Eat well, feel good @ Wild & The Moon 🌙
Posted on September 17, 2018 Leave a Comment
If you’ve been following me for a while now you would know how much I enjoy healthy food. Most days I’m munching on a kale salad at work and on the weekends I’m usually tucking into an acai bowl. The best part of eating healthy is when you’re full you are content and happy. You do not feel heavy, bloated or sick afterwards.
Disclaimer *I’m not turning vegan anytime soon*
So last weekend we paid a visit to Wild & the Moon in the art district of Al Serkal Avenue in Al Quoz. It’s a cute two level space filled with greenery which makes my heart sing. They have a simple menu on the wall and a fridge of ready to go cold pressed juices and food including dips, salads and treats.
If you’re not familiar with the brand it originated from Paris, France where they have 8 branches in total. In Dubai they support a lot of local events and pop ups so you may have seen their products before like I had a yoga festival. The cafe serves up some additional items that you may not find at these events.
They include items like their new wild tacos, a range of bowls including my all time fav acai as well as moon porridge, sprouted buckwheat granola and my personal favorite, wild cream cheese and guac which are both served with veggie crackers made from dehydrated pulp from their cold pressed juices. Talk about sustainability! I actually couldn’t get enough of these crackers or dips.
W&TM’s range of drinks on the menu board doubles the options of food available to order but from the fridge you can choose items like moon rolls (veggie rice paper rolls), wakame (cucumber & seaweed) salad or super bowls all loaded with fresh ingredients.
They have loads of flavored cold pressed juices all which clearly state their ingredients as well as their health benefits. I liked simply green the best, but if you like a tangy sour taste then moon river would be good for you.
Not only that they also sell super foods like maca powder, matcha, cacao and other healthy snacks.
Despite it’s almost hidden location inside Al Serkal avenue and higher than average cafe prices it still receives a decent footfall. Non vegans would still enjoy a meal here and remember you get what you pay for. All fresh, organic, natural produce and food so good for you it will make you glow from the inside out.
Location: Al Serkal Avenue, Al Quoz, Dubai
A fun filled evening @ Maison Rouge
Posted on September 11, 2018 Leave a Comment
There’s a new hotspot in town and it’s been super popular since it’s recent opening. Maison Rouge replaces the old Vesna restaurant inside the Conrad Hotel and offers guests a dinner and show offering hours of live entertainment. It’s cabaret style with the dancers wearing incredible outfits, and they have live performers including saxophonist and singers performing various songs from different musical theatre shows including Chicago, Sweet Charity and The Greatest Showman.
There’s a DJ who fills in before, between and after who plays a mix of old & new RnB as well as some Afro beats.
It’s also home to the 24k red/gold beef burger. Priced at 365AED it’s definitely not cheap but it’s humongous and comes complete with its own theatrics. See below.
Their menu is quite limited and but also very random as it covers European cuisine in terms of khachapuri, borsha and vareniki but also Asian food including gyoza and sushi as well. If there’s one thing I can recommend it’s the light as a feather not but overly sweet honey cake that I ate at the end of the evening. Delicate layers of moist cake and filled with cream and coated in crumbs which I’ve only just discovered originated from Russia.
Maison Rouge is in high demand and constantly at capacity so if you want to visit soon you’ll need to make a booking. It’s also open 7 days a week although the Entertainment only starts from 9pm onwards, so do take that into consideration when booking.
It’s a nice place to celebrate special occasions or even just for date night. They have a strict dress code which is smart elegant, so don that dress and high heels and get ready for a fun filled night of entertainment.
Location: 1st Floor, Conrad Hotel, Dubai
Phone: 04 352 8169
Get some South in your mouth @ The Blacksmith, Wyndham Marina
Posted on August 15, 2018 Leave a Comment
The Blacksmith is a newish American restaurant inside the Wyndham Hotel, Dubai Marina. It specializes in smoked meats and Southern favorites. Think chicken wings, beef short rib, shrimp po’ boy not to mention my personal favorite Beef Brisket.
It’s a mid week evening when a friend and I have an early reservation and I’m surprised to see quite a few tables occupied.
The ambiance is moody with dark leather seating and circular light features overhead. I noticed a fairly large terrace outside complete with a smoker which would perfect for those cooler Dubai months. Inside the restaurant they are playing a mix of classic American country music which my old boss would of loved.
Our waiter hands us the menu which covers only two pages and informed us of a few items which are unavailable. We’re given some recommendations including Armadillo Eggs for a starter and the BBQ Short Rib for the main, however these end up being our least favorite dishes.
Instead we prefer the smoked chili rubbed wings which come with an unnecessary ranch dressing in my opinion as the sauce is so good on it’s own, you don’t need to add another. Although I would of liked to of seen an option of buffalo wings on the menu too.
The Texas Brisket Sandwich was gigantic. I almost needed to of fasted for the week leading up to this dinner as there’s no way between the two of us we could of finished the Manz sized portion. Layers and layers of smoked brisket, complete with onions, pickled chili green beans, with a tangy white sauce, it what carnivores dreams are made of.
Not sure how we managed to keep any space for dessert but we tried their golden Oreo banana pudding complete with a vanilla custard and the Flaming Jack Daniel’s Pecan Pie. I was expecting something involving lighters & flames when I saw the name but it arrived with a scoop of vanilla bean ice cream on top. It was my first time ever having pecan pie and my goodness it was good. It was like eating a nut brittle inside a chewy pastry base and the vanilla ice cream on top balanced out the caramelized filling perfectly. Would definitely order this dessert again!
The Blacksmith offers loads of daily deals including a Friday Brunch, unlimited Wings on Wednesday, All you can brisket on a Sunday and a daily happy hour from 5-8pm.
I’d visit again to try their BBQ Apricot Duck Breast which sounds interesting or if I need a good chicken wing fix.
Bookings: 04 407 8873
