A Seasonal Eating Calendar for Islamabad

Islamabad's markets have real seasons, and cooking with them isn't romance — it's just when food tastes loudest and costs least.

Summer (June-August) is mango country; Sindhri then Chaunsa, each with a few glorious weeks. It's why Mango Mirch Burrata exists and why it leaves. Cucumbers, mint and stone fruit are at their peak; heavy roasted vegetables step back.

Autumn (September-November) brings pumpkin, dates from Khairpur, apples down from the north, and the first serious pomegranates. Our Roast Pumpkin Dukkah Date edition lives here.

Winter (December-February) is the salad paradox season: the leafy greens are magnificent — mustard greens, spinach, fat winter romaine — while the fruit bowl turns to citrus. Kinnow segments, trout from the northern hatcheries, walnuts in their prime. The Green Goddess Trout edition follows the trout, not the calendar page.

Spring (March-May) is the bridge: peas, new herbs, the last citrus, the first serious tomatoes. It's the season our house vinaigrette works hardest.

Seasonal Editions rotate on this calendar, and when an ingredient's season closes, the bowl goes with it. A menu that never changes is a menu telling you something about its freezer.