Admit it, there’s always been a certain fascination with Arabian things. Maybe it’s the grandeur, maybe it’s Disney’s portrayal of Aladdin, but mostly it’s the beautiful homely nostalgia we experience with the not-so-different smells from their kitchen. They know how to cook, and they DEFINITELY know how to feed. Chef Rami from the Ritz at Jumeirah, Dubai is no exception to this stereotype. He fed us with such affection and sincerity like our well-being and health solely depended on his cooking. To us Bangaloreans, that felt like home.
It’s all about that Hummus & Fattoush
We were served an array of Mezze and were definitely not disappointed! The pita bread (choice of white/wheat), black & green olives with beautiful feta cheese and the refreshing tabouleh left our palates tingling. The winner who took it all though was the beautifully prepared fattoush with the nicest, meltiest fried pita croutons that we’ve laid our taste buds on! Do not skip. We repeat, do NOT skip the mezze.
Special shout out to the Zaalouk (Smoked eggplant with garlic with a yum tinge of chilli paste and a dash of cumin) and the hummous (no, honestly one of the best ones we’ve had), if you’re a beetroot fan, of course the beetroot hummous shouldn’t be ignored.
The Big Ones
Yes, we know mezze can be quite heavy, so we’re here to tell you to go easy on them! Trust us, you don’t want to miss the mains. Just when you think you know middle-eastern food, Ritz throws you a curveball.
On our mains we first sampled the Arabic Mixed Grills – kofte, skewers, kebabs, chops.. the works! All of them were absolutely finger lickin’ and it’s safe to say you should save enough space to be able to have one of each.
For all you veggie foodies out there don’t stop reading yet, they have a huge array of veg. dishes that won’t leave you hungry! The lentil soup, the spicy potatoes, the eggplant moussaka, the green beans with coriander, the afore-mentioned zaalouk (which is pretty much an Arabic version of baingan ka bharta) and lots and lots more!
That’s not all, we were served an amazing variety of non-veg mains to eat with the absolutely delish mudardara (long grain perfectly cooked rice mixed with equally well cooked vermicelli). The chicken with potatoes were brill, but we couldn’t get enough of the okra and lamb, which were packed with a surprise spice from cinnamon. It’s truly a combo we’ve never tried and now we can’t get enough.
For your sweet tooth…
Apart from the normal spread that the Market offers, their Arabic special available was the Oum Ali. This was the most perfectly singed, caramelised and doused bread pudding we’ve experienced in quite a long time. What sets it apart is, that they use croissants (not any ol’ bread) to make it! This was the perfect ending to a colourful and meat-heavy spread! Love love love. xx
What we experienced was the Syrian inspired buffet, but they have a Moroccan, Persian and Lebanese one too. So while calling them to reserve, find out.. or better yet, pop in and be surprised! If this spread has anything to go by, we can safely say none of the cuisines will leave you disappointed. A little birdie told us they were rolling out a shwarma station soon.. you lucky so and so.
Details
‘Taste of Arabia’ runs till 9th October, 2015 at The Market, Ritz Carlton.
For reservations, please contact +91 80 4914 8000.