Chicken broast to live for

I have always heard people say “That food was to die for” and realized why would you die for a food that’s really good? Therefore, this new intervention from a kind hearted foodie is that this chicken I ordered from Fresh Chicken King was to live for. I want to have this at least once a month. Their broasted chicken was spicy and crispy.

I also ordered their rice with chicken kebabs but those weren’t that good. I felt the kebab needed some strong spices other than salt. Rice were too thick as well so I won’t recommend you that one. I feel they have so much variety in the crispy fried chicken section. There’s extra crispy one and a spicier one. I tried the simple broasted chicken and I gotta say it was fabulous! totally recommended.

They have various branches around Dubai so try those as well. I ordered from the Qusais branch and I plan to visit them directly next time because what’s better than freshly fried chicken coming straight to your plate.

August 14, 2019

Getting jiggy with The Salad Jar

The salad jar has various outlets all over Dubai and I chose to order from the closest one that is Al Quoz. I liked their menu because its pretty much simpler and detailed so you are clear on what to order and which salad has what inside. They even have clear illustrations to understand each salad.

After being confused over choosing levant or Chicken Levant, I finally went for the latter. The Salad was delivered within 30 minutes and the jar was really cute. I even washed it for later use. The chicken levant salad comprises of dates, couscous, dried apricots, mint roasted chickpeas, lemon marinated chicken, cucumbers, cherry tomatoes and fresh parsley. I specifically ordered it because I wanted to have the sweetness from dried apricot and acidity from lemon marinated chicken and that is exactly what I got. But the couscous was a bit dry and I was wishing that it came with something creamy. The dressing options were lime juice, dijon mustard, cumin, honey garlic, pomegranate juice but I think the dry couscous needed some mayonnaise or ranch kinda dressing. Or maybe they could reduce the quantity of couscous in there.

For 47 Aed, I found it overpriced. I mean I could get a full blown meal in this price but hey! I will try them again and if any of you try them, drop a comment and let me know your experience 🙂

August 8, 2019 0

Brunch at Bakemart Gourmet

My husband loves having breakfast here but this time we decided to visit Barsha branch and also invited guests. Being terribly in love with the smell of their freshly baked breads and those gorgeous cakes you get to see when you enter, we roamed around the bread station until our guests arrived. They took so long that it was almost lunch time so we all ended up ordering mains.

We ordered corn tabbouleh as starter. It was loaded with parsley, corn, tomato, onion, couscous, mint leaves, spring onions all drenched in arabic dressing. This was served with khubuz.

We had their fillet steak and mushroom which comes with mashed potato, poached vegetables and dark mushroom sauce. Loved the flavors here but the steak itself was really over cooked. I did tell them that I like my steak well done but I didn’t say rubbery.

The other dish we tried was chicken scallop. Now this one was a stunner, loved every bit of the crispy fried chicken topped with herbs cheese and that demi glazed sauce was beautiful. This came with a handful of french fries.

The other dish we ordered was the chicken chasseur; it comes with sauteed vegetables and mashed potatoes and a mushroom sauce. The mushroom sauce here was way better than the one with chicken scallop. But the chicken itself was overcooked and disappointed us.

August 6, 2019 0

Hyderabadi Heaven- Nizamat Restaurant

Nizamat is a family restaurant located in the busiest areas of Dubai- meena bazar. They have good seating space inside as well as outside. They even have arrangement of pedestal fans for people who wish to sit outside in summers. The first thing you will notice as you walk inside, it will be the smiles on their staff’s faces. The staff was courteous and efficient in terms of suggesting what to order and how many people will the portion size cater to.

We asked the server to bring us their best seller dishes from the menu and that’s why we started off with their non-vegetarian kebab platter that’s recommended for 2 people. This platter comprises of Mutton seekh kebab, reshmi kebab, pahadi kebab and fresh green chutney. There are two of each kind of kebabs. My favorite was the pahadi kebab as it was spiced well and char grilled to perfection. Each of the kebab on this platter was beautiful in its own way and none of them were over loaded with spices or salt which is usually common in barbecue kebabs else where.

To pair up with the kebabs, our server brought us fresh orange juice with pulp which was such a treat. We were then served chicken chilli dry that looked amazing, the chef made extra effort and decorated sliced cucumbers as hearts. I found it cute 🙂 But the dish itself lacked that kick of spice and burnt garlic flavor.

Next came our favorite dish, chicken hyderabadi dum biryani. Offcourse, we were there to indulge in some serious biryani game and honestly we were not disappointed. Loved the flavors in biryani especially the tender chicken that was marinated 24 hours before cooking with the biryani rice. The raaita (yogurt dip) served with biryani had grated cucumber in it that enhanced the flavor of biryani in combination.

Lastly, we were served double ka meetha for dessert. It is an authentic hyderabadi dessert that’s made with fried bread dipped in sugar syrup and then eventually cooked in saffron milk, that’s where it gets it orange color from 🙂

We had to end this fantastic meal with a warm cup of saffron tea. It was so soothing and relaxing.

I wiped off all the dessert in one go. It was so soft and creamy! absolutely recommended. Thank you Team Nizamat for such a wonderful dining experience. I am definitely coming back with my big fat family.

Plus points: Nizamat caters to your events or any location you’d like them to cater to. Their minimum order requirement depends on the area you want delivery but its usually 50 Aed plus. How cool is that?

August 6, 2019 0

Food Earth and Love- all together.

Located in Trade center, Dubai; FEL is bound to impress you with their neat white vibes and simple decor. Their interior and food both are based on the popular belief “Less is more”. Now I don’t meant that their meal portion sizes are small because they were enormous. I meant the use of flavors and plating techniques and the menu itself that isn’t composed of ten pages of this and that. Its fairly easier to decide what to eat since the menu describes each dish clearly. FEL uses the freshest and organic ingredients only for their meals. Before I begin dissecting my experience for you, please understand that FEL stands for Food, Love and Earth. I find it beautiful 🙂

We were served Ice water upon arrival and I specifically loved their glasses.

I started off with a classic cup of coffee that was quite a giant cup but was really strong. I then had their summer salad which comprises of heirloom tomatoes, lettuce, balamic vinegar and Parmesan cheese. You may even add chicken to this if you’d like to. Priced at 38 Aed, I feel it was really filling and delicious.

Next up, were the cali chicken wraps. These looked absolutely colorful and a treat for the eyes. The chicken were sliced into thin strips for these and everything tasted brilliant. The chicken was spiced to perfection and even one lettuce wrap was really filling.

Then came something that literally blew my mind. It was a burger that looked pretty simple in a time when burgers come with oozing cheese and ketchup and what not. When I took the first bite, I was so happy and surprised. I looked at the burger patty and asked the server which protein was used to make this? And he tells me that its a vegan burger. I swear my eyes popped out a little. The burger patty was made up of potatoes, beetroot and peas. I mean it was unbelievably good! Try it for yourself, ask for the impossible vegan burger.

I also had the spiced chicken bowl that was made of cajun spiced chicken, cabbage slaw, coconut rice, seared vegetable and avocado cubes. I felt the coconut rice were slightly sweet and needed a more spicy chicken to pair with but the chicken was less spiced so the overall flavor did not quite appeal to me but the seared vegetables were great!

Thank you Team FEL for the wonderful dining experience. I highly recommend my readers to visit.

August 4, 2019 0

Expect the best from Manoushe street

Known for their mouth watering Levantine cuisine from healthy breakfasts to nutritious wraps and pizzas along with old time Lebanese favorites Manakeesh & kaak; all in a street corner bakery set up. This time I tried their delivery service from the Mizhar outlet located in aswaq mall. The delivery was efficient and everything was packed neatly especially the dessert jar and salad bowl.

I tried the Long life quinoa salad which comprised of beetroot, perfectly cooked quinoa, pomegranate, flax seeds, leafy greens with an amazing blueberry balsamic dressing that binds it all together in a fantastic way.

Since I am an absolute fan of flavored green teas, I was ecstatic to see chun mei green tea on their menu and so I tried it. This one was ginger, honey and lemon grass blended nicely with brewed green tea. I found it a bit on the stronger side, so I suggest you drink it cold because it tastes way better that way. The kick you get from ginger here is super intense.

Pepperoni pizza was the first one I butchered, it is always no brainer to order this one as its a sure shot to impress you and the guests, the pepperoni was fresh and juicy while the cheesy bread made a wonderful base.

Zaatar manakeesh was ever so fresh, in addition to this; it was garnished with fresh herbs and diced tomatoes to enhance the flavor.

The street style Burek was my favorite, this one was beefyshroom. Strips of beef, onions, bell peppers are all tucked in a crusty dough with 3 kinds of cheese and then baked. Just grab this as soon as it arrives because its best enjoyed hot.

The dessert was lotus cheesecake labelled as “addictive lotus cheesecake” on the menu. I have zero doubts about this dessert being addictive since the caramelized lotus melts in mouth with velvety soft creame cheese. Please don’t leave without trying this one!

July 22, 2019

Substituting Icecream with acai bowl

I am making healthier choices, look at my previous blogs if you don’t believe me. So I wanted to substitute icecream with a nutritious acai bowl and that’s when I headed towards Acai express. Loved the vibe there, the staff were helpful as compared to their ADH branch where the waiter literally asked me to wait because she needs to resolve some in vice issue with the other staff. Anyway, their menu is quite impressive but honestly I could have had a gallon of icecream in the price that got me just one bowl of acai.

They had various varieties of acai bowls, there were even a few with avocado. I found this one particularly interesting because I haven’t seen this as an addition to the simple acai bowls anywehere else.

I chose the pink smoothie bowl with strawberries, kiwi, almond shavings and cornflakes on top. It was pretty good but I have had better acai bowl in the same area. Particularly because the acai felt diluted for some reason. It was lacking the viscosity and thick consistency. I would recommend you order some other flavor maybe. Since the kiwi did not tasted well with the acai either. Also 38 dhs for one bowl was a tad bit too much. I would suggest the management to lower the prices a little so that eating healthy is affordable 🙂

July 14, 2019 0

The Good Bowl serving beyond nutrition.

I know I have a reputation of always indulging in junk food and dipping my bread in oily curries but I have to confess this that I am a bit skeptical of salads and soups and clean eating in general. Recently, I was introduced to The good bowl that has over 10 outlets in Dubai and all are delivery only and they’re open from 7:30 am to 3 am. How awesome is that? I bet making healthier choices is so much easier now.

While you take a sneak peak at their menu, you’ll realize the salad bowls have so much variety and each bowl is priced under 50 Aed. I find that pretty exciting because eating healthy is super expensive everywhere around the world but the good bowl is offering nutritious bowls at such affordable rates.

I tried their lentil and salmon bowl priced at 49 Aed and the spicy bulgar chicken & pomelo thats priced at 33 Aed only. Both the bowls were full of fresh vegetables and protien. The portion size was more than enough for one person. If you are aware of the famous Lebanese mudardara then you are going to love the lentil and salmon bowl because it is made with a mix of rice, rocca leaves, lentils, salmon chunks baked with hints of lemon, cherry tomatoes, fresh cucumbers and caramelized onions to give you the best flavor.

The spicy bulgar chicken and pomelo was super filling with baby spinach, yellow bell pepper, radish, pomegranate seeds, cucumber, tomatoes and coriander. This one is asure shot to offer to your friends who can’t stay away from chicken yet they want to integrate clean eating habits.

I highly recommend you order from The Good Bowl and try yourself. These bowls aren’t just healthy, they are full of amazing flavors too!

July 8, 2019 0

Levantish is where taste meets the myth

Levant’ish is an amazing restaurant in Al Qusais that serves Lebanese, turkish, syrian cuisine. Their kebabs, hummus, Shawarma, Lentil soup, Tabbouleh, Fattoush, Babaganush, Lamb Chops,Moutabel and labneh are the highlights of menu. They have indoor and outdoor seating and a baby seat is also available.

I specifically went to this place to enjoy breakfast. I ordered the Levant’ish breakfast platter which comprised of foul, labneh, mix manakeesh, choice of omelette served with juice, tea or coffee. Along with this I also ordered Fatteh Laban and sujuk omelette with shakshouka. Yep! I always order more when eating for breakfast.

I did not like foul as it had a lot of sour punch to it and did not taste fresh. The manakeesh though were amazing. We got cheese manakeesh and zaatar manakeesh, both were super. They served us fresh labneh where we shamelessly dipped our breads in. Instead of omelette, we were served fried eggs (2) and they were cooked well with steady whites and runny yolks.

My favorite item on the breakfast table was undoubtedly sujuk omelette. It had crumbled lamb kebab in there with the egg and together everything tasted divine. Fatteh Laban was quite spectacular too with warm chickpeas and toasted crumbs all layered together like a casserole topped with pomegranate seeds.

However, the shakshouka was a bit disappointing as I was expecting traditional Turkish shakshouka with eggs on top and tomato sauce everywhere else. The eggs were scrambled in the tomato sauce and the flavors weren’t that distinct either.

July 8, 2019 0

Breakfast woes

I am that lazy person who does not feel like getting up early on weekends and dressing up to go out for breakfast but I managed to somehow do that with an empty stomach. Me and my friend were roaming in sahara when we bumped into this nice coffee house called Icons coffee couture where they had a lovely vibe going on so we ordered Intercontinental breakfast platter which comprises of two fried eggs, two hashbrowns, labneh, grilled tomato with cheese, ricotta, fresh bread, orange juice and a hot beverage of choice.

So glad that the orange juice was fresh and had fair quantity of pulp in there. And the basket with buns and breads was awesome. The bread was so soft and so were the buns. Loved these! But the breakfast platter itself was a let down. The sunny side up eggs were over cooked and the hashbrowns were dry.

Loved the glasses in which they served juice and tea. I got green tea instead of coffee and it was nice. The staff was friendly and the service was quick. They overcharged my friend while swiping her credit card but then she contacted them and they quickly resolved her issue and reimbursed her the extra deducted money. Thank you very much for that.

July 4, 2019 0

How much is too much chocolate?

I know I will be bashed for posting this by a lot of you but hey! this is entirely true and I don’t think I can order these dishes again because they had extremely high content of liquid chocolate and while I tried eating, the chocolate stuck to my throat and felt itchy and uncomfortable. Ugh!

So I was craving for a dessert when I bumped into freez near Mamzar. This dessert parlor has 8 outlets in Dubai and I had seen them while driving in a lot of different areas so I planned to try them out with super high expectations. I ordered the customized waffle with half lotus and half pistachio and a red velvet kinder cake. The waffle was unbearably sweet, it was just too much. And not because of lotus but the chocolate effect. What I don’t understand is the fact that dessert lovers think nutella is chocolate where it clearly isn’t. I wish they would have added dark chocolate that has a hint of bitterness to it so that the flavors were balanced.

The red velvet kinder cake on the other hand was not that bad. I can have it again but with one exception. Icecream! Please add icecream on top of this which will actually make it best!

July 4, 2019 0

Chase the flavors with Manoushe street

Manoushe street has always been the talk of foodies for as long as I remember but I never really got a chance to try them out. Last week I accepted a blogger’s meet invite after a month I guess and I am so happy that I went there and tried their menu because it they had various combination of breads, salads, pizzas, wraps, Labenese kaak and manakeesh.

What I loved the most was how all manakeesh and pizza had this soft doughy bread that tasted beautiful along with their toppings. If you are a vegetarian then you my friend are in luck because they serve amazing veg manakeesh and pizza. Their potato wedges and homemade hummus was pretty awesome to begin with.

From pizza, I tried pepperoni pizza and three cheese pizza where my favorite was the pepperoni one. It was fresh, juicy pepperoni and the soft base made so much sense. Also, I would totally recommend you order their baked halloumi; even if you are not a halloumi fan. These guys bake it to perfection.

The tidbites with zaatar and spinach were also very nice. I specifically admired the sujuk because it was loaded with cheese and chicken. Tastes so much like a quesadilla but only more in terms of filling.

Thanks for having me Team Manoushe street, your service and quality of food was amazing.

July 3, 2019 0