Many restaurants bring in their head chefs from foreign countries to give the customers a feel of originality in their cuisine.

"People come for that special quality in authentic food. If it tastes like home-cooked dishes, why would they come?" said Aditya Dutta, corporate manager of two of Gulshan's most popular restaurants Lemon Grass and Samarkand.

Each restaurant is its own cultural domain, reflecting a particular style, taste and culture. From the Mexican paintings at El Toro, the fish nets hanging from the ceiling at Saltz, and the Thai sashes worn by the wait staff at @ Corner, the décor sets the tone of cuisine, complementing its authentic appeal.

"It is not that you go to a restaurant only because you feel hungry. It is also the ambience, the food and the conduct of the people who serve you that attract people," said R.P. Singh, corporate manager of Indian restaurant Khazana.

Locals generally prefer to flock restaurants on weekends and holidays, which may explain a significant presence on Thursday afternoons and after Juma prayers on Fridays. "Among foreigners there is no particular trend," notes the head of the wait staff at @Corner.

Although eating regularly at reputed restaurants is not a practical option for the vast majority of Dhaka residents, some who can afford it has made it a habit. Mumtahana Rahman, a student of a private university says she eats out five days a week. "I rarely eat meals at home because of my hectic daily routine," said Mumtahana.

Her mother Gulrukh Rahman feels that there has been an overall change in outlook.

"When I was young, people did not eat out so much. Now they are looking for variety and ways to experience the world at home."

Asked why she visited restaurants often, Mrs. Rahman said it gave her relief.

"This may sound silly but I prefer to go out once in a while so that I do not have to touch the cooking utensils. I get relief and the rest of family is also entertained."

Others emphasise on lack of options.

"There are not many other things to do here so food spots are the main form of entertainment in Bangladesh," said Rora Chowdhury.

Places like Spaghetti Jazz and Royal Orchid are trying to give their customers some semblance of nightlife by arranging live performances by popular bands like Pentagon and Renaissance in the evening.

Khaled Galeb Protik, a resident of Lalmatia said he visits Banani and Gulshan at least once a month with friends for dinner.

"We are all bachelors with jobs. We can afford it as we do not have too many other expenses."

The concept of authentic foreign restaurants emerged in the early 80s. Cathay, Dhaka's first international standard restaurant, Arirang and Royal Orchid, opened in 1977, 1982 and 1986 respectively, initially entertained mainly foreign diplomats residing in the Gulshan, which was an isolated area on the outskirts of at the time.

"Since independence, Bangladeshis have been doing more and more business in other countries. When they return home, they long for that same foreign dishes every now and then," says Michael Yang, proprietor of Cathay, who has observed the changing face of Dhaka's restaurant culture for nearly half a century. "Cathay was the first Chinese restaurant to move away from the simpler tastes of Cantonese to the spicier Szechuan and Hunan cuisine," he added

With well over forty quality restaurants in Gulshan and Banani serving primarily the wealthy, many fast of them fast food joints serving cheaper versions of foreign cuisine, upscale restaurants have started finding innovative ways to reach out to the humbler. Some restaurant owners offer cheaper buffets, while others have opened up new restaurants offering cheaper versions of their cuisine.

Buffets costing between Tk. 250 500 per person is available at places like of Sajna, Lemon Grass and Topkapi. In fact introduction of buffet meals has boosted the business of many restaurants.

If the numbers of people pouring in at places like @Corner, Lemon Grass, Samarkand and Khazana are to be taken as an indicator, the fasting growing foreign cuisine among Bangladeshis in Dhaka are Thai and Indian cuisine, a close second in popularity to the ever-popular Chinese cuisine.