A City Built on Appetite and Ambition
Gujranwala arrives without fanfare. It is not ancient like Lahore or Sialkot, its neighbours in Punjab's northeastern corner. Founded in the eighteenth century, it is a place that has always looked forward: first as the stronghold of Sikh military power under Ranjit Singh, who was born here in 1780; then as a British colonial centre; now as an industrial hub where appetite and enterprise define daily life. The city earned its reputation as the "City of Wrestlers," but what actually sets it apart is food—barbecue, kabab, biryani, and dishes that families travel across Pakistan to taste. This is a city where eating is not incidental to living; it is central to it.
What Remains from Earlier Eras
The Old Town holds fragments of Gujranwala's layered past. Walk toward the Estcourt Clock Tower, built in 1906 at the intersection of Guru Nanakpura Road and Clock Tower Road—a Victorian landmark that still marks the city's heart. Near it stands the Sialkoti Gate, completed in 1869 atop the foundation of a Sikh-era gateway. The gate sits at the entrance to a bazaar that has functioned since British rule, its narrow passages lined with food stalls and cloth sellers. St. Paul's Presbyterian Church, constructed in 1875 in the Civil Lines area, testifies to the Christian missionary presence that took root during the colonial decades.
These monuments survive as remnants of when Gujranwala was young and contested—when Charat Singh ruled from his fort between 1756 and 1758, when his son Maha Singh expanded Sikh territory, when Ranjit Singh briefly made this city his capital before moving to Lahore in 1799. The old defensive walls have mostly vanished, demolished long ago, but the street grid that Hari Singh Nalwa imposed on the city in the early nineteenth century still organises movement through the centre.
The Food That Defines the City
Gujranwala's reputation for cuisine rests on specifics, not nostalgia. The city is the foremost name in kabab and barbecue in Punjab—preparations that depend on technique, spice, and knowledge passed through generations. This is not casual eating; it is a craft.
- Shabaz Tikka serves grilled foods including batair (quail), tikka, chiray (sparrow), and curries. Its menu blends continental food with local desi cooking, with emphasis on kebabs, barbecue, naans, and chicken. The focus is on preparation and flavour.
- Allah Rakha, located at Sialkoti Darwaza, is known for chicken karahi and seekh kabab—ground beef marinated with aromatic herbs and spices, grilled on skewers. The shop also serves grilled goat chops and dal fry with fresh cilantro and green peppers.
- Ghanni Kay Pai is a destination in itself. Families from across Pakistan make journeys to eat here; it appears on few tourist lists but occupies a deep place in local knowledge.
- Baba Fareed Burger started as a 200-square-foot shop and expanded into thousands of feet of space. Its signature dish is Nan Shami, served with raita and salad. The restaurant reflects Gujranwala's appetite for innovation—traditional forms reimagined.
The Guru Nanakpura food street (Nashta area) serves desi breakfast—parathas, nihari, and the layered morning meals that begin the day here. Sialkoti Gate becomes especially lively in the evening, when food shops crowd the narrow lanes serving fried fish, samosa, chicken charga, biryani, and sweets like jalaibi and gulab jaman. Liberty Market food street, smaller and newer, includes Hot Grill, Quick Pizza Hut, and Fry Master.
For summer refreshment, Badamo ki Sardai on Pasrur Road serves traditional Punjab drinks—sherbet, sardai, thandai, and marraba—in a setting designed for lingering. Chatti Ki Lassi is another seasonal staple.
Shopping and Contemporary Life
Gujranwala has grown beyond its old bazaars. King's Mall, inaugurated in November 2016, combines shopping, dining, and cinema under one roof—air-conditioned cinemas like Zinco Multiplex and Roxy offer Pakistani films and releases to audiences in modern comfort. Wapda Town Market concentrates clothing brands; Satellite Town Market and Model Town Market serve daily shopping and evening fast food. Gujranwala Mart operates as an online grocery and delivery service for residents.
Rail Bazaar, the oldest bazaar in the city, has adapted to modern business while retaining its character as a working market. Butta Plaza hosts a mobile market. For those seeking riverside air, Boat Point in Peoples Colony serves as a picnic spot where locals bring chilled mangoes and watermelons during summer months.
When to Visit
Summer brings both intensity and tradition. Temperatures rise, and the city's relationship with cool foods deepens—sardai and thandai shops become gathering places; Boat Point fills with families seeking respite by the river. Winter months offer comfort for walking through old bazaars and eating kabab without the weight of heat. The months between October and March suit exploration of the Old Town and the narrow lanes around Sialkoti Gate.
Begin Exploring
Gujranwala asks nothing of the visitor except appetite and willingness to move through crowded bazaars. The city does not package itself for tourism or smooth the edges that make it real. What it offers instead is depth: a place where food is studied, where history lives in gates and street layouts rather than monuments, where eating is a serious conversation carried on across generations. Come here to eat what Gujranwalians eat, to understand why families travel across Pakistan to taste it, and to see how a city builds itself from commerce, wrestling tradition, and the knowledge that good food is not decoration but foundation.