Roaming around in Dubai on a sandy evening, I happen to stumble upon Pickl in JLT area and it looked pretty awesome with neon colors in the dining area and a team that is all smiles as they serve the customers.
I asked their manager for recommendation and he asked if I like to have spicy chicken or not. I told him that I am all hearts for spicy burgers so he suggested that we understand the heat levels given on the menu which were: Plain fry, feel the heat and nashville hot chicken. I was dooling at the sound of nashville hot chicken but somehow opted for feel the heat. Absolutely loved the crispy fried chicken patty sprinkled with some amazing spices. I am definitely going for nashville the next time. Their secret to these amazing burgers is the special sauce they add inside and also serve alongside the burgers.
Also tried the chicken tenders that were literally tender and juicy. Loved the portion size and the pickles that come along. I highly recommend you visit Pickl and don’t just order home because these burgers are best enjoyed at the restaurant.
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!
A place that swears by the rule “Do it with passion or not at all” lives up to it in every way. When I walked into the bakery, I was surrounded by beautiful aroma of freshly baked treats. And then the visuals of different buns and pastries just add cherry on top. The place is equipped with simple yet classy interiors that impart cozy and rustic ambiance.
Coffee- The elixir of life
We started off with a giant cup of organic latte prepared on spot.
Baking the difference!
I’m pretty sure that this one is a newbie that’s going to sweep your feet off the floor once you get to taste it. This is Flayfeh & Akkawi that was actually flat bread covered in spicy pickled sauce where you can evidently spot nigella seeds and sesame seeds. The sauce is lip smacking good and pairs amazingly well with the cheese.
Flayfleh & Akkawi
Then we tried Baladi with pomegranate molasses that were star ingredient in this dish. You need to have a palate for this dish. Fortunately, I discovered only here that I do. It was absolutely tasty with the tender minced meat and sweet pomegranate.
Lahim B Ajeen Halabi (Baladi)
I bet you have had Kibbeh before several times but this is an absolute MUST have. Because it comes with stir fried onions, bell peppers and is garnished with sumac and parsley that all makes sense when you eat them together. The pita bread serves as bed and blanket for the meat balls that are Kibbeh.
Kibbeh w Khibzeh
I’m really going to be honest here by letting you all know that this is the dish I will be going for ANY DAY of the year because it just lights up my taste buds and makes me fall in love with honey mustard sauce all over again. I mean who doesn’t adore the combination of honey mustard sauce with chicken that’s baked? But the real information here is that this sauce is made from scratch; that’s the reason behind its gorgeous flavor.
Potato and Chicken in Honey Mustard sauce
This place opens up as early as 7 am and that means you should definitely grab this Zaatar cheese double braid bun after your morning run. Why you ask? Because its freshly baked and zaatar interlocked with cheese tastes like heaven.
Double braid bun
I have never had Salmon before but this Smoked Salmon star just made my day. And its actually because the bread underneath that salmon has three kinds of cheese to give a distinct flavor that works amazingly well with salmon.
Smoked Salmon star
Cooking is like love, it should be entered into with abandon or not at all.
Nope, those aren’t my words. (But my thoughts sync with it). So, if you read Bisso’s Bakery’s menu carefully. You’ll read this and once you try their menu, you will know how true this is. It was just so challenging for me to decide which dish I would like to order the next time I visit and that very moment, desserts arrived. *Gasp*
Mango chia seed pudding
Remember when I recommended you their double braid bun for breakfast? well, just add the granola cup and mango chia seed pudding to that list. Because these babies speak for themselves.
zebra cup
I can go on and on for weeks to describe how delicious the zebra cup was. It was actually layers of moist chocolate cake, home made custard and a lusciously intense chocolate sauce. That sounds like a dessert where you can finally drown your sorrows in Huh?
Charcoal Bun filled with butterscotch sauce
Rose Lemonade
See that drool worthy charcoal bun? It was loaded with butterscotch sauce and the rose lemonade actually has rose petals floating on top that add so much intensity to the flavor altogether.
I would really like to thank Bisso’s Bakery for introducing me to amazing food that I had no idea exists. Every item on your menu is pure, quality rich and is packed with bags of flavor. I can not wait to return to have all of this again.
If you are a Choco-holic like me, you are going to fall in love with this place and the amazing treats they serve. Before visiting Choco Monarch, I saw a few pictures online and wondered if everything would be too overly sweet and loaded with sugar but now that I have been here and had most of the items on their menu. I want to tell you: No! the desserts aren’t loaded with sugar, they are subtle and comforting with combinations of hot crepe/waffle/pancake with chilled scoops of Ice cream and yes the much raved about chocolate drizzle.
We started off with some awesome shakes and a nice cup of signature hot chocolate that looked so beautiful. Scroll down to witness this beauty.
Chocolate milk shake
Hot Chocolate
Sweet tooth in trouble:
Their staff is pro when it comes to chocolate rain, see the pancake below that is plain in the first picture and then covered with milk and white chocolate in front of us; effortlessly.
Pancake before chocolate drizzle
Pancake after milk chocolate and white chocolate drizzle
Loved the combination of flavors here especially fresh citrus-y fruits on the side. Also, the portion size was pretty generous for almost all items.
Brownie BowlPain Perdu (French Toast)
Molten Lava cake
Alright! so the winner for me was….. *drum roll* Pain Perdu- the french toast. I couldn’t have enough of it. It was so moist and subtle in terms of flavor, texture and the balance of sweetness was perfect.
Having said that, I wish there were options including dark chocolate on the menu. I think there are millions of dark chocolate fans out there too so it would be nice to see the menu expand.
Thank you so much for having me ChocoMonarch. I think its wonderful to finally find a place that treats you in such warm and friendly way and their desserts don’t cost you a fortune. It is one dessert experience that I will remember always 🙂
I won’t bore you with bazillion wok puns and get straight to how sizzling the food is served at this place. Its not a proper restaurant and I like it that way, colorful and artistic walls surround the counter where you order your meals. They have two branches as of yet, one in Trade Center and the other in Dubai Internet City. People have been going crazy for their food because when I was here, there were constant phone calls received for orders and the chef definitely needed a break.
Juice up!
The only drink options I could choose from were fresh coconut water, freshly squeezed orange juice and soft drinks. But the good thing was that the juices were actually fresh and not just “labelled” as fresh. I tried the coconut water which was chilled and as refreshing as always. The orange juice was really good and I would recommend you to order that with your meal.
Coconut water
Appetizing appetizers!
I was actually here for just the wok but the appetizers were surprisingly amazing. I tried their vegetable spring rolls, prawn tempura, Sui Mai and Spicy Korean wings (which is actually their signature appetizer). It was so difficult to decide a winner here, but I would go with the spicy Korean wings any day of the year. They were perfectly fried and drenched in an amazing sauce that was balanced so beautifully, it was silky smooth to touch and smoking hot to taste. You better get some of that right now!
spicy korean wingsSui MaiPrawn tempuraVegetable spring rolls
Wok like a captain! Eat like a Pirate
Please bear with me as I struggle to find words that will truly represent how much I loved their wok. I chose Indonesian sauce, chicken as my protein, soba noodles, broccoli and snow peas (sad, that you only get to choose two) and spicy level with fried garlic on top.
I think the wok was absolutely smashing, it was exactly how I wanted it to be and all the flavors made me super happy.
The only demerit of my visit to WokBoyz was that they took an hour to serve me this wok because they had so many orders coming in. I hope the next time, it won’t take so long.
Thank you for having me WokBoyz. Your food speaks for itself.
I’m sure you all are familiar with Gabbar Singh from the old classic Bollywood movie called “Sholay” that has inspired this restaurant and represents the cuisine at the same time (Indian). Almost all the decor is made out of old unused bottles and pretty colorful kites hanging from the ceiling and old sari used as drapes and so much more. I think its super innovative and smart to recycle all these things in this way.
hand decorated/painted bottles
colorful seat covers
Drop it like it’s hot!
We tried their Rajma masala and Mutton Roganjosh; it was hard to decide which one we liked best because both were outstanding in their own ways. The rajma masala was comforting and spiced just enough to give you an amazing taste while the mutton was so tender and the gravy was fresh and bright in color.
Laccha parathaMutton Roganjosh and Rajma masala
Sweet Endings
This was first time trying “Mango sticky rice” and I’m glad I had it here at Gabbar’s Grill. It was so tasty, the moment you dig in with your spoon and get that spoonful of steaming hot sticky rice with freshly diced mangoes, you’ll understand my happiness.
Mango sticky rice
Good news:
They cater for events, parties and any celebrations you want to have with their awesome menu. All you have to do is go to zomato and contact them from there.
Thank you so much for having us Gabbar’s grill. We loved every bit of our dining experience here.
Lee’s wok and Gabbar Grills are like two peas in a pod inspired from the idea that some amazing food from two different backgrounds will be served under one roof. However, if you go to zomato then there you will see these two as separate entities.
The interiors are funky and instagrammable.
Let food do the talking!
Before I begin introducing you to the dishes we had here, I want you to know that I have never had Wasabi before and this was my first time. (phew!)
Ok, so we were served Fried prawns slathered in Wasabi mayonnaise that gives it a mild green color, as soon as I bit into the prawn there was this intense sensation… not on my palette but in my nose. It was so exciting that I tried it again and again and so on. Loved these tiny bombs of deliciousness. I would suggest the chef serves wasabi mayonnaise seperetely as a dip so that anyone who is not a wasabi fan could dip tiny amounts and vice versa for the others.
Fried prawn in wasabi mayonnaise
The other dish was Chicken Chili dry and I absolutely loved it. The spices were balanced perfectly in this dish unlike the usual chicken chili you get at most of the restaurants here in Dubai. It was beautiful to look at and absolutely smacking to eat.
Chicken Chili Dry
Good news:
They cater for events, parties and any celebrations you want to have with their awesome menu. All you have to do is go to zomato and contact them from there.
Thank you for hosting us. Can’t wait to go back for the amazing food.
Jodhpur is the second largest city in Rajasthan, India. It is known as “blue city” because whenever you see the houses over there, almost each one of them is painted blue according to a widely believed fact that the color blue keeps home cool during summers.
So when you enter Sagar Ratna, you will quite evidently see the color blue that represents their cuisine that is authentic jodhpuri/marwari.
Chef Sawai Singh from Jodhpur
We were served Makhaniya Lassi as welcome drink and honestly, I have never had a welcome drink that was this beautiful in texture (velvety) and flavor ever before. There was a cute blob of freshly hand churned butter on top of it, garnished with rose petals to enhance the look. I can have this any day,every day because it was that good.
Innovation on fleek
For starters, we were served Jodhpuri Pyaaz kachori which was outstanding in terms of both crispiness and filling. It should be a perfect dish to order in evenings while you sip on tea alongside.
The second starter were Karak Seekh Kebab, they were crisp from outside and moist flavorsome on the inside, delivering perfect taste to the palate.
Karak Seekh Kebab
The third starter was Chaap ke Sule and as soon as it arrived before my eyes, I questioned my own conscience because it looked so much like chicken. When I poked into it and tried the first bite, even then it tasted like one but the chef was there to assure me that it is 100% vegetarian made of soya bean.
Chaanp k sule
Ghee Positive!
Before I enlist the mains, I want you to know that all the food here is made with desi ghee and it shines through each and every dish beautifully.
Ok, please be patient with me on this one. “Gulab Jamun ki sabzi” I swear I had no idea what it would taste like but oh my God! it was out of my expectations, extremely delicious. The gulab Jamun only become sweet when you dip them in sugar syrup so what the chef did, is that instead of a sugar syrup; he cooked them in a savory gravy. How cool is that? Brownie points for the innovation!
Gulab Jamun ki sabzi
Then came the Papad methi dana ki sabzi that was super tasty and made with such precision, bearing in mind the combination of spices that eventually just melts your heart with its rich goodness.
Papad methi dana ki sabzi
We were served Jari Buti naan that complimented the sabzi dishes so well. I mean look at this naan and tell me that you can just have it on its own without a gravy dish. right? it’s that tasty.
Jari buti naan
Another beautiful dish was this Smokey daal makhani that is just what you need to unwind the day with. Its delicious, comforting and so light that you wont resist its perfectly balanced flavors.
Smokey daal makhani
Sweet tooth satisfied
For dessert, the chef amazed me by serving an amazing yet complicated dessert called “Bajra gur ghee ka churma” where you actually work with Jaggery and reduce it to an extent that it caramelizes and induces this sweet yet creamy flavor in the sweet dish. Accompanying this dessert was another famous one “Moong daal ka halwa”. Don’t think that the portion sizes were small, I assure you that they were tiny but mighty.
Thank you so much for hosting me Team Sagar Ratna and Mr. Piyush Maloo for giving us such a warm and friendly dining experience, walking us through each and every dish meant so much. My highest recommendations for everyone to visit Sagar Ratna.
I haven’t met a single person whose pupils didn’t dilate and heart didn’t explode with excitement when I say the word “BBQ or Smoked Meat” because lets just be honest and confess that we all love BBQ meat and sitting together, chatting endlessly, laughing our hearts out over some good smoked meat food. That’s exactly what SMK offers minus the hassle of marinating meat and lighting up fire and etc etc.
Lovely little area in La Mer with a serene view of beach serves some super good meaty dishes.
Smoothies:
They have wide range of mocktails, soft drinks and fresh smoothies. I tried the strawberry smoothie and although it was refreshing, I would like to call it a slush because generally a smoothie is based on yogurt. while this drink was fresh strawberries grated in ice. The mango and blackberry smoothies also paired up with the weather perfectly.
Chicken wings on fire! (Quite literally)
Absolutely love the fiery chicken wings, these were drenched in bbq sauce and had no extra spices so that you can taste the pure smokiness with the juicy chicken.
The potato fries accompanying these wings were crisp and fresh. The dip was soft on palette and some celery sticks did some real color breaking there.
Mary had a little lamb (Not anymore!)
Because SMK marinated it for 10 hours, slathered it with freshly prepared bbq sauce and fired it away!
The smoked meat, peaceful view of beach and bruno mars collection is surely going to be a dining experience you will remember for the rest of your life. Now, all you need is some good company 🙂
Good news: They even cater for your parties. Please view the rating chart below:
Captain Lychee 