Danderma's Blog, page 29

A Visit to Al Sabah Bakery in Fahaheel

Once upon a time, back in the 80′s, there used to be a little vanilla sponge cake topped with vivid pink sugar icing and cut into squares, packaged and sitting on the Co-op aisles for us to pick up and enjoy as little kids. I saw it again in Mishref Co-op back in 2010 and I was hesitant to try it after all these years. Three years on and my husband arrives home from Fahaheel one day with a brown paper package. Inside, was the very same vanilla sponge cake sans the icing, unbelievably fragrant and screaming for a cup of hot milk infused with cardamom and saffron to be dunked in.

The cake was extremely fresh and soft, unlike the usually hardened version I used to experience in my childhood after being left on the Co-op shelf for quite some time. When dunked into the hot cup of milk, the combination was so succulent you find yourself reaching for another slice without an thinking twice. You look up after your cup of milk is drained and you realise you’ve eaten half the loaf of cake already! Humble in appearance yet gigantic in flavour, I knew the time has come to finally make the trip to the bakery in Fahaheel and get myself some pink crusted cakes and see what else they have to offer.

We were driving around, missed a couple of turns, and suddenly found the little bakery right across from a traffic light. Inside, the shop was quite sparse, with only a few fridges, a metal stand, and a few plastic boxes storing their cakes and cupcakes.

Here are the vanilla sponge cakes, wrapped up in brown paper and ready to be picked up and go to a loving home. There are two sizes for the cake and a family can easily feast on one -or two- big sizes wrapped cakes. The wrapping reminded me of black & white movies where all the shopping was wrapped up like parcels including sweets and desserts.

They also had hot baked pastries -fatayer- stuffed with cheese, dates, or za’atar. I tried the one with the white cheese and I have to say it tasted like something out of the school canteen from the 80′s! This is the white cheese fatayer I was looking for all these years to accompany my orange Sunkist drink when I want to be reminded of my elementary school breakfast!

And now we come for the cake that started it all: thin white vanilla sponge covered with a layer of crunchy pink frosting and cut into squares! It was packaged, waiting for me to pick it up, and most importantly freshly baked!

Other things we picked up from the bakery was the dates stuffed pastry and tiny cupcakes that taste good as well!

Needless to say I couldn’t wait to go back home, prepare myself a cup of hot milk infused with saffron and cardamom, and devouring my fresh and quite tasty cake improved even more wight he vibrant pink sugar coating. Its the taste of nostalgic happiness, I tell you!

All my life I’ve been eating this cake a tad stale hence why I didn’t miss it much, now I’ve tasted it fresh I believe its worth making the trip all the way to Fahaheel for! I never even knew before 2010 that these cakes came from a real bakery, I just assumed they were like biscuits made in some dainty old factory.

The Al Sabah bakery is located in Fahaheel and if you need directions you can give them a call on +(965)-23911992.

Movie Review: Thor The Dark World

One movie I’ve been looking forward to watching for a few months now was Thor 2 or rather Thor and I’ve finally had the chance to do so this afternoon! The movie was AWESOME and was totally worth the wait!

I’ve seen Thor and The Avenger way too many times, both of which are a favourite of mine and Thor is my second favourite Avengers character -my favourite is Iron Man!- but I think Thor 2 will become my next favourite watch over and over Marvel movie. It starts with Loki being brought in front of his father the king of Azgard and told of his fate then it moves forward to Jane Foster on a date in London, where two years have passed since she had last seen Thor and was missing him terribly. The movie is long but it went by in a blink, with so many good scenes and an extra comical dosage than the previous Marvel movies, enough to make you laugh more than once but not too much it deviates your attention from the action on screen.

I don’t want to ruin the movie for you but if you are a Thor and Avengers fan you will love this movie for sure. I saw the movie in 3D format on an IMAX screen but that turned out totally unecessary given that you forget the supposed 3D aspect of the movie which is the only thing I hated about my experience. Save your money and watch it on 2D. There are two post credits scenes and the first one involves Benicio Del Toro with an insight on the next Marvel adventure. I might go watch Thor 2 again on the big screen and I’m definitely going to grab myself the DVD when its out for my collection.

The Opening Ceremony of Lotus Corner Cafe

My friends over at Lotus Kuwait are spoiling me again and this time the loot came in a form of a bagful of Lotus Biscuits along with a few knick knacks and the cutest cup I’ve ever seen. The cup is designed to look like it was holding on to a piece of biscuit and I’ve grown so fond of it I’m in the process of naming it. 

As I sipped a cappuccino at home and enjoyed dunking luscious caramelised lotus biscuits in my fat-free cappuccino, I also was reading the card that came with the bag inviting me to the official opening of the Lotus Corner cafe in Souq Sharq. Lotus Corner is a Kuwaiti cafe created with the aim of making the most out of Lotus biscuits and spreads and including them in their menu items. If you are a Lotus Biscuit fan you must check out Lotus Corner.

The official opening of Lotus Corner cafe was this last Saturday, also the day of the first thunderstorm of winter 2013! The air had a delicious post rain feel to it, so crisp and cool. Lotus Corner overlooks the Souq Sharq marina and is surrounded by the glittering Kuwaiti Skyline.

As we took our seats waiting for the opening ceremony to start trays with Lotus corner goodies were passed around for the waiting guests.

Then came the official opening ceremony which included a beautiful speech by Belgium ambassador stating that over twenty years ago the Belgium navy arrived at this spot to help free Kuwait and now they are here in peace celebrating the opening of Lotus Corner cafe.

After the opening we ordered ourselves Lotus biscuit shakes, needless to say they were extremely delicious.

Then it began raining cats and dogs and people fled for cover. I’m a person who celebrates rain and don’t run away so needless to say I was soaked while I was gleefully taking pictures of everything!  

Is there anything more magical than rain? Or more joyful than endless Lotus biscuits in every shape and form under heavy rain, thunder, and lightening? This Lotus biscuit chocolate truffle distributed by Lotus Corner is out of this world by the way and was the best thing we’ve had that day.

Thank you Lotus Corner for your generous and hefty invitation and congratulations on the opening of your cafe! It was a memorable and fun night for sure!

Lotus Caramelised Biscuit products can be delivered right to your door step, all you have to do is contact the distributor by calling +(965) – 22461564 or checking their instagram account (@LotusKw) or (@LotusCornerKw) for the Lotus Corner Cafe.

Do You Object To Sitting Next to a Man?

When you take your seat as a cinema you know that when the lights are out, you’ll be transported into another world where anything is possible. It would be only you, the characters acting on the big screen, and whatever you are munching on while the rest of the world vanishes and ceases to exist. Going to a movie is supposedly a relaxing and therapeutic activity of mine. Yet there are days when the movie is almost starting and you are ready to let go of the real world when a woman, and its always a woman, makes a big fuss regarding the allocated seating because it would mean she would be sitting next to *big gasp* a man! 

One day just as the movie was starting there was a commotion in the row before us, a lady with lots children was standing on the side clearly in distress because apparently her seat was beside a couple watching in peace and that meant she might end up sitting right next to the man. A few minutes later all the seats were rearranged as the man quietly got up and exchanged seats with his wife which meant the couple next to them did the same and so did the ones next to them. Disaster averted, we were finally allowed to watch the movie in peace.

We are a segregated community by default. When the occasion arises we know automatically to head to the area filled with people from our same gender. Whether its a classroom, a school bus, an airplane seat, a dinner table, or a waiting area. If a woman finds herself seated next to a man at the movies, the man would usually get up and exchange seats without being asked but sometimes there is no escaping the fact that you are, indeed, going to end up sitting next to a man or even a kid of 11 or 12-years-old! Why would you go all the way and bother all those people, or rather make a big scene and use your loud voice in the ugliest manner, ruining everyone’s day on your way because you will be sitting in your very own chair that is placed in a chair next to a male? Is it about the touching? So take extra care not to touch him when you sit down!

Why is it that we don’t mind sitting next to a man in the cinemas abroad but we mind when we are in Kuwait? Why is it OK to sit between men in the Underground trains of London for example but its unfathomable to do so here if you have to? I have to say that I personally feel more comfortable sitting next to a woman but if I have to sit next to a man, or a kid, it will not be the end of the world to me! There needs be no scenes regarding such a matter.

What do you think? Do you mind, if you found yourself in a situation where you are seated to a male -or a female-, and if you do, what would you do and why?

Breakfast at The Gathering Bistro

Let me tell you how I spent the morning of my mid-week one day Tuesday holiday. It all started last week when I received the cutest breakfast invitation in the form of the tiniest black pan with a smiling piece of toast stuck to it. The Gathering Bistro, a restaurant in Salhiya Square that I’ve enjoyed dining at numerous times since its opening exactly a year ago, have finally decided to serve breakfast and the cute toast with the pan was an invitation for a breakfast preview before actually launching breakfast next Sunday.

Yesterday, Tuesday, was a holiday celebrating the occasion of the new Lunar year and what better way to enjoy a day off midweek than to have breakfast outdoors at a new place surrounded by friendly faces? We made our way to The Gathering Bistro not so early on Tuesday morning, 10 A.M. more and beyond. Salhiya Square was almost empty and the weather was gorgeous, sunny with a cool breeze, and there were but a few tables occupied already.

After a warm welcome by the owners of The Gathering Bistro we decided to sit outside to enjoy the morning cool weather and the sun and as we sat down we realised we were going to have breakfast with a view of Kuwait’s Liberation Tower -and an old cemetery wall but you get used to the fact after a few too many visits to the area-.

There was no menu to choose from but we were asked about our likes and dislikes and whether we wanted pancakes, waffles, or French Toast for dessert. We did get to order our beverages, green tea and black coffee as always for me.

My coffee did take a tad too long to arrive for my liking but the staff were busy with the breakfast testing and I’m sure they’ll be delivering beverages promptly once they open up for breakfast. Grumpy non-morning people need to inhale the scent of coffee first thing in the morning before they could function properly.

Almost immediately after we ordered our drinks there was a basket of toast triangles with a little bowl of butter on the table, what’s breakfast without warm toast?

The first breakfast dish to arrive was The Breakfast Flower. Its supposed to look like a flower, with slices of potato chips lining up a pan where a few eggs were baked with cheese and herbs.

The dish wasn’t something I’d try, especially with the ball of the yellow yolk pulled out from between the folds of cheese and egg whites, but my husband who was my dining companion that morning liked it a lot. Don’t let the size of the pot fool you, the dish is quite hearty and will fill you up, I could see a few bubbles of oil on the surface of the eggs that I presume were from the melted cheese.

The next dish was scrambled eggs with a side of roasted tomato and potatoes. It was supposed to be pesto scrambled eggs but I cannot stand pesto therefore asked for my eggs to be plain. I only eat scrambled eggs btw and in some rare occasions I have omelettes.

This dish I loved! The scrambled eggs where fluffy and packed firmly on a thin round-cut slice of toast. The eggs where scrambled with either clotted cream or heavy cream which you could taste a hint of but it was in a good way. It also meant it was as creamy as scrambled eggs could get and that there was no eggy stench at all. You may want to split this order with someone if you are watching your weight though.

By the way this is how scrambled eggs are supposed to look like, like one big happy firm glob where you cannot see egg ends meet. I hate it when I order scrambled eggs and end up with a plate of yellow disintegrated egg strands that resemble a wet kleenex rubbed between your palms until its all long white strips. If you order scrambled eggs at Bistro you will get scrambled eggs at Bistro and I’ve heard raving review regarding the pesto version as well.

The last of the egg breakfast dishes was transitional dish between savoury eggs and sweet desserts. It remains nameless still and The Gathering Bistro would love your input on what to call it on their instagram account. Its two sunny-side-up eggs stacked on top of bacon, turkey, cheese, and sugar glazed donuts. Yes, donuts, the sugar glazed kind.

A dieting catastrophe of a dish that’s yet to be name, this John Doe egg dish is either quite disgusting or very interesting for the diner, depending on their palate. Personally I wouldn’t touch but my husband was over the moon with joy as he sunk his knife deep into the sunny side of the egg and let the yellow yolk drench the sugar glazed donuts.

His verdict? Absolutely delicious but should be eaten alone since its considered an entire breakfast meal! To each his own I guess, if you are a fan of sweet and savoury and won’t be grossed out by the thought of having sugar glazed doughnuts with your eggs, bacon, cheese, and turkey then you should try this dish. If you aren’t a fan -like me- or perhaps have some trouble controlling your cholesterol levels I’d say you better sit this one out.

The sweet breakfast dishes arrived afterwards, pancakes for me. I had a choice of blueberry or kinder pancakes and I went for blueberry for I adore the little blue juice berries.

The pancakes were drenched in blueberry syrup and stacked up high, finished off with a dollop of whipped cream and some blueberries. They were fluffy and perfect, the blueberries adding the perfect tang to the forkfuls of doughy pillows. My only complaint would be that portion size, its humongous! I ate and ate and barely made a dent in the three stacked cakes. I would order it again if and only if I was out for breakfast with five or more girls who would still be able to eat through after a heavy breakfast.

Last but not least came the waffles. Chocolate waffles topped with Nuttela, strawberries, a scoop of vanilla ice cream, and crunchy biscuits then finished off with drizzles of strawberry and chocolate sauces.

Does the waffle itself look a bit weird? It does, for if you are looking for boring old waffles then this is not it. The batter used to make the waffles is more like biscuit or cookie dough than actual cake or pancake dough and resulted in a nutty biscuity crunchy waffle. More brownie than pancake texture wise and not bad at all.  

It was one memorable Tuesday breakfast indeed! The weather was awesome, the food was perfect, and if you’ve tried and liked Bistro’s food before you’ll love the breakfast dishes even more than the lunch or dinner ones. Thank you Yousef Al-Saad and Fahad Al-Fulaij for your invitation, warm welcome, and generous hospitality. We cannot wait for the breakfast menu to be officially launched.

The Gathering Bistro will start serving breakfast next Sunday 10 November 2013. They are located in Al-Salhiya area in Kuwait City right opposite Salhiya Mall. For more information about The Gathering Bistro you can call them on +(965) 22449091, like their facebook page (link), follow them on Twitter (@GatheringKW) , or on instagram (@GatheringKW).

Walking Around the Plant Nurseries

When I was young I used to moan in despair whenever we took a trip to the plant nurseries along fourth ring road. I hated the loud voices and walking on the sand and didn’t care much for the plants. Now that I’m older my perspective of the trip has changed 180 degrees, now I cannot wait for the good weather to be here so I could walk among the beautiful flowers and young budding plants, inhaling the fresh flower fragrances, and perhaps taking home a plant or two to grow.

The weather was gorgeous which in turn meant tons of people milling around the nurseries shopping for some plants. It felt like walking in a park, with all the greenery and flowers around us, a lovely place for a picnic had there been a space to sit at. I had my takeaway coffee with me so it was kinda like a modern fast picnic.

There were plenty of palm trees around, the bigger they are the more expensive. One day when I have a house and a garden of my own insha2 Allah I will plant it with plenty of palm trees, the most beautiful tree every

This little plant is called Fetna and is quite popular these days. When the time is right it will produce beautiful white flowers. It can survive the heat if its the Indian fetna plant. There are Lebanese fetna plants and Egyptian ones which produce red flowers but they they don’t survive the heat well and most likely will dry up and die eventually.

This tiny little flower is called “Malekat el Lail” or “Queen of the Night”. The reason I presume is that it only releases its fragrance during night time. So cute!

With the sky heavy with clouds threatening to unleash its liquid load at any moment, I could almost imagine myself being abroad and not in Kuwait. I wonder how is it possible to grow fruits trees like lemon or tangerine in our dessert climate but there were plenty of those already laden with fruits!

In my childhood we had a lemon tree that never produced any lemons but had the most fragrant leaves ever! I know a few people in Kuwait who showed me pictures of trees in their gardens producing fruits like watermelon, oranges, apples, and mangoes! Fruits do grow in the dessert apparently and because of that I got myself a scrawny little pomegranate tree. Perhaps it will produce some pomegranates? Why not!

Flowers of all kinds do thrive in the winter but tend to dry up and die by April, I got myself a few to place by the door just for the sake of decoration.

There were plenty of bees around so you have to be careful when checking out flowers.

This little flower is called “Famm El Samaka” or “Fish’s mouth”. The reason for it I suppose is that its petals open and close just like a fish mouth does. It was the IT flower in the 80′s and we used to play with it all the time, opening and closing its petals and laughing at the name.

This I don’t know the name of but when we were children we used to pick the flowers and suck through the side that used to be connected to the green leaves. Something sweet and sugary would come out and we would squeal, saying we are drinking the sugar of the flower just like the bees. I wonder if that was a safe thing to do! We did crazy things as children back in the 80′s!

Jasmine trees, gardenias, and roses usually do live if you take very good care of their bushes but they are a lot of work. My grandmother used to have the most amazing roses in her garden until after years and years a gardener claimed he thought it was dead and yanked it off the ground.

You could also find pots, garden furniture and accessories in various different nurseries. Like these Japanese garden decorations.

I stopped at this garden canopy, how I’d love to have a little house with a garden one day so I could have such a garden seating area. 

This poor plant clung to my skirt and wouldn’t let go, she must’ve wanted a loving home I think it was a rose bush.

In the end we went home with two little plants called “fetna” and another called “Majnoona” in the colour purple. Fetna and Majnoona literally translates as “seduction” and “the crazy one” respectively. Don’t ask, I don’t know why either!

If you have a garden, a rooftop, or even a tiny balcony you can plant it with pots of flowers and plants, place a table and two chairs, and enjoy a cup of tea in this fine weather. I don’t have a garden I only have a two by two empty space by the door but its already lined up with plants and flowers. If only I had a big garden. By the way some nurseries do deliver their plants to your home after you choose them and can also provide a gardener to come and help plant your new garden and give you tips on how to water those plants. I cannot wait to go and walk around the nurseries again, perhaps not on a weekend though, it tends to be quite crowded.

Do you enjoy visiting the plant nurseries? What do you particularly like?

 

Movie Review: Captain Philips

I wouldn’t usually and willingly go into a cinema to watch a movie about sea pirates, not even pirates of the Caribbean, but if it was a Tom Hanks then it’s a must see movie regardless of the story or the trailer. I went to watch Captain Philips yesterday and I have to say I wasn’t disappointed at all.

Captain Philips movie is based on the true story of the real Captain Richard Philips who was captain of the Maerask Alabama cargo ship that was hijacked by Somali pirates in 2009. The movie is almost entirely shot on the ship and a lifeboat, with some gory bloody scenes and lots of violence. It makes you wonder how a small boat with only four pirates with rusty rifles can hijack an entire cargo ship. Its also quite sad, how those poor young men resort to a life of crime and piracy for a living in this day and age. I wonder why cargo ships aren’t provided with any kind of weaponry to defend themselves against such attacks if they are working in dangerous waters.

The movie is long and I enjoyed watching it but I doubt I’d enjoy watching it again. It’s the kind of movie you watch once in the cinema and not at home on a DVD but I’d still add it to my DVD collection since Tom Hanks acting was superb as expected.

The Launch of Lush’s Winter Products

A couple of weeks ago I received a knot-wrap invitation from Lush Kuwait, otherwise what we call a ‘boqsha’ in Kuwaiti, filled with four of Lush’s handmade fresh facials masks and an invitation for an event celebrating the launch of Lush’s winter products in their Avenues store. 

Looking closely at the stickers on each Lush mask -which usually tells you which employee prepared the product you are holding and when- I could see that my four facial masks were prepared by Noura Al-Saeed, the franchise owner of Lush Kuwait. I’ve never seen a Lush sticker with a Kuwaiti person on it and it meant a lot to be sent something that’s actually handmade by the person inviting you. Way to go Noura!

My absolute favourite facial mask was the cupcake, which smelled too good to be true and had mint in it’s ingredient which meant a tinkling sensation on your skin as you applied the mask followed by the coolest feel on your skin once  you remove the mask! I almost ate a glob of mask while applying it!

On the day of the event I made sure I was there early. I love Lush products in general but I adore the winter products in particular especially the Snow Fairy shower gel! I used to bring home bottles of it from my trips to London and would make sure they lasted me an entire year -way past their expiry date but I don’t really care-. Now that they are finally stocked by Lush, it’s one less thing to miss about London when I’m in Kuwait.

The Bubblegum Sugar Lips scrub is also available and is actually edible by the way! I’ve been a big fan of this Bubblegum scrub since forever!

As I began browsing Lush’s new winter products, most of which are seasonal and are only available during the winter time, I remembered with a pang the Christmas time in London: the decorations, the holiday songs blaring, the amazing merchandise and gifts ideas everywhere, and happy shoppers milling around trying to finish their holiday shopping. I don’t really celebrate Christmas but I do love the festive spirit in London during that time of year and seeing Lush’s products brought back all those memories sans the bitter December weather in London. I was actually humming ‘Winter Wonderlad’ to myself -and I am humming it now!-.

The Lush wrapped gift section is one of my favourites! I used to bring back home some of these as souvenirs and sometimes they’d get all smashed up on the trip back. Now they are available in colourful wrappers and different sizes and would make an excellent gift for someone who adores Lush.

Some of Lush’s latest products, the monkey perfumes and the incense, are also available. I have to say with the new Avenues branch I don’t miss Lush UK at all, almost every product is always available and on time too!

There are somethings you won’t find in Lush UK though, like those little bottles of juices and this huge cake specifically shaped after the winter products to celebrate their launch.

As part of the event we had a demonstration of the facial mask preparations. The first one was the cupcake facial mask which started with a big bowl of liquid chocolate!

Adding the rest of the ingredients and then a lot of whisking was involved.

The mask is complete and I got to take home a fresh tub! The freshest Lush product I’ve ever had to date!

This is another facial mask with lavender. I’m not a fan of lavender at all but if you are you must try it.

Last but not least there was a demonstration on how to use the bath bombs and bath bars, which are an absolute treat for bath time and actually my ever favourite bath products. They smell divine, they give out the right amount of bubbles and fizz, and your skin would feel silky smooth and gorgeously scented afterwards.

Thank you Lush for your invitation and for a lovely event. I have to thank you even more for finally giving us a proper Lush store with well stocked products in Kuwait! I love Lush, I fell in love from the first whiff I’ve had passing by their doors in London years ago, and I will always do.

Lush Kuwait is located in the first floor of the new Avenues Mall across from Ihop and in the basement of 360 Mall. For more information you can check their website (link), follow them on twitter (@LushKuwait) or Instagram (@LushKuwait).

A Trip to a Lovely Farm in Mangaf

During the long Eid holiday I went exploring around Kuwait and somehow I ended up in Mangaf area. A friend of my husband’s told him that there is a little secluded farm between the buildings where you could buy some greens, plucked right out of the ground where it’s grown! After a few wrongs turns and a cry for help answered by good old Google maps, I finally arrived at the place. 

You could tell you had arrived at the right place by the amount of green trees lining the pavement and almost spilling on the street. As you take a turn you see some unusual sights in a residential area like big trucks and a run down yet quite cute old houses.

At that point you see the tire tracks on the sand and you follow them to get to the “farm”. The ride is quite bumpy but if you open the car windows you could smell fresh air and that distinctive green smell, the one I call fresh chlorophyl.

On the each side of the dirt road there are green beds of herbs and vegetables, glowing under the early evening sun. Its also surprisingly quiet and serene and somehow reminds me of being in a anime, specifically the one called Lucy, a girl who immigrates to Australia with her family and plays with Koala bears. I don’t know why but I was reminded of Lucy when I arrived there, perhaps because of the amount of bright greens which I’m not used to in a Kuwaiti residential area.

You arrive at a make shift store/shed, quite run down and messy. Inside, the produce of the little secret farm are being sold for amazingly cheap prices -if you compare them to the local Co-ops that is-.

The produce is seasonal and what they had on offer were rocket leaves, mint, parsley, thyme, coriander, scallions, radishes, and what we call in Kuwait “barbeer”. Each green bunch was brightly coloured and gleaming even in the dim conditions of the shed.

I took a few shots from around the farm, which I don’t know the name of frankly so I named  it “the secret farm”. Beautiful! Run down but beautiful and very serene. I was told that the farmers who take care of this place actually live in those huts.

On my way back home I could smell chlorophyl with mint in my car even though my purchases were in the back seat and I had the windows open! I’ve never bought such crisp smelling herbs before in Kuwait. Not even from Wafra farms or Sultan Center.

I made sure I passed by the co-op on my way home and got me some hot tanoor bread and low fat low salt feta cheese. At home I attacked my herbs making little sandwiches of hot pillow like tanoor bread spread with tangy feta cheese and laden with the fresh herbs I got with a few pieces of walnuts and some pomegranate seeds. Biting into the freshest sandwich on earth was lusciously blissful, I can tell you that!

The little secluded farm is worth a visit for sure and the herbs and greens you get from them can last up to 10 days in your fridge in a mint condition. You would want to have salads all day long, craving them for the greens used are the freshest you could ever find in Kuwait. It is officially my favourite green destination now!

How to get there? Well, it’s in Mangaf area, its right across the street from Mangaf Kindergarten -there is a big sign- and it is in street one block three. If you look in Google maps you’ll find a big forest-like area amid the buildings and you know that’s the place but I guess typing in Mangaf, block 1 street 3 in your navigator would do. If you have more information regarding this Mangaf farm please do share for I couldn’t find anything on the internet regarding it.

Dinner at Arabella Al Bida’a

The good weather months in Kuwait are here and for some reason the weather feels more gorgeous than ever! All I want to do all day long is sit outdoors and sip coffee while enjoying the autumn breeze. Back in June I posted about Kuwait’s newest restaurant complex, Arabella, which was just open on Al Bida’a beach strip and when I was racking my brains the other day thinking of a place to have dinner outdoors I remembered Arabella and I knew the time has finally come to dine there. 

One really good thing about Arabella is that it comes with a huge parking. It’s quite an annoying one though, a very tight squeeze with almost impossible turns and would be a nightmare for big cars like hummers or Yukons for example but at least you get to have your car parked safely in the end with easy access to the restaurants above. I wish all new projects in Kuwait came with a parking like that.

A short elevator ride later and we were in the middle of Arabella, instantly giving me the feel of being in a European piazza. We walked around the open restaurants which didn’t change much since last June. Currently open are Red Lobster, The Olive Garden, Caribu Coffee, and Entercote but it looks like more restaurants are going to open up quite soon like Altisimo and Texas Road House.

Caribu was quite busy but we did manage to grab a table outdoors at the Olive Garden, watching people walking back an forth enjoying the great weather.

After we placed our order we looked up and noticed we were in the presence of a full moon, shining down upon us and completing the happy weather good location picture. In reality the moon was much brighter and better looking. He isn’t that photogenic, is he?

Next came dinner which I have to say tasted much better than the food we had before in the Avenues Olive Garden. Less salty and more flavourful for sure.

The best thing about our dinner was the coffee and the tiramisu which was surprisingly really good and quite light! The coffee comes in a metal flask and was a warm welcome in a great weather with a cold nip.

We had a great dinner outdoors the other day at Arabella and I can’t wait for more restaurants to open especially the ones with a beach view! Arabella is located right next to The Palms and Sas hotel in Al-Bidaa coast strip. You can’t miss it, the big clock tower is overlooking the street.