So far I have not come across a restaurant in Karachi that boasts of as many seafood dishes as the one I went to last week. All laid out neatly on a decently extensive menu card, it made me go through each one of them with complete patience. Amongst blends of continental, Italian, Indian and our own desi food items, the Patio offers you lots more than what meets the eye after looking at its simple and quaint exterior.

We were a group of four and sat in Patio’s yellow and black interworked, quiet space. The dishes we ordered, featuring primarily seafood, were as varied as our conversation at the table. As we seamlessly moved from the difference between natural and pure honey to the benefits of praying in the night to the new Fawad Khan movie on the cards and barbaric lawn exhibitions in town, our dishes came in and punctuated our conversation and acted as deliberate breaks where we would eat, comment and dig in for more.

A basket of warm dinner rolls and sticks with sunny yellow butter was soon followed by Wasabi Pineapple Prawns. Served in individual spoons, these lightly battered prawns were faintly coated with wasabi dressing ensuring a smooth bite rather than an instant attack on the sinuses.

Return Factor - Wasabi Pineapple Prawns - 8/10 - The decent sized prawns and light dressing sure is a crowd pleaser.

Rs. 690 ++

Soon after, the Seafood Tapas arrived, boasting of some grilled fish, slightly darkened calamari, two open shelled prawns and a couple of round discs of scallops. Let’s just say that the lavishly laid oval dish looked better than it tasted. The calamari was overdone whilst the scallops were completely bland.

Return Factor - Seafood Tapas - 7/10 - If the items had been individually and sublimely flavored this dish would have been a sure hit.

Rs. 1250 ++

I somehow have a close affinity with ravioli and that would be my main course wherever available. Hence my choice of Crab Ravioli with chili lime butter was pre-determined while my other comrades ordered Patio Prawns, Honey Chili Prawns and Goan Mussel Curry. The last item was disappointingly not available so we settled for Peppered Beef Fillet instead.

Return Factor - Crab Ravioli - 7/10 – Five pasta shells filled with minced crab and topped with chilli sauce had a smoky flavor to it, which certainly threw me off balance however the lightly salted asparagus sticks were welcome.

Rs. 700++

Return Factor - Patio Prawns - 7.5/10 - Beautifully laid out, well cooked with a delicious mustard cream, however a small helping.

Rs. 783++

Return Factor - Honey Chilli Prawns - 8.5/10 - Hefty helping, chunky prawns coated with a slightly sweet and slightly tangy sauce.

Rs. 800++

Return Factor - Peppered Beef Fillet - 9/10 – This last entrée turned out to be the common platter in which we were all digging to get some decently cooked beef fillets on top of a whipped light potato mash.

Rs. 896 ++

Although stuffed, we decided to order dessert where Malt Kulfi stood out as a mouthful and Tiramisu failed to impress due to its cake like texture.

A clean, simple interior with a friendly well-informed staff and food ranging from Dressed Crabs to Amritsari Fish to Tawa Machi and Roghan Josh, this place spoils you rotten.

Far from the madding crowd - this quaint, calmly silenced place is certainly for those who want to switch off from the city noise, indulge in some decent conversation and delicious, beautifully plated food. And for those who might be interested, Patio also offers catering services.

Saadia Tariq is an avid foodie, blogs at www.capturebyst.com and can be followed on Twitter @saadiabyst