A Fine Dining Restaurant Guide | Karachi

For testing the waters, anniversaries, valentines, birthdays and friend catch ups

Welcome to a comprehensive dining guide for all occasions in Karachi.

This list leans to more fancy, expensive establishments, perfect for catching up with old friends and family or for wow-ing a hot date.

Sakura

Sakura is a Japanese themed restaurant. One particularly wonderful seat for first timers is by the teppanyaki table where the chefs cook your teppanyaki in front of you.

One of the best restaurants for high quality fish and sushi. This only applies to the PC branch as I haven’t heard the greatest things about the DHA branch, nor have i visited it myself so i can’t vouch.

The atmosphere of the restaurant is wonderful, Japanese inspired plates and decor. Almost anything on their sushi, sashimi and appetiser menu is good, but the mains leave you wanting more. They also do private rooms you can book out if you want more privacy with your date (wink wink).

Things to miss: The Ramen, Udon or Katsu Curry. All of them were flavourless when i tried them, and aren’t as flavoursome as other things on their menu

LFT Recommendations: Gyu Tataki, Beef Onigi rolls, Ebi tempura, Crispy california rolls, Dynamite maki, Seafood salad

Adult drink friendly: Yes!

Cafe Aylanto

Situated on E-street, this one fine dining establishment was once the only spot to do birthdays and gatherings. In recent years, not only has the quality dropped but the ambiance also hasn’t been updated in years. The plates are sloppily plated and mostly empty with no price reduction in sight. Maybe more suited for the older generation that doesn’t enjoy change.

LFT Recommendations: Spinach & artichoke dip, the beef steak, chocolate mousse

Adult drink friendly: Yes, but only outside and not in the family sitting area (read: where the ac is). So a no if you’re visiting in the summertime.

Cotie Rotie

Located inside Alliance de Francais, this restaurant creates fine french cuisine and breads to die for. Their hot and cold apps are almost always good. Most times even better than their mains are. The plates do run small though

The place is cute and cosy and the perfect place once the winter comes around, for any meal. The inside can be loud with how small it is, but with the vibes of the place, its one to deal with for.

LFT Recommendations: The beef tacos, spinach and artichoke dip, deep fried brie with cranberry jam, the mushroom steak, the lamb shank and the wild mushroom linguine. Bonus if you’re there around breakfast because their brioche french toast is to DIE for.

Adult drink friendly: Yes! And they match the drink to the appropriate glass i.e. they’ll have a larger wine glass for red, or a thin long flute for champagne. +20 LFT points.

The Deli

Located also on E-street, this restaurant is forgotten by many and i don’t understand why. Not only is the ambiance cute (& secluded if that’s your drift), but the menu is extensive and usually well executed. It’s super cosy, but not suffocating for a date night, and their food is pretty tasty too.

LFT Recommendations: The beef khaosuey, beef carpaccio, sauteed mushrooms, char grilled steak, modern mezze platter, parmesan ravioli and the spaghetti bolognese

Adult drink friendly: No

The East End

Tucked away into a corner off teen talwar, this restaurant is what you’d imagine fine pakistani cuisine to look like. The inside is decorated with traditional tiles, a rickshaw wallpaper, and traditional wooden tables to really give you that upscale restaurant vibe while still staying true to the traditional food street atmosphere

They divide their menu into three different meal options; the gujrati fusion, from the roads of karachi and captain charlie’s kemari. This restaurant would be a great place to bring a foreigner to have a clean version of Pakistani food without the fear of an upset tummy.

LFT Recommendations: I’ve only ever had the From the Streets of Karachi menu. It is very tasty, desi food but the portable halwa puri are etched in my mind even all these years later

Adult drink friendly: Yes!

Cafe Flo

Located near the famous E-street, this cafe is one of those fancy date night spots with vibes that are almost always immaculate. The dim lighting and the colorful walls are perfect for a cheeky drink with dinner, and from the starters to the mains they almost always deliver. They also give you a complimentary bread basket and butter which if you know carbs = love. They also do a lot of seasonal menu items so it’s always worth asking what their specials are. It does get very noisy indoors, so if you’re hard of hearing it may not be the best option. If the weather permits, the ambiance outside is almost always lovely.

LFT Recommendations: Beef carpaccio (one of the best on this list), shrimp tempura, the fried calamari, the beef chateaubriand, the chocolate mousse, the pepper steak, tuna carpaccio, and the apple pie

Adult drink friendly: Yes!

Pompeii

One of the randomest locations for fine dining with a gym to burn the calories away a stone throw away from the restaurant. Despite it’s weird location, the restaurant could use a serious upgrade in regards to their interior, and their menu. They will get some points for the complimentary bread basket, but that’s about it for the LFT points. Some days are great, but mostly most days are a miss and the ambiance is completely dead the last time i visited. If you’re looking for privacy, go here as nobody else does anymore.

LFT Recommendations: Roasted tomato soup, bruschetta, stuffed mushrooms, pepper crusted beef eye, beef medallions with mushroom sauce, four cheese ravioli, penne chicken with parmesan broth, bread pudding and the chocolate fondant.

Adult drink friendly: Yes!

Okra

Probably one of the hardest restaurants to get dinner reservations at in my experience, every time i’ve called them, they have been booked months in advance. If you have plans to visit, and don’t make books 3 months in advance, try the brunch or breakfast slot instead over the weekend as i’ve heard from friends those slots are easier to fill.

Any recommendations here are not my own as i’ve enlisted some trusted followers to share what they eat when they visit

LFT Recommendations: Stroganoff, Okra burger, smoked trout, sauteed mushroom, steak with chilli, lamb shank with risotto, anything pasta or ravioli, beef carpaccio, creme brulee and tiramisu

Adult drink friendly: Yes!

Loco

Plucked from the streets of Barcelona, Loco is one restaurant that does the cuisine justice. I will say, their tapas menu is far superior to their mains menu and if you’re visiting with a group, order a bunch of them and share. The breakfast menu falls flat and fishy, and should be avoided at all costs. For their mains, the pizza, sandwiches and any fish option is a good starting point.

LFT Recommendations: Carb & cheese dip, fried calamari, gambas prawn, stuffed mushroom caps, carne asado tacos, the bone marrow, patatas bravas, provelleta, steak & gorgonzola sandwich, bresola e rucolae pizza

Adult drink friendly: Yes!

Izakaya

Probably the most boujee out of the list. This is very well known for it’s famous blue door, and eclectic dining rooms that have individual themes. The food however isn’t the most high level of innovation, with sushi, prawn tempuras, chicken teriyaki and seared wagyu on the menu. Almost every time i have visited, it’s been a variety of the same sort of dishes but irregardless, the food is always delicious. The chefs do challenge themselves to create menus that are original on request if you’re looking to celebrate a special occasion and for that they get +15 LFT points

LFT Recommendations: The beef tataki, coconut soup, seared wagyu, prawn tempura, and their truffle fries. The tiramisu is one of the best i’ve had, but they very seldom have it on the menu

Adult drink friendly: Yes!

Banchan

Another restaurant i haven’t gotten my claws into. Every week i make a plan to go and somehow it always fall through, but do not worry, this is what the LFT community is for. Any recommendations here are not my own as i’ve enlisted some trusted followers to share what they eat when they visit.

LFT Recommendations: Angus bulgogi, wagyu bulgogi, seafood pancake (ask for it extra crispy), tuna pizza, special salmon belly nigiri, wagyu nigir, local bulgogi andd the wagyu brisket

Adult drink friendly: Yes!

Huo Gua Hotpot

A bit of a curveball to add to this list, but if you’re looking for the fun of hotpot combined with the comfort of air conditioning this is the spot to visit. Not only that but the hotpot is connected to an electric stove, with a remote control that allows you to adjust temperature without flagging down a waiter. A huge win for me tbh. They also have a self-serve dipping sauce making station so you can add 7-8 handfuls of minced garlic into your bowl and nobody will question it

LFT Recommendations: The spicy hotpot, self making dipping sauces, the honey lemonade. Almost all the usual hotpot proteins you can find here and the quality is pretty good too

Adult drink friendly: No

Fujiyama

One of the OG fine dining restaurants on the list that is still running. Located inside Avari towers, they just refurbished in 2023 to bring the restaurant to the modern century. A refurb that was very needed. This restaurant was my first introduction to sushi, so no matter how bad it is, the rose-tinted glasses of nostalgia will always allow it to have a special place in my heart.

LFT Recommendations: Beef rolls, any type of sashimi, the beef and chicken teppanyaki, thee vegetable tempura and the stir fried noodles

Fuschia

One of my most frequent Thai places in the city - at least from my mid teens. In recent years, the quality went down and then back up again. That being said, they do have their grips on thai cuisine despite having service falter. We should also commend the way the serve rice to customers (from a giant pot of rice, and you can ask for however much you want!). The restaurant has recently been renovated and revamped and is located on top of it’s sister restaurant, Cafe Aylanto

Drink friendly: Not to my knowledge

LFT Recommendations: Tom yum soup, Chicken gyoza, Green curry, red curry, beef in oyster sauce, red snapper, beef in pepper sauce

Jinsoku

Always a bit of a hit and a miss, some nights they are very good and some nights just average. Their failing is with sometimes slow service, and going early does not guarantee that you can get served earlier. Their plates are rather small for the price, but understandable because high class fish is expensive to take care of and procure, but a worthy note to add for people who are budget conscious.

Drink friendly: Yes, but covertly

LFT Recommendations: The mahi mahi ceviche, gyu naku nana, the dynamite roll, yoko maki, aged tuna, seared salmon belly

Crying Tiger

A bit of a newer Thai place, but one that has super seeded fuschia in my opinion. Their Tom Yum soup takes me back to when Baan Thai was our only thai spot in the city. It tastes just as good. Their appetizers are super delicious and sometimes better than the mains. I can also visibly see their Thai chef walk around the dining room asking for feedback every time i’ve visited and that awards them with + 30 LFT points

Drink friendly: No

LFT Recommendations: Tom yum soup with prawns, papaya salad, drunken noodles, steamed fish, money bag dumplings, crying tiger beef, spicy basil beef, prawn toast