New restaurant alert: The Collective Grand Hyatt

Most of us ‘Dubai kids’ will remember the Market Cafe in Grand Hyatt, well it is no more. The newly refurbished Collective takes its spot with beautiful interiors, great service and delicious food, and did I mention the jaw dropping dessert counter – it’s a sight not to be missed.

The restaurant consists of 4 sections, all of which could be restaurants on their own, with their own seating style and tableware. Sitting in any of the sections the attention to detail is obvious!

The Collective sports an interestingly different concept, where the menu will never be the same when you dine. Full control is given to the chefs; the daily menu depends on what their mood is or whatever they’re experimenting with.

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Drinks from the Beverage Bar: pomegranate peppermint iced tea and a lemon pina colada. They even whip up a mean caramel espresso lassi too :O

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Moving onto the food (nothing short of spectacular) from the day we dined. Started off in the Levant Emporium – huge range of fresh salads (favorites being: salad of 2016, mountain tomato salad). The manakeesh and specialty kashkaval cheese honey shawarma were delicious.

Desserts: Alison Nelson’s Chocolate Bar NYC

Having multiple branches across UAE (11 to be exact), Alison Nelson’s Chocolate Bar makes it’s way to Palm Jumeirah’s Golden Mile.

I actually got the chance to speak to Alison Nelson herself – who is extremely down to earth and humble. Having started out with writing, poetry and journalism she stumbled into New York kitchens and found her love for chocolate. The first store in New York mainly focused on desserts and sweet treats, for the second store she decided that she wanted chocolate bar to not only be known for their sweet menu and launched a savory menu.

On that note, the all day menu has an afternoon tea set available – with sandwiches, fluffy croissants, savory and sweet pastries. Favorites being: carrot and caramelized onion buttered pastry, kofta sandwich and cream cheese slider. 

Events: Foodie Tour of Global Village

Before I get into the food: ladies beware, please don’t wear shorts or skirts to Global Village as they will have you wear (itchy) leggings to abide by park rules. Also Global Village ends this season on the 9th of April 2016. 

Even though Dubai Food Festival has ended, it has extended its reach to the revamped Global Village (which now has a more modern feel). The best way to explore a place in my book is to check out the food, and what’s better than a food trail! (cue slightly evil laugh)

Starting off with a Thai fruit stand opposite the African pavilion, which stocks multiple varieties of Thai fruits (favorites being: green guava and green mango). They also had something called rose apple which tasted like a sweet cucumber which sounds odd but really is the best description.

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Fresh coconuts are available too and after you’re done, don’t forget to ask them to crack it open to get to the fleshy bits!

Candylicious launches 3D printed gummy candy

Candylicious is hosting the world’s first 3D gummy printer called the Magic Candy Factory, until May only!

Candy in an array of flavors, shapes and customized details created on the spot in less than 5 minutes through state of the art, first of its kind: 3D food printer(s). Plus it is ready to eat in under ten minutes, unlike conventionally produced gummy candy that needs three days to set.

Bringing sweet dreams to life through state of the art 3D printing technology powered by 100% vegan, halal, non-GMO, dairy and nut-free all-natural ingredients.

The Magic Candy Factory unveils 20 fun designs from octopuses, keys, hearts, pyramids, starfishes, frogs , butterflies and snowflakes. As for flavors: cherry, tropical, lemon, mango, apple and strawberry are just some of the flavors on offer. There’s even a special lemon mint flavor in the works for the Dubai store.

Food: Salero Tapas and Bodega’s new menu

Having heard amazing things about Salero Tapas and Bodega, we were thrilled to try their offerings and what’s better than to dine with Chef Oscar himself!

Wednesday is the day to visit, since it is the only day that the restaurant has a special live ‘flamenco‘ dance performance (from 8 pm onwards) which provides great entertainment while you indulge in the best Salero has to offer.

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Started off with gazpacho andaluz – refreshing cold tomato soup with cucumber, pepper and croutons.

Ensaladilla rusa – creamy marinated Spanish potato salad served with juicy tuna chunks and hard boiled eggs, sounds simple but is delightful.

Anchoas del Cantàbrico con congollos de lechuga y vinagreta de jérez – talk about a long name. This dish consists of baby lettuce topped with Cantabrian anchovies and drizzled in a sherry vinaigrette.

Took a slight break from the delicious food and ventured into some Spanish classics like: queso manchego (manchego cheese) and some absolutely amazing cecina de león (air dried beef ham).

Food: Just Salad, Boxpark

Another health craze has hit Dubai, which hasn’t spared anyone – not even food bloggers! Trying to eat healthy (which also includes the sad reality of skipping dessert) meant crossing Just Salad off the wishlist.

Sadly their blender wasn’t working when I visited, although their selection of teas made up for that – loved the Honest tea range: Honest green lemon as well as the half tea half lemonade combo. They also have Alo ® Drink (aloe vera), Vita Coco, vitamin water and much more.

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Started off with a buffalo chicken wrap which may taste a bit bland in the beginning but as soon as the buttermilk ranch kicks in, it pulls the entire sandwich together!

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A great combination of chickpeas, crumbled feta, lentils and pita chips with an olive oil balsamic vinegar dressing in the Mediterranean mix (veggie special).
Another great salad is the chipotle cowboy, a chunky salad where the grilled chicken, sharp cheddar and creamy avocado shine through; dressed in a chipotle vinaigrette.

Just salad also has a range of soups and a make your own salad option, if you opt for the reusable bowl you get to add 2 essentials to the salad of your choice.

The Boxpark branch we visited is small but had outdoor seating which was great for this cooler weather! Their other branches are in JLT and Business bay – for when the inevitable sweltering heat comes around!

Food: Bombay Brassiere – Valentine’s Day special

Bombay Brassiere with opulent interiors and some fantastic food to back it up, sets its mark on the Indian fine dining scene.

Started the night with: an apple, black chat masala and beetroot puree amuse bouche.

Diving straight into the appetizer platter: tangy papdi chaat, fluffy and flavorful angeer ki tikki (fig filled potato cake), creamy bhatti aloo  and the crunchy tawa murg chaat (chicken, red onion, tamarind).

Food: Mozzo Centrale – Neighborhood Eatery

Open in Umm Suqeim, I had my eye on Mozzo Centrale for a while; especially since all the Instagram posts over their fantastic breakfast menu (so much French toast). Although I didn’t manage to get here for breakfast, their vast all day menu proved great too.

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A chilly Sunday afternoon sitting outside with a frozen cappuccino and a lemon mint sorbet because even in Dubai winter you need something cold! Both these drinks were amazing especially the lemon mint sorbet which is the best lemon mint to date (but each subsequent one tops the list so this might change soon, again).

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As per our waiter’s recommendation, we went for the crispy chicken strips with jalapeno ketchup. I am not a fan of ketchup but this was something else, a tangy slightly spicy dip which when smothered over the chicken, made for a great combination.

Quinoa – part of the superfood trend in recent years is still going strong (unlike kale which is slowly dropping off menus), the Mozzo quinoa specialty salad has a unique twist. The base is of a regular salad but it has a delicious mix of sweet roasted pineapple, crispy fried sweet potatoes (fries!) and mushy avocado.

Event: Foodies x Benjarong meetup

Earlier this week I was invited to a fantastic meetup at Benjarong in the Dusit Thani on Sheikh Zayed Road. Being one of the oldest hotels on SZR upholding Thai traditions neither does the Dusit Thani nor Benjarong disappoint.

Started off with an appetizer plate: marinated beef skewer (neua rue gai satay), deep fried vegetable spring rolls (por pia savoey), deep fried shrimp cake (tord mun goong) and chicken wrapped in pandanus leaves (gai haw bai toey). Although all of these were delicious, my favorite was the succulent chicken wrapped in pandanus leaves.

A special treat was live preparations of my favorite Thai salad (som tam) with different spice levels. I ended up with a medium spicy som tam drenched in a spicy lime dressing. #hungerpangs.

Food: TRIBECA – slice of NYC in JBR

Since JBR is littered with a plethora of restaurants choosing where to dine tends to become a battlefield. TRIBECA is a new-ish open in JA Ocean View Hotel which offers healthy, fresh and organic options. The menu is color coded with all green items being organic, which is at least two-thirds of the menu!

For drinks we started of with: berrylicious and lychee coconut iced tea. While the former was syrup heavy, the latter was served unsweetened and proved to be refreshing.

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Bruschetta sampler: tomato, walnut tapenade and porcini mushroom on toasted quinoa bread. The standout was the walnut tapenade with a subtle smoky flavor spread across the thick crusted bread.

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Baked organic greek feta with oregano, black pepper + watermelon, a fairly simplistic starter with crumbly, melt in your mouth, well seasoned cheese. Feta worked incredibly well with the bruschetta so order these two dishes together.