Written by: Hurmat Majid
Posted on: February 08, 2019 | 
| 中文
Mei Kong Restaurant
There are stories that need to be told and then there are those that tell themselves – this one falls in the latter category.
It was the year 1973 and my parents had just gotten married. My mother, coming from the small Punjabi town of Haroonabad, was making a huge adjustment to her life by shifting to Karachi. With the shift came a number of unfamiliar sights, sounds – and tastes. Her first brush with Chinese food came in the form of her first dinner out with my father. The tale of how the two of them had Chinese food for the first time at Mei Kong, is one that we have heard a million times while growing up. This was also the place where she developed her taste for Indo-Chinese cuisine, replicating it in her own kitchen for years to come.
Mei Kong, a modestly-sized establishment in Block A of North Nazimabad, is one of the first—if not the first – places to introduce Chinese cuisine to Karachi, nearly 50 years ago. Today, the place still gives off that 70s vibe with its décor and lighting, while the tables are set with traditional white cloth and offset chequered table covers, a combination which is iconic to any traditional Indo-Chinese restaurant. A visit to Mei Kong for me was like stepping back in time and experiencing the same room as my parents had, but to others the décor may seem a little dated. The room also sports a large woven tapestry, depicting a scene straight out of Mulan, complete with pretty dark-haired women sitting under cherry blossom trees.
All around the room I saw families so at home in the restaurant, that it was easy to tell that they were frequent visitors here rather than first-timers. For a Monday night, it was amazing to see the house full, with families waiting outside to be seated. This, to me, was another tell-tale sign of the restaurant’s fame in the area – if not in all of Karachi. The service in the restaurant was relatively quick. Our server – who had been with the establishment for at least 40 years, according to his own estimate – was quick to suggest that we pick the Fried Prawn Chilli and something from the “Sizzler menu.”
Starting out with the staples, we picked Hot and Sour and Chicken Corn soups for starters. To put it briefly, the soups tasted pretty standard, just like any other generic Indo-Chinese place. The only surprise here was the use of prawns in the Hot and Sour soup. Also to be noted was the huge serving size. Our party of four was barely able to have even half of either of the soups, even after multiple helpings. People could probably take bets on whether they can finish the whole serving in one go – not many will win.
Moving on to the mains, we ordered Beef Noodles, Egg Fried Rice and a Beef Chilli Sizzler along with Fried Prawn Chilli. The Prawn Chilli won this round by a mile. The prawns were lightly coated with seasoned flour before being fried to perfection. The meat was succulent, and we managed to consume the entire helping. In fact, this was the only dish we managed to finish completely. I could see myself visiting the establishment just for a plate of these divine prawns after a long day of work. The beef noodles were also great, for someone who likes to takeout Chinese food. I have had a lot of noodles over the years, but this particular dish stands head and shoulders above the crowd. The noodles were neither too chewy nor too oily, and the beef to noodle ratio was on point. The vegetables in the dish still had a bite to them, and weren’t mushy. The Egg Fried Rice was another highlight, since it was tasteful enough to be eaten on its own, but not something that would overshadow the gravy. The vegetable and egg to rice ratio here was also perfect.
Choosing the Beef Chilli Sizzler on our server’s recommendation did pay off, since the dish was very close to the Mongolian Beef that I had had in China. The gravy had underlying tones of lemony sourness, while the heat from the chilli gave it a nice kick. A few sniffs were heard all around the table, but overall everyone enjoyed the dish thoroughly.
Our experience at Mei Kong this time was great, though a selection of Chinese teas to end the meal would be a welcome addition to the menu. For the six dishes that we ordered, the damage to the pocket was just PKR 3310, including the meagre service charge of PKR 150. The serving size was large enough for three people to share each dish and we had plenty of leftovers.
Having recently shifted to the area, I see this place becoming a favourite haunt of mine. It’s a cosy little restaurant that reminds me of my mother’s Chinese cooking and that – to me – is a priceless experience. For those who do not have a piece of family history attached to the place, it is still worth a visit - even if just for that Fried Prawn Chilli.
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