the country after Hyderabad preparing this Arabic dish on such a large scale.
According to sources, more than 500 Haleem centres have been set up this year spreading to various parts of the city. Meanwhile, owners are leaving no stone unturned in decorating their outlets with colourful lights and banners to attract people. From arranging a comfortable seating facility for people to sit and relish the served straight from the oven, they are offering door-to-door delivery services to increase sales.