A hearty treat with a group of hearties | Banani Food Escapade ~ Ramadan Series

Hello, gamers of Hive. I hope you all are doing well today.

So, after many days since my last delicious food tour at Gulshan, I had once again embarked on a food journey that was supposed to be the best iftar I would have this year. It also allowed me to post about this experience in this amazing community of food lovers.

The restaurant itself was not the factor but the people that would join. Yesterday, I went with a few of my childhood buddies (some have graduated and are doing internships!) and had a crazy amount of giggles and chuckles as we reminisced our time at school and shared the faculties we had had in our uni time.

Now, I will share the story of how we ended up in the restaurant we had chosen and what followed afterward.
A week before the event, we opened up a group chat and made sure everyone was free on a certain date, then decided on the place to eat. Once those were set, we made a reservation and then the only thing left was to get to the place.

4 of my friends took an Uber while the others came by themselves as they lived closer to this restaurant. The real drama started after we headed inside.

I walked up to customer service and asked for our reserved table. The guy checks the list 3 times turns to me and asks if I could find the name under which we made the reservation. We didn't find any.

It was me that made the reservation mind you.

After a good 12 minutes, it was nearly iftar time and that's when the guy in charge came up to me and gave me an explanation that was a bit absurd but real. He told me that their management had changed the day before and so when I had called the day before, the "manager" made a reservation but it wasn't passed on through the system.

But, they gave us seats but we received our meals dead last, even after another group of people who came after us. So, in the meantime, they brought the drinks we ordered and offered us some fruits that were on the house.

A chunk of sirloin with sauteed veggies, chicken fingers, nuggets, rice, and a date.

Exactly what we wanted, except that the steak was obnoxiously enhanced in the ad. Trust me when I say that the steak was pure perfection for a medium rare. The only drawback was that as you would go to the edge part of a cut, the doneness increased exponentially to the point that it felt as well done.

But, I do understand why that happened. We arrived 30 minutes before iftar and then they found out that there was a reservation error and they needed to prepare 6 more steaks! While focussing on the time of iftar, they also had to do their iftar. So, they flared up the flames and let the steaks cook as fast as possible, hence the perfect color on the inside and a medium-well on the outside.

As we spoke with excited spirits, as the food was getting delayed, we talked about the rest of the gang, which country they resided in, and where we would be in the future. When it did arrive, the family that came after us had already left... but I wasn't disappointed since I knew that a good steak needs a lil time, and they did not let my hopes down.

After the feast, we paid the bill that came out insanely high and headed down the road to find a tong. Tong er cha is not only the best tea but it is also a feeling that most Asians will always have without hesitation. And yes, my hands were a bit sweaty as we had to walk for a bit.
As we sipped the tea, we discussed if they were invested in any form of trading, what games do we play now, and when would each of us leave the country if our group chats got leaked XD.

And the moment that we captured is for the future us, to remember a place and time where we had no major responsibility or duty but pure enjoyment and fun with bros with whom we grew up. Some were lost along the way and some couldn't make it and as the future seems grim with all the war and the growing feeling of dissatisfaction, today seems a great day to be alive.