indian cuisine

Diwali at Antique Bazaar (Four Points by Sheraton, Bur Dubai)

Diwali, the auspicious Indian ‘Festival of Lights’ celebrated by Hindus the world over, is scheduled for the 30th of this month. This festival signifies the victory of light over darkness, good over evil, knowledge over ignorance, and hope over despair (Wikipedia). It is by far, one of the grandest celebrations on India’s social calendar.

However, you don’t have to book a ticket to India to celebrate… From 29th through to 31st October, Antique Bazaar (at Four Points by Sheraton – Bur Dubai) has created a tantalizing lineup of traditional Diwali treats, complete with live Bollywood entertainment to boot!

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Zafran Reloaded

I was invited to do a review on Zafran at Mirdiff City Center over a year ago, and have been raving about them ever since. This week, I had the pleasure of attending yet another bloggers’ meet-up organised by the lovely Monica Kapila from doindubai.com

Zafran is ‘saffron’ on an Arabesque tongue. Saffron, the most prized of spices, the sacred color of sadhus, and a shade that takes up a third of the Indian flag, is the inspiration behind this trendy contemporary Indian restaurant. The last time I was at Zafran, the interiors were a vibrantly bright shade of saffron, and the ambiance was made to look all the more exotic with carved elephants and ethnic prints.

The Zafran chain has now had a major facelift. The colour scheme has shifted to more somber hues of greys,off-white and hints of peacock blue. This new look is more in tune with the ‘contemporary bistro’ concept that the restaurant claims to be.

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Playing Judge at the Grandma’s Recipe Contest at Arabian Courtyard (My Master Chef Moment)

In our household, we are pretty addicted to Master Chef Australia. Hubby and I take great pleasure in putting bets on contestant rankings, and I’ve always been in awe with the judging skills and straight-up informative feed back Chefs Gary, George and Matt seem to be able to give at the drop of a hat.

We are foodies. I blog about food, yet actually being a judge at a cooking contest perturbs me. And then I had the honor of being invited onto the judging panel of the annual Grandma’s Recipe Contest in Arabian Courtyard & Spa this month! Absolutely honored, I decided to give it a go and put on my Master Chef hat 🙂

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An Elaborate Indian Dinner at 25 Degrees North (Bay Square, Dubai)

What have you been up to this long Eid weekend? We decided to hibernate on Day 1, dreading the holiday rush across the city. Surely every road, every mall and every restaurant must be overflowing with people now that everybody is back from the summer break?

Well I have great news for you! I’ve recently discovered the (not so secret) secret hang-out for foodies who, like me, detest the crowds. Ironically just a few parallel roads down from buzzing Dubai Mall itself, Bay Square is a hidden gem housing some of Dubai’s most affordable restaurants under one spacious complex itself.

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I was in Bay Square about a week ago, devouring really good Thai food at Fuchsia, and just a week later I was back yet again, this time for some amazingly affordable Indian at 25 Degrees North.

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Carnival by Tresind: A Post-Modernist Take on Indian Favorites

The wait is over. The highly anticipated Carnival by Tresind is finally opening its doors at DIFC Dubai on Saturday 3rd September. After a long week of work, I was very excited about heading to Carnival. We received a media invite to try out a set menu, and like our undeniably favorite Indian restaurant Tresind, Carnival proved to be a magical jaw-dropping experience. The only bummer was that they haven’t obtained their liquor licence yet (this will be resolved by the time they officially open).

Carnival by Tresind media menu preview by The Tezzy Files Dubai Food Blog food review Indian fine dining molecular gastronomy UAE (9)

Walking into Carnival by Tresind is like stepping into a fantasy world. Dimly lit yet festively spruced up with gilded trees branching out at every corner, a wall of masquerade masks and an impressively stylish bar area with a backlit feature wall of empty bottles, we were showered down with a welcoming burst of bubbles as soon as we took our seats at the table.

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Bloggers’ Feast at Chawlas 2

Chawlas  2 (pronounced ‘Chawlas Squared’) has all the makings of an epic rags to riches story. With humble beginnings in Ludhiana (in India’s Northern state of Punjab), the very first branch was christened Chawlas, and earned a reputation with its one-dish menu serving their signature Cream Chicken.

Till this very day, their Cream Chicken remains on the menu, yet the options have multiplied to include an extensive range of North Indian favorites. Over a span of 56 years, the restaurant stays true to its roots, keeping the flavors unabashedly authentic, sans any commercial frills and has over 100 outlets worldwide including India, Australia, Canada, the United States and is now open in Dubai. With a wider menu and a global presence, this 56 year old eatery now equates to Chawlas squared!

Chawla's 2 Bloggers Meet Up Food Review by The Tezzy Files Dubai Food Blog (5)

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Saleem’s of Delhi: Regal Mughlai Cuisine Revisited

I had the pleasure of being invited to a bloggers’ event at Saleem’s of Delhi by the lovely Deepti Chandak from the Jive With Deepti blog. Saleem’s of Delhi has earned quite a reputation in the Indian capital, having served up traditionally rich Mughlai dishes to the society’s foodie elite since 1977. Their Dubai branch in Karama is the restaurant’s very first venture out of India, and has been in operation for about a year now.

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Biryani Pot: Reinventing the Indian Subcontinent’s Most Loved Pilaf

We’ve driven past Biryani Pot a countless number of times. This wee little outlet with its quirky pot-shaped logo resides on Jumeirah Beach Road. biryani pot jumeirah beach road Dubai review by the tezzy files uae food and lifestyle blogger (18)

Hubby is a huge fan of biryani (the much-loved spicy layered pilaf of the Indian subcontinent) and often goes on a biryani binge, trying out the little nooks and crannies of the UAE. He has come to the conclusion that the best biryanis only come from the smallest, most modest of places. Surely one with a jazzy logo sitting on the likes of posh, urban Jumeirah Beach Road will not fit the bill?

I had seen posts of their very innovative quinoa biryani across social media. Intrigued, I decided to drag along my cynical partner and give Biryani Pot a go.

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Kerala Castle: a hidden gem for authentic Malayalee cuisine

According to Wikipedia, 42% of the UAE population is made up of Indian nationals. Out of this big majority, a major chunk of UAE’s Indian population hails from the South Indian state of Kerala.

With Malayalee tea-shops and restaurants in every nook and corner of the country, you’d be hard pressed finding a UAE resident who hasn’t had Kerala cuisine some time or another.

I’ve had my fair share of dosas, chicken chukkas, and appam with chicken stew.  Yet my friend Hema, a native of Kerala, kept insisting truly authentic cuisine from her state was far more diverse than that. So last Thursday, she took us to Kerala Castle; a casual family-style joint in the heart of the residential area in Al Nahda-2, Dubai.

Kerala Castle review (15)

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Meet Chef Gaurav (Zafran): try out his recipe for Coconut Prawn Curry

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Chef Gaurav with bubby & me at Zafran, Mirdiff City Centre.

Remember my gastronomic meal at Zafran? We had a sampler dish from every corner of India!

Meet Chef Gaurav, the mastermind behind the delicious fare.

With an impressive culinary career including cooking for the Ambani’s, Chef Gaurav gets candid about his journey as a chef so far and has generously shared the recipe for one of my favorite dishes at Zafran: the Bengali inspired Prawn Coconut Curry. This mildly spiced curry is a perfect addition to the Iftar table.

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