Organic and superfoods on menus
Ramadan is behind us, and with it, hopefully our tendency to eat more dates, cheese kunafa and pakoras than should be legal. It appears that some of Dubai’s restaurants are approaching the advent of Shawwal the way eateries in the west do after Christmas: A focus on healthy eating. In JLT, the hotspot Cocktail Kitchen has partnered with suppliers Ripe Organic for Organic Sundays. The focus of the three-course menu is seasonality and locally sourced produce. Chef Javier Birman is serving the menu weekly, from 7-11.30pm on Sundays, for Dh165. Call 056-8280727. Across the Dubai Creek, Alfredo Russo’s beautiful Italian restaurant Vivaldi, at the Sheraton Dubai Creek Hotel & Towers, has created a menu focusing on the “superfoods” in traditional Italian ingredients (think vitamins, minerals and probiotic bacteria; the dishes are also intended to be low in calories. Available for lunch and dinner, from July 17 until September 10, dishes include Insalata ABCDE, with spinach, orange and almonds; the ABCDE refers to the vitamins on the plate (they say 150 per cent of the recommended daily intake of Vitamins A, C and E, and 80 per cent of the recommended daily Vitamins B2, B3 and B6). A celeriac “steak” is served crisp with a green tomato sauce for a vegan, gluten-free, 200-calorie main course with 30 per cent of the daily fibre intake. Meats and fish include a seed-crusted salmon fillet with broccoli, Brussels sprouts and asparagus; and calves liver with onions and dandelion. A gluten-free chocolate fondant for dessert comes with parsnip ice cream. Call 04-2071717.
Indonesian Week at The H Dubai
Delphine will be taken over by Indonesian chef Rudy Harrasjid and his buffet menu from July 12-16. (It’s part of the hotel’s Indonesian week, which will also see a Balinese healer, Guru Made Sumantra, visiting Mandara Spa for a 200-person yoga class on July 15 and private sessions.) Dishes include vegetable gado-gado; braised beef rendang sapi; mie goreng fried noodles; and tahu penyet, bean curd in tomato and chilli sauce. Desserts include pisang goreng (banana fritters) and bubur kacang hijau, a sweet green bean porridge. It’s Dh185 per person (not including beverages). Expect Balinese dance performances during dinner. Call 04-5018888.
