The desi flavours still win
Walk into any ice cream counter in Punjab on a July evening and watch what people actually point at. It is rarely vanilla. Kulfa and falooda are still the two that move fastest, and they have held that position for decades.
The reason is not nostalgia alone. Kulfa carries cardamom and khoya notes that feel finished on their own, without sauce or toppings. Falooda brings texture, which matters more in hot weather than people expect. A plain scoop melts into liquid; a falooda scoop keeps something to chew on.
What Pakistanis order most
- Kulfa: the default order across Punjab, and the one most shops are judged on
- Royal Falooda: texture plus sweetness, strongest in summer
- Belgian Chocolate: the safe order, and the one children pick
- Strawberry: the most common second scoop rather than a first
- Mango: seasonal, and it spikes hard from May to August
- Zafran: occasion buying, not everyday
The newer arrivals
Two flavours have moved from novelty to regular order in the last few years. Choco Kunafa Pistachio came in on the back of the Middle Eastern dessert trend and stayed, because the crunch survives the cold better than most add-ins. Lotus Bliss did the same through biscuit spread.
Both sell hardest to the 18 to 30 group, and both do noticeably better as shakes than as scoops. If you are ordering for a group and cannot decide, a Lotus shake is the safest bet at the table.
Fruit popsicles are their own category
Popsicles are not competing with scoops. They sell at a different time of day and to a different mood, usually a walk-out purchase rather than a sit-down one. Royal Badami, Mango, Imli and Paan carry that category in Pakistan, and Imli in particular sells to adults far more than the fruit flavours do.
Where Melado sits
Melado carries the desi flavours and the newer ones in the same range. Kulfa Delight and Royal Falooda sit in the Elite tier at Rs 150 a scoop, Choco Kunafa Pistachio and Lotus Bliss in Premium at Rs 200, and Zafran in Premium Gold at Rs 500. Every one of them is available as a cup, a cone, a thick shake or a take-home bucket.
The full list with rates is on the menu page.