How Karim's has continued to attract customers for generations
How Karim's has continued to attract customers for generations

The Legacy

Md. Evaz, father of Karim Uddin, was the chef of royal court of red fort’s kitchen. During 1857 revolt, escaping from red fort, he took shelter in Ghaziabad. To pass on his legacy, he taught all his recipes to Karim Uddin. In 1911, during Delhi durbar, Karim Uddin set up a kiosk in front of Jama Masjid gate no. 1 to sell aloo gosht and daal. His food was an instant hit and following this, he set up a shop in in Gali Kababiyan, in 1913. “I am the fourth generation and I joined the business in 1999 when I was probably 20 year old,” shares Zaeem Uddin.

The Food

Karim’s food has continued to remain equally popular even today, which helped it to become a legacy restaurant. Customers who came here with their grandfather, now, come here with their grandson. The waiters take orders verbally; there is no need of paper or tablet, they know the menu by heart as they have to repeat same orders every day. Known for their mutton burra, chicken delicacies and biryani items, this restaurant make their special spices. “The taste of the dishes is same what it was when it was started,” Zaeem adds.

The restaurant has around 50 to 60 items on their menu, and there are around 5 to6 signature dishes like mutton seekh kabab, mutton burra, badam pasanda, green curry, chicken jahangiri, sheer maal and kheer. “We get 1,500 to 2,000 daily eaters at Jama Masjid branch. We have monthly sale of up to Rs 2 crore at Jama Masjid branch and around Rs 20-22 crore annually,” points Zaeem.

Flying High

The group is running around 20 restaurants in Delhi-NCR and all are family member branches. Jama Masjid branch has a seating capacity of around 300 people which is packed most of the time.

 
Stay on top – Get the daily news from Indian Retailer in your inbox
Also Worth Reading