Masooms - Anyone for desert?

Remember the first time you fell in love; the quickening of your heartbeat, the anticipation, the fear of separation and more importantly the joy of having found your perfect match. This is the exact same feeling I get every time I go to Masooms and take my first bite of their scrumptious baked goods because every bite is heavenly and worth every dime. Though it might seem impossible but I can almost hear my heart go “mmmmmmm…..”

Step Right In
Nestled in the basement of a building smack on Lahore’s busy M.M. Alam Road,  Masooms sees students, business executives, and young couples come and go amidst tiny, misty clouds of fresh coffee, warm patties and soft brownies. As soon as you enter the bakery, you’re greeted by enticing smells that make you want to devour anything and everything available. The interior is simple yet chic with dim lights, wooden furniture and counters filled with a concoction of bakery items that are an eye candy for every customer. The seating area consists of three wooden tables with a few chairs and an L shaped sofa that provides seating in the drinks area which includes a small counter with a plethora of supplies for making different drinks. Here’s a problem though; the seating area is too small to accommodate a large number of people, so sometimes, customers have to have their food packed instead of eating in. Masooms has tried and succeeded in making the environment trendy and fun and the colorful menu on the chalk board is just one of the many tactics used to have the desired affect.

Food
Anthelme Brillat Savarin once said; “Tell me what you eat, and I will tell you what you are.” And if you happen to eat at Masooms, then you are a person with one helluva taste! Simply because the food at Masooms is nothing short of heavenly. The smell, texture and taste, all compliment each other so well that you are forced to eat more than you intended. The specialty of Masooms lies in cakes which are available in a wide variety and every single one them is divine. The most popular amongst customers are Death by Chocolate, Mocha Java and Double Fudge Cake that tantalize your taste buds and make it hard for you to stop at just one slice. The cakes are available in the form of slices or as a whole. For people who have a sweet tooth, this treat does not stop at cakes and pastries. There is also a large variety of muffins, tarts, pies and cookies that are perfect for a tea party or a casual get together with friends.

If you fancy a steaming cup of mochacinno or a chocolate smoothy, then Masooms is the place to be. The servers are quick and efficient and unlike some of the other places I’ve been to, they do not spill half of your drink on the way to your table. To cap it all, all the drinks are lip smacking, to say the least.

 
For those of you, who are not too fond of sugar, well, you’ve got nothing to worry about because Masooms has a complete range of appetizing salted food which includes sandwiches, lasagna, pizzas, quiche, croissant and drumsticks, to name a few. The best thing about all this is that no matter what time of the day you go to Masooms, you will always find the food to be fresh and tasty. Over the years, Masooms truly has carved a name for itself – especially given the fact that new coffee houses have managed to spring up by the dozen in Lahore. Masooms’ customer base has remained pretty consistent, since the café never compromises on quality.

 
Price
When Masooms opened up in 2003, it was one of its kind with its quality food and affordable prices but over the years, its prices have skyrocketed which has dismayed some customers who cannot come to their favorite hangout as often as they would love to. Pastries usually fall into the price range of Rs.50- Rs.100 while cakes have varying prices, depending upon their specifications. For example, a regular sized Death by Chocolate Cake costs around Rs. 600 while Mocha Java costs around Rs.800. So there is no fixed price that could be quoted. Sandwiches cost around Rs.150 and above while other bakery items like pizzas and quiche cost about Rs.60 or so.

Summary

The Good: Heavenly food that is bound to leave you craving for more!

The Bad: Recent price hikes might put off some customers who are unwillingly to spend huge amounts of money on food, no matter how delectable the offerings are.

The Bottom Line: If you have an insatiable sweet tooth and you are willing to pay any price for it, then I wonder what you’re still doing here!

By Mehroz Sajjad