Ramadan Icon · Rose Sharbat
Rooh Afza
Photo: Muffingg. Original uploader was Muffingg at de.wikipedia / Wikimedia Commons · Public domain
A drink invented in 1906 as a heatstroke remedy is now handed out free by the cupful outside mosques every Ramadan evening.
Rooh Afza is a ruby-red syrup of rose, kewra (screw pine), fruit and herb extracts, diluted with cold milk or water and poured over ice. It's a fixture of iftar tables and street stalls across Pakistan, especially during Ramadan.
Why it's made this way: Created in Old Delhi by a Unani physician as a cooling tonic, it became an emblem of the fast-breaking ritual across Pakistan, India, and Bangladesh for over a century.
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Part of World of Street Food — 690 dishes from 118 countries.
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