Savour Foods is the Rawalpindi restaurant that became a chain, and the chain that became something of a Pakistani institution. It started here, serving Pindi-style pulao — rice cooked in a stock of meat and spices, distinct from biryani in its restraint and from plain rice in its depth — alongside chicken karahi and mutton dishes. The formula worked well enough that the brand expanded across the country.
The Rawalpindi branches retain the original's character: large, functional, loud, and reliably good. The pulao is the thing to order. It arrives in portions sized for the genuinely hungry, with a side of raita and a token salad. Prices are low by any standard. The restaurant draws a broad cross-section of the city — families, office workers, truck drivers — which is as good a sign as any that the food is honest. Go at lunch or early dinner to avoid the worst of the queues.