Category Archives: Arabic

Nov 09 2011
8 Comments
Arabic, Biryani, Chicken, DIera, Dinner, Mandi, Yemeni Gallery

Al Tawasol, The Mandi Standard

Ahmad has been eating at Al Tawasol, one of the oldest restaurants in Dubai, for as long as he has lived here. Its one of his favorite places, and has quickly become one of mine. A few weeks ago we were making plans to meet up with Arva from I Live in a Frying Pan, and so when she suggested we meet at Al Tawasol, we were all for the idea.

So we meet Arva and a photographer friend of hers for mandi, traditional Yemeni chicken and rice. With four of us eating, we decided to mix it up and try three different chicken preparations, and three different rices. We ordered mandi chicken on plain rice, charcoal grilled chicken on mazbi rice, and biryani chicken on biryani rice (pictured clockwise from the top).


We loved all of the chicken, with a preference for the mandhi, and charcoal grilled, and my personal favorite rice was the mazbi rice.

Ahmad always asks for the ‘special’ rice, with nuts and raisins on top. It is a necessary touch in out book, as it adds the perfect fruity crunch to the rice. The whole thing is eaten with a spicy red sauce and plain yogurt.

As far as the decor goes, the restaurant features traditional floor seating. The dining areas are enclosed by tents, there is a large tent for men in the front, and a few private tents and tables in the back for families, or the less adventurous. The place seems clean-ish… it’s passable.

In the end the bill came to less than 100 AED, a pretty awesome deal for three extra-large entrees and all the fixings (feeds four).

(Arva is a suburb blogger here in Dubai, and the co-founder of the U.A.E. food-blogging community. Her post on this meal and especially her photography is definitely worth a look. Check it out here.)

Our final scores…

Food (5/5) ***** Reliable, delicious.
Decor (3/5) *** Authentic. Minus two stars for rice on the floor. The furniture could use an update as well.
Customer Service (4/5) ***** The wait staff were very patient with us as we interrogated him for details about the difference in cooking technique, etc. Minus one star because of a few stare-ers.

Al Tawasol
Deira, Abu Baker Al Siddique Road, just before the clock tower, Dubai – U.A.E.
Tel: +971-04-295-9797

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Sep 17 2011
5 Comments
Arabic, Dinner, fish, Juice, Lebanese, Restaurant, Review, Satwa Gallery

Al Mallah Cafeteria, rundown… but a stand by nonetheless

While I’m sure this is a food blog no-no, I’m starting this post with this blurry shot of the restaurant, because I like it and because I forgot to get a pic like this until we were already in the car on the way out.

So Ahmad and I headed to Al Mallah in the middle of the night a couple of weeks ago for some delicious sandwiches. It’s the kind of place that would probably be better for take-out because you don’t really want to see how much “character” the restaurant has. But that said, we held went in and it was fine.  Above is a picture of the table marker.

Despite the sad interior, we were very happy with the food. This is a cheese and zaatar fateer was just as I love them: crispy, and salty. We also ordered a number of sandwiches that come wrapped nicely in white paper. The sandwiches we ordered included fried hamour, brain (yes, Ahmad likes brain), and chicken escalop. We agreed that they were all great, although I don’t have much experience with brain. The bread was nice in each sandwich, with the perfect amount of filling, and they were small so that you can eat more than one.

Chicken Escalop

Fried Hamour: A perfect balance between the fish, the bread, the sauce, the pickle. MMM
We also got a spinach fateer, which was really bland.
For all of the above we only paid AED 43… not a bad deal at all.

We do have plans to return, but next time we will pick up sandwiches and take them with us to eat on the beach. Mallah serves a variety of sandwiches including chicken and beef shawerma as well as fresh juices and juice cocktails.

Food (5/5) ***** Always good!
Decor (1/5) * What decor? We highly recommend this place for take-out only.
Customer Service (4/5) **** They were pretty attentive, and came over right away whenever we needed them.

Al Mallah Cafeteria
Al Diyafa Road, Satwa, Dubai – U.A.E. (Although there is at least one other location in Mamzar Park)
Tel: +971-4-3984723

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Sep 03 2011
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Al Nasr Leisure Land, Arabic, Argile, Breakfast, Dubai, Emirati, Entertainment, fish, Juice, Lebanese, Restaurant, Review, Snacks, Syrian Gallery

Ramadan at Al Koufa… hello Syria!

We left Dubai and stepped into Damascus for a few hours when we checked out Al Koufa Restaurant in Al Nasr Leisure Land last week. The Arabic vibe reminded us of Qasr Al Nergis in the Old City of Damascus (For those who have been). Al Koufa is a vast, smokey venue with greenery and lights hanging from the ceiling, and a stage for entertainment. On a regular night they have live music and debka dancing, but each night of Ramadan they offered a show featuring singers, dancers, and games. We arrived at about 1:00 am, just as things were getting started.

The entertainment included Syrian singers, a whirling dancer (Watch the short video clips!), and various game-show inspired contests. The Syrian MC and some other hosts pulled raffle tickets for prizes (cash, game systems, spa packages, etc.), and played “Deal or No Deal” and “Who Wants to be a Millionaire,” with audience members for prizes up to AED 10,000 …Unfortunately we didn’t win anything this time.

The menu (linked!) features Emirati, Lebanese, and international dishes. We were not very hungry having come from dinner, so we ordered mint sheesha and some light Emirati fare: Maleh, a salted fish that comes with onion and tabbouleh, and Khameer with cheese, which, according to the menu is a local bread made with dates, served with a yellow cheese and honey for dipping. Yum! The Maleh was salty and sour, and the Khameer with honey was cheesy and sweet– two delightful combinations. We were very happy with the food, and can’t wait to try some more Emirati dishes. Please let us know if you have a local restaurant recommendation!


Maleh


Khameer with cheese


For dessert we got a Freezeto. One of the things I love most about the UAE is the abundance of fresh fruit and juices. This concoction was made of banana and apple pieces in fresh strawberry juice topped with ice cream and whipped cream. Satisfyingly fruity.

The bill came to AED 140, which is not a bad deal when you consider the hours of entertainment. We should note that this restaurant requires a minimum purchase. If you don’t want food, they offer fruit plates for any number of people, and ask that you order one for your table.

The scores…

Food (5/5) ***** What we tried was very good!
Decor (4/5) **** The decor made us feel at home! Minus one star for smokiness.
Customer Service (3/5) *** It was difficult to get the attention of the servers, and the food took forever.

Al Koufa Restaurant
Al Nasr Leisure land, Dubai – U.A.E.
Tel: +971-4-3351511 &   Fax: +971-4-3352066

http://alkoufa.com/en/Alkoufa/Home

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