Peshawari Ice Cream: Famous Shops

Peshawari ice cream means two different things, and it helps to know both before you go looking for it. The white, milky ice cream sold under that name across Pakistan is a Karachi product, made famous by a parlour started by three brothers after independence. In Peshawar itself the frozen dessert people queue for is kulfi falooda, and the best-known maker, in the Yakatoot quarter of the old city, has been at it for more than 60 years.

This guide explains the difference, how each is made, where to find them and what to order.

What makes kulfi different from ice cream?

Kulfi is a Mughal-era dessert. Reference sources trace it to 16th-century Delhi, where thickened, sweetened milk flavoured with pistachio and saffron was packed into metal cones and frozen in ice. The word comes from the Persian qulfi, a covered cup.

The difference from ice cream is in the making. Ice cream is churned as it freezes, which beats air into it. Kulfi is not churned at all. The milk is boiled down slowly until it thickens, then poured into moulds and frozen, so the result is denser, creamier and slower to melt, and it tastes strongly of cooked milk.

Falooda is the other half of the glass: thin vermicelli, rose syrup and sweet basil seeds in milk. It descends from the Persian dessert faloodeh and took its present form in Mughal India. Kulfi falooda is simply the two served together.

The Karachi brand called Peshawari

The parlour that made the name famous is in Karachi. A Google Arts and Culture feature produced by the SOCH Outreach Foundation says Peshawari Ice Cream was first made by three brothers in Karachi after independence in 1947, has kept its popularity since the 1960s, and is made from milk, sugar and cream. Its signature is a plain white scoop, with mango and strawberry in season and tutti frutti and kulfa falooda as the other favourites.

How the name came about is disputed. The same feature says the ice cream has no ties to the city of Peshawar. Other accounts say the brothers came from Peshawar and named the shop for their home city. We could not settle it from reliable sources, so we do not repeat the founders' names or a founding year here.

What matters for a traveller is simple: if someone in Karachi offers you Peshawari ice cream, it is a local parlour ice cream, usually eaten as a falooda with noodles, jelly, nuts and rose syrup. Many unrelated shops across the country use the name. Our falooda and rabri guide to Karachi covers that side.

Where to find the real thing in Peshawar

As the Express Tribune put it in a 2017 report, Peshawari ice cream is popular across the country, but in the city itself a different icy treat is coveted.

Yaadgar Kulfi, Yakatoot. The Tribune profiled this shop in the Yakatoot area of the old city, run by the kulfi maker Amir Gul, and reported that it had been in business for more than 60 years and drew customers from far outside Peshawar. Its distinction is sheep's milk. Kulfi makers used sheep's milk for centuries for its consistency and taste, and most switched to buffalo milk when sheep's milk became costly. This shop did not: at the time of the report it was bringing in about 400 kg of sheep's milk a day from the village of Pishtakhara. The milk is heated until it reduces to khoya, and the kulfi is made from that.

Qissa Khwani. News features on Qissa Khwani bazaar list kulfi falooda among the dishes sold there, along with the qehwa the bazaar is known for. It is the easiest place to try it on a walk between the bazaar and Chowk Yadgar. We could not confirm the name or age of any single shop there, so choose by how busy it is.

Hand carts. In the warm months vendors push kulfi carts through the old city lanes. Pick one that is busy.

None of this is sold as "Peshawari ice cream". Ask for kulfi falooda.

What to order

• Kulfi falooda, the standard order: kulfi turned out of its mould into a bowl, over vermicelli, with syrup poured on top.
• Plain kulfi, if you want the milk flavour without the noodles and syrup.
• Kheer, rice pudding cooked slowly in milk, often sold alongside, for anyone who prefers something softer.

Portions are filling, and one bowl is easily shared between two after a meal. We could not confirm current prices, so ask before you order.

When to go

This is mainly a summer food. The Tribune's report describes customers thronging the shop as the temperature rises, and Peshawar's summer is long and hot. We could not confirm whether the shops sell it through the winter, so do not plan a December trip around it.

Go after a meal. A karahi or chapli kebab dinner is rich, and a small kulfi falooda afterwards is the local way to finish it. Our guide to Peshawar's famous food sets out a full food day, and our old Peshawar walking tour passes the bazaars where it is sold.

Is it safe to go?

As of September 2026 the UK government advises against all travel to Peshawar, and there have been serious attacks in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa this year. Old-city food stops are used by Pakistani visitors and residents every day. Go in daylight or early evening, keep to busy streets, avoid crowds around rallies, and check the news before you travel. Foreign-passport holders should read their own government's advice, since travelling against it can void insurance. Our guide to whether Peshawar is safe has the full picture.

On hygiene, the usual rule applies: eat where turnover is high, and if your stomach is not used to street food, skip the crushed ice and syrups from carts and stick to an established shop.

Is it worth seeking out?

Yes, as the last stop of a food walk and not as a trip in itself. Sheep-milk kulfi is hard to find anywhere else now, and it is one of the few old-city foods that suits children and cautious eaters as well as adventurous ones. If you are in Karachi and curious about the brand, try it there, but it tells you nothing about Peshawar.

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