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Masoom’s Little Italy is a new destination for food-crazy Lahoris, right off M.M.Alam Road (where else do you expect to find new restaurants these days?).
Masoom’s originally opened a number of coffee shops in Lahore, with a really good selection of desserts and sandwiches, along with a variety of espresso drinks. Little Italy is the group’s first foray into the “proper restaurant” business. So, as a group of us were debating choices for lunch, Little Italy jumped out as a “must try” option.
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Located in Gulberg’s B-Block, on a branch off the M.M.Alam Road, Little Italy is easy to access and refreshingly quiet compared to its peers on the main M.M.Alam Road. |
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| The restaurant itself is half lounge with couches and half standard seating with tables. The kitchen is open for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. There’s a counter for coffee and Masoom’s signature fare for coffee-drinkers including delicious brownies and pastries. The décor is nice and cozy in the lounge area, though the tables and chairs could have been a bit more sturdy and comfortable. |
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The lunch and dinner menu, per the name stamp, is Italian, but there are also other western choices, including sandwiches and burgers. There’s a variety of pasta with chicken, meat, and seafood; along with a couple of risotto dishes. There is also a selection of steaks and chicken entrees. There are some interesting appetizers and a small selection of soups and salads.
The restaurant’s general manager Mr. Summer Nicks was kind enough to allow us an impromptu review. Following his “okay”, the restaurant’s manager on duty and his staff tried exceptionally hard to make our lunch special and good looking. The service was very attentive and the waiters, with curiously non-Pakistani names like Marco, Antonio, and Santiago, were quite courteous and knowledgeable about the menu.
Coming to the food, we tried the Pan Seared Calamari and Pepper Garlic Prawn for appetizers. The calamari was seared a bit too long with more black pepper than one’s palate can appreciate. The prawn appetizer was quite good. |
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The entrees were a mixed bag. The ingredients were all there and recipes were very well-intentioned; but in the end it was either a right-out-of-Campbell-soup-can flavor, or a made-in-haste-without-much-taste result. |
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Out of all the entrees we tried, the best was the Barbeque Beef Burger – strips of beef flavored with barbeque sauce, served with potato salad and French fries. Out of the pasta dishes, the best was Frutti de Marinara – linguine with a tomato based sauce and mixed seafood. The other entrees were okay, while a couple were outright no-no’s. Among the okay fare were Avillino Chicken – breast of chicken in a mushroom sauce with mashed potatoes and the Chicken Del Sardinia – breast of chicken served with rice and vegetables. The Four Cheese Tortellini and Penne Al Arrabbiata were both not that great. |
We did not try any of the steaks or even the risotto, and had no time left for dessert which, given Masoom’s history, may have made up for some of the flavor failure in our entrees. So it’s hard to say whether our experience would have been better if we had gone for different menu choices. But all told, Little Italy was not that great a destination. Having spent close to Rs.700 per head ($12), which is not cheap from Pakistani standards, we didn’t feel as though we had been to a pricey restaurant. The food at comparable restaurants is so much better and well-prepared that we felt a bit let down with Little Italy.
Verdict? We wouldn’t discourage you from going there, at least until we’ve heard about the other selections on the menu, but we would caution you not to go there with very high expectations.
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