Grand Tour…Pakistan, Dubai, Saudi Arabia, Qatar Ramadan 2024
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“the lion is most handsome when looking for food” ( RUMI)
paraphrase…someone or something is most appealing or attractive when they are pursuing their raison d’etre (their reason of being)
Hey Guys, Ramadan Kareem everyone,
This year I was invited by Omar Ali from @gastronomiqueDXB for a trip like no other, a trip to Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, Dubai, Abu Dhabi and Qatar.
What made this trip unique was that Omar GastronomiqueDXB curated the restaurants to synchronise with the trip thus making a trully amazing and wonderfull trip.
The trip started from Pakistan moving to Saudi Arabia , spacifically Madinah, Mecca and Jeddah for Umrah, then Abu Dhabi and Dubai and finishing in Qatar.
This review will list the most memorable dish from each curated restaurant.
So without further ado lets get started
Our Trip started from Butt Karahi in the walled city of Lahore, They claim to have invented the Karahi. The restaurant started from a single cart in McLoud Road Lahore, in 1923 and has never closed for a single day since then, the funny thing is now there are seven Butt Karahis on the same road, they are all independently owned by the descendants of Boota Butt who first started Butt Karahi in 1923.
As there is no concept of intellectual property or franchising in Pakistan, any member of the Butt clan who worked in Butt Karahi would go on to start his own chapter of Butt Karahi.
We visited the Genesis Butt Karahi, as verified by the molvee of the mosque next door.
The Karahi was a revelation, the lamb is cooked only using butter and spices, and the lamb is so tender it falls off the bone.
Not all the places we ate in were fine dining, these samosas were made by a humble street cart close to our Fruit Orchards in Punjab, the samosas were fresh on the spot and believe me they hit the spot, delicately spiced potato filling in a crispy filo case…so simple yet absolutely delicious.
My love of food started from the simple concept of chicken and rice, this combination exisits the world over, biryani in the sub continant, Singapore Chicken and rice, Italian Pollo Risotto, Gumbo in the American deep south and Mandi in southern Arabia.
The Mandi from Mandi world Jeddah was simple, fragrent and oh so delicious
Our next leg of the trip was to Saudi Arabia for Umrah, I visited Madinah and Mecca however it was the most busiest time of the year outside the Hajj so we enjoyed some Saudi street vendors
I tried the Ajwa Ice Cream in Madinah, The Ice Cream is made from Ajwa dates which were the favourite dates of the Prophet Mohammed(pbuh), and camel milk, it was served in a soft serve style, the Ajwa Ice Cream has a very subtle tasting notes of toffee, molasses, coffee and brown butter… absolutely delicious after Isha in Madinah.
Next up we reached the Dubai leg of our Grand Tour, and we were invited by three of the most prominent food influencers in the UAE.
Hani AlMaliki aka @bedouinfoodie , Reza Namazi @ravenousxerxes and Jamal Al husseini @phinickyeater , the lunch was personally curated by the Michelin Star Chef Jitin Joshi @chefjitinjoshi.
This was truly a spectacular treat, the conversation was enlightening and eating with knowledgeable peers was truly amazing and humbling.
Furthermore, Chef Joshi’s passion speaks volumes through his food, the highlight of a truly memorable meal was the double rib lamb cutlets the marination was subtle yet complex, and the lamb was tender with a wonderful nutty fat from the loin.
I am overdoing with the Superlative adjectives but how else can one describe something so good?
Next Iftar Omar took me to an authentic Texas BBQ in the middle of Dubai…go figure, It was designed like a Texas Redneck BBQ right down to the Taxas size portions.
Actually, Big T BBQ is a labour of love for the owner Fadel Faour, he fell in love with the 1000-gallon smoker whilst studying at Longhorn University and could not wait to recreate the experience in Dubai.
The BBQ consists of seasoned smoked meats—specifically beef brisket, beef ribs, pastrami and Texas German Beef sausage.
OMG, the Texas German Beef link Sausage was a manna from heaven, the sausage was seasoned spectacularly, along with the smokey taste of the Ghaf tree gave a delicious umami earthy taste… loved it!!
Walking into Bait Maryam is like walking into the kitchen of your Jordanian Aunt, Sallam Dakak is a self teach two Michelin Star chef cooking her mum Maryam rustic delicacies, but don’t mistake rustic as peasant food, the food is simple yet fantastic, all the more elevated by the fresh ingredients available in Dubai.
The Kebab Hamoudi is an ode to Maryam’s grandson, the lamb kebab is sheathed in romali roti and rested on a bed of Maryams amazing spicy Tomato shorba and smoked Aubergine Babaganough. the pine nuts give a buttery nuance to cut the richness.
If a picture could speak 1000 words… well this speaks a while 1001 stories… Khoori is honest to goodness, salt of the earth Iranian kabab jaga…no pretensions, no faff just salt of the earth kebabs and fresh pebble bread.
It was love at first bite.
Sometimes you need to give your system a wee time out…for those occasions, a Caesar Salad hits the spot…tossed with beef bacon a Caesar salad is an underrated timeless classic
Ashas is a restaurant chain founded by the Bollywood playback singer, Asha Bhosle who is the sister of Lata “The Nightingale” Mangeshkar.
She is CDO (Chief Decor Officer) and CCO (Chief Cusine Officer), and she contributes to the menu.
She is a great fan of the Moghul school of cooking hence why healthy grilled and tandoori dishes are prominant.
The Kebab Guldusta is made up of malai tikka, murgh tikka and seekh kebab, all were marinated on point and grilled. simple yet delicious.
As a coffee aficionado, Omar also curated some of the best artisan coffee roasters in Dubai, firstly there is Koncrete Coffee, Coffee is imported from the BArn in Berlin, but it is also a social enterprise founded by progressive young emirates and art gallery.
The simple pleasure of great coffee and a cigar and amiable company after a great meal is exactly what we enjoyed at Espresso Lab in the Dubai Design District.
Espresso Lab is a coffee roaster founded by a visionary and passionate Emirati, Ibrahim Al Mallouhi, the extent of his passion is evident as he has trailblazed the concept
“seed to cup” where he has bought plantations in Columbia, Ethiopia and Sumatra so he can make sure the coffee supply line is unbroken from the seed to the cup.
In Conclusion
Omar did an amazing job in curating such amazing restaurants, his knowledge of the Dubai restaurant business is unparalleled.
Omar curated artisan eateries rather than falling for the Dubai bling usual suspects.
The trip was not only a revelation in a culinary sense but spiritually and emotionally too.
I met some truly inspirational individuals whose passion shone through yet there was a notable absence of the foodie arrogance.
I humbly thank everyone who made my trip memorable
Halal Rating
All the restaurants visited were alcohol-free and Halal
Alfie Foodwala visits all restaurants anonymously and pays for the bill like any other customer, Alfie Foodwala does not accept free meals in return for reviews.
The Grand Tour GCC Ramadan 2024
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9.1/10
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9.2/10
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9.2/10
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8.5/10