Gharana Street Food Night: a culinary tour of India

Every Saturday from 7 pm onwards, the space before the entrance of Gharana (the Indian restaurant in Holiday Inn, Barsha – Dubai) is transformed into a quaint Indian bazaar. Saturdays bring in ‘Street Food Night’, an ode to the delicacies sold by street vendors across India.

We dined at Gharana last night, and were transported to an exotically colorful world of Indian cuisine and music, a heady mix reminiscent of novels by Jhabvala.

The interiors are styled to resemble a Mughul Emperor’s courtyard. Marbled arches, bejeweled seating, complete with a plush silver swing right at the entrance.

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Latest Recipe, Le Meridien Mina Seyahi: brasserie dining reinvented

Fridays are the laziest days of the week in our household. We rise just before noon, brunch, watch some telly and fall into a deep siesta all over again. The idea of an evening brunch on a Friday therefore sounded very appealing to our rewired internal weekend clocks.

Latest Recipe at Le Meridien Mina Seyahi is open for buffet brunch from 7 pm to 10.30 pm every Friday. We were there last Friday, and are still recovering from the gastronomic overload.

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Dalloyau: Royal Parisian Gastronomy House

Let them eat cake! – Marie Antoinette.

These infamous words by Marie Antoinette always fascinated the foodie in me. Being the Queen of France, surely she had the best of desserts at her disposal.

Enter Dalloyau, Dubai’s latest addition to the Parisian fine-dining scene, and my taste-buds were sent on a gastronomic journey into history dating back to the grandeur and royalty of Versailles.

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Per Te: a taste of Italy just for you!

In Italian, ‘Per Te’ translates to ‘for you’, an apt name for Jumeirah’s newest Italian restaurant located in Jumeirah 1 (right behind Jumeirah Plaza, Beach Road, Dubai).

Hubby was skeptical about dining here. In his opinion, Italian cooking is overrated and simply involves massive overdoses of pasta sauce and cheese. Our dinner at Per Te last Friday managed to make him a convert, and he’s been raving about the restaurant all week!

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Romano’s Macaroni Grill: Italian Family Feasting

What do Dubaiites do on an idle weekend? Mall-hop ofcourse! Nothing more gratifying than a bit of retail therapy and window browsing.

A couple of Thursdays ago, my family and I found ourselves in Mirdiff City Centre. After an epic shopping spree, we had to do justice to our growling stomachs and decided to do Italian at Romano’s Macaroni Grill.

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China Grill: Asian Cuisine Reinvented

China Grill, one of New York’s most sought-after dining destinations, has finally landed in the Dubai foodie scene.

China Grill Dubai is located in The Westin Dubai Mina Seyahi Beach Resort & Marina, the uber stylish five-star property at the heart of Dubai’s Media City.

We booked a table at China Grill this weekend, and were transported into a hidden world of fusion Asian cuisine.

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Le Relais de l’Entrecôte: Now open on the Boulevard, Downtown Dubai

Le Relais de l’Entrecôte, the iconic Parisian bistro, opened its doors on the very stylish Boulevard, Downtown Dubai on Wednesday 14th January.

Relais roughly translates to a small retreat that you might be stopping over at when on a road trip, and entrecote is the French word for a boned steak cut off the sirloin.

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El Chico: Now open in WTC Mall, Abu Dhabi

El Chico, the authentic Mexican food chain from Southern United States, opened its third branch in the UAE on Friday 23rd Jan.

El Chico has a branch on JBR, Dubai. In Abu Dhabi, the chain already had a presence in Dalma Mall, and given the high demand for authentic Mexican cuisine, El Chico has now opened its second branch in the capital in the very stylish World Trade Center Mall.