More plates that make me happy

There are quite a few steakhouses in Kuwait, most of them are fairly decent sometimes. The Terrace Grill at JW Marriott is, to me, the most consistent. Plus they have something that makes me generally happy and that is venison. Although a few days ago, and a few other times i've been, they've been out of stock of the venison, they stated that the supplier didn't supply. When they don't have venison, I like their steak more than the other places, but if the venison is in stock, then the venison is what I go for.
Perfectly grilled to a nice medium rare, served with the sauces and sides you'd expect from a good steakhouse, the venison makes my day. It's tasty, has a beautiful flavour that I enjoy perhaps more than beef... i could eat this very often.

UPDATE: since I posted this, venison has been removed from the menu at the Terrace Grill due to inconsistent sourcing from vendors. dammit.

udupi restaurant, kuwait city. thalis.

Once you find it, Udupi Restaurant, Vegetarian, Deluxe, Welcome. A friend heard about this place so we went and tried it out. Another of the several thali restaurants in Kuwait that I seem to be really liking these summer days. I want to develop a ranking for thali restaurants in Kuwait, more for my own interest than anything else. I really like the idea of the thali. I reviewed Green Land a few postings ago, which is located only a couple of blocks away from Udupi, and I couldn't help but compare the two throughout the meal. I wouldn't necessarily say one is better than the other, they offer enough key differences to allow them to be applicable depending on the situation and the mood.

Located on Ahmed Al-Jaber St. in the city, next to the Warba Insurance company building.
It is open all day, from 6:30 am to 10:00 pm. Until 6 pm, I was told, they only serve a thali meal, but I noticed someone at a table nearby eating a dosa, so I'm not sure I was given the best information. After 6, they have more dishes. Walking in for the first time, the man standing at the cashier near the door didn't say hello, he just said "hatha mat'am hindi." i nodded and asked for a table. We were looked at suspiciously, with the staff somewhat bewildered that a group of arabs just sat at a table and plainly asked for 3 thalis.

We were handed the thali tray with what seemed at first a minimum of effort put into the food. You have a choice of chapatis or phuris. Going clockwise in the photo, starting from the left, you have yoghurt, chapati, thali dessert, vegetable curry, soup, creamy lentils, beans/spinach/others stir-fry, hot sauce and phuris in the middle.

As I said, I had some suspicion that the meal wouldn't be that great. But then I started tasting it. Each dish bursting with flavour and seemingly working together quite well. Very balanced individually, with just the right amount of spice, salt. I didn't have a favourite, but I started adjusting each of them with small dollops of yoghurt mixed in, and I seemed to eat the soup the least, simply because it wasn't interactive with the bread, but it was still really good. In general, the food was a bit more spicy than Green Land, but much better than the times I've had the spicy option at Green Land.

The suspicion seemed to wear off as the meal went on when refills started and then after a couple of rounds, some rice that (I hope) wasn't ready earlier. The staff were great, attentive, making sure that your tray was full until you had enough.

And then it was done and it was time for tea. Only tea with carnation milk and nescafe were on offer as after-meal options. The tea was great. Strong and, mixed with the carnation, gave a nice finishing touch for the meal.

Would I go back to Udupi? In short, yes. It's very clean, yet somewhat spartan with the stainless steel utensils. Even the jug of water and drinking glasses were made of the same metal. But honestly, for 1.250 KD per person, 1.000 for the thali alone, and for how good the food was, I was really happy. Fresh food at such a price in the city. And it's timings are very convenient. One thing, though, is that I  like ordering one more dish at Green Land, to add a bit more diversity to the thali, but it wasn't really missed in this experience. Yes, I will definitely go back.

This place is on the upper side of 3.
If you have a thali restaurant in Kuwait that you recommend, please let me know. Thanks.

review: green land vegetarian indian restaurant

I have wanted to try this restaurant out for a while. Located in the souq mubarakiya area, close to the entrance that faces al ahli bank (29°22'24.63"N,  47°58'29.76"E), green land has been serving good, clean vegetarian food for years. In summary, the restaurant is clean and efficient and I will definitely be coming back for more.

Compared to other vegetarian thali places in Salmiya, green land is cleaner both in terms of the food and the premises. Upon entering, you are greeted by friendly staff. The menu has a vast selection that has menu items described in transliterated english and translated arabic. After a thorough look, we decided to go for the friday special thali.

The thali included several vegetarian dishes and was served with spiced rice, naan and puris. We ordered a saag paneer + veg dish as well as daal makhani. The spinach was excellent, but while good, I've had better daal in a few other places. As usual with thalis, the selection was mostly savory, yet there were a couple of sweet dishes too. The thali goes for 1.500 KD per portion, including refills of rice and bread. I was told, though, that the regular thali, at 1.100 KD is actually tastier. For my first time, I was quite impressed with the food and wish to go back and try their other dishes.

Following the feast, we had fruit lassis. This was one of the most impressive lassis i've had. The balance between sweet and sour was great, it reminded me of really good greek-style yoghurt. With chunks of pinapples and apples, this was a great cap to a satisfying, filling meal.

I would try this restaurant again, but having been at a friday lunch service, I may try it again on a less crowded day. Not that service was at all affected, but with the tables not too far apart from each other, I generally like my sense of space. Or else they could have turned the volume of the music up a little bit.

I generally rate this restaurant 4 out of 5. The food was great, very cost effective. The location is convenient, but finding parking at mubarakiya isn't always easy. The premises were clean, the staff pleasant. I would definitely recommend green land for some good veggie thalis.

cucina, missoni hotel, salmiya, kuwait.

Always looking for a new place to dine in Kuwait, something that brings more to the table than your average place, I was happy to hear about the cucina restaurant at the new missoni hotel opening up. To be honest, it was more of a discovery through deductive reasoning: I knew the hotel was opening and reckoned that it would have a good italian restaurant. And to be honest it did not disappoint.

Having done some research about the cucina at the Edinburgh missoni hotel, I knew that it focused on well made, simply presented food and that the menu was put together by no other than one of my favourite chefs, Giorgio Locatelli.

This is the kind of food better eaten than discussed, but I have to say that I was impressed by the flavour of the food. In Italian cooking, ingredients are key and the cucina made sure that everything was just as good as it would be at any good hotel around the world. One thing I did miss, however, was a good wine list.

For many more photos, please read after the jump...

korean lunch

For a while, I've been wanting to try out a Korean restaurant I heard of in the city, Koryo Kwan. I went in only with the recommendation of a couple of friends. Having tried Korean food before going to college, quite a few years back, I wasn't sure what to expect. Because I only sampled one of their dishes, I will not classify this post as a review of the restaurant, but rather a description of the experience.

The restaurant is located in the Carlton Tower Hotel, behind Rakan tower, next door to the building that holds my favourite thai restaurant. Through the antiquated lobby, you see the restaurant's frontage, a mostly wooden door with some characteristic Korean signage, only a glimpse of what's to come.

Walking in, I was greeted by a very friendly waiter and was asked to choose my seat. Only one other table was occupied, as they were about to close for their lunch break. For a moment, I truly felt like I was outside of Kuwait.

I looked through the menu and wasn't sure what to order. So I asked for a recommendation and went with the beef rib dish. Turns out it was a Korean-style barbecue meal, shown in the picture above. A bowl of seaweed and beef soup and rice were in front of me. On the left were the cold vegetables: seaweed, kimchi, potatoes with sesame, a crunchy root vegetable with similar spices to the kimchi, spinach and battered zucchini with pieces of chili; there was also a spicy dipping sauce. Then the rib meat was already cooked, smothered in a tasty garlic/ginger/sweet sauce with some sesame garnish - apparently this is served raw in many places and you control the cooking; it was served with romaine lettuce and a sauce that also tasted a bit like kimchi.

The portion I had could have probably fed two people, but I did my fair share of work and ate all the beef. I sampled everything else. Interesting that this may be where the low-carb, lettuce-wrapped fad emerged from.

Would I try this place again? Yes. There is another Korean restaurant in Kuwait that I will also try at the New Park Hotel in Maidan Hawalli.

review: pataya beach restaurant

Pataya Beach Restaurant
Thai Food 

Food

Service 

Place


Pros: excellent, freshly prepared food; good menu selection; convenient; relaxed and casusal
Cons: early closing time; location needs updating (dining area)
Timings: daily, 10:30 am to 8:00 pm - last order at 7:30
Contact: 22408052
Dine-out options: pick-up only, no deliveries
Location: Mezzanine level, Duwaliya building, Kuwait City, accross from Muthana Complex. 29°22'3.72"N  47°57'58.90"E 

Recommended: Yes
Vegetarian Friendly: Yes
Recommendations: #19, #21, #30 beef, kailan - but everything is good
Mood: Casual

What I usually look for in a place to eat is a comfortable setting and really good food. Pataya beach restaurant, located on the mezzanine level of the Duwaliya building, across the street from Muthana Complex, behind Rakan tower, is a favourite of mine. I remember it being around for many, many years, and it has maintained a quality of fresh ingredients and flavourful dishes.


A great respite from the bustle of the city, this hidden treasure is a bit of a diamond in the rough. It is very relaxed, the service is efficient and friendly but isn't over-engaging, until you become a regular and they memorize your typical menu selection based on who you're with. What can I say, I go to this place very often. I have given the service a rating of 4 because it is more relaxed and social, not formal like an upscale restaurant that imparts a deliberate sense of service.


It's appearance both from the outside and the inside is nothing special. In fact, it shows its age, with metal chairs, mirrored surface and thai tourism posters everywhere. Unless to you, appearances really do matter, don't be deceived, the kitchen is clean and the food is excellent. They don't play music at Pataya, but rather they keep the television playing thai channels - and this is perfectly acceptable. Years ago, they used to play karaoke videos. I miss those days, but with time things are bound to change.


There really isn't much more to say about this place apart from a more detailed discussion on the food. Their menu has a broad range of dishes, ranging from soups, salads, curries, and I have to say that I've been happy with everything I've ordered. However, I am not much of a seafood eater, so I haven't tried everything available. I know that many of the ingredients are flown in once a week directly from Thailand, and this affects availability of certain dishes sometimes (see the curry section below).

Pictured above is one of the appetizers I order without fail, glass noodle salad with chicken. The balance between sour, spicy, sweet and salty is so well maintained. Glass noodles, minced chicken, coriander and shallots swim in an abundant spicy citrus-based sauce. No matter what you've eaten before that day, this dish reawakens your appetite, or calms you down if you walk in ready to eat a horse. It works really well in summer and winter.

The phad thai is really good, but is a bit more moist than it is served in other thai restaurants in kuwait. It seems as though the peanuts are crushed very finely and incorporated into the tamarind and fish-sauce sauce. I really don't mind this at all, and is a nice non-spicy dish you can use to offset the spicy ones.

The red curry with coconut milk is honestly one of my all-time favourites. With steamed rice, this fulfills me on so many levels. I could eat this dish every day and be happy. If you're lucky enough for the restaurant to have kailan (kale) in oyster sauce available, which they usually do, then you will have the perfect accompaniment to this curry. 

The beef-pepper-garlic dish is an excellent choice if you're not in the mood for something too spicy. It wafts with fragrant overtones of garlic, soy sauce and other spices. It is a mellow dish that is a great example of comfort food.

I know that sometimes I sound as if I have been paid to review this restaurant, but I am honestly a great fan of this restaurant. Sure, the interior and tableware could be improved, but I like it the way it is. There really aren't too many places that serve food you know was prepared only for you. I like not caring about anything but eating good food when I go to Pataya.

I cannot recommend this place more. I remember this place with fondness and hope that they keep on going for as long as they can. To me, this is definitely one of the best restaurants that I never get tired of in Kuwait.