It is like home-made food" said a young Emirati woman after dining at Fanar recently. That's a big compliment for the restaurant, at Dubai Festival City, which serves up platefuls of Emirati cuisine, an often overlooked style of cooking in the UAE.
Fanar, the colloquial word for lantern, is the first of its kind in Dubai. Previously, Emirati dishes were availableforcatering or delivery — and of course in homes around the country. For expats looking for a taste of local food, a personal invitation was often the only way to try it. Fanar offers dining in, with a wide variety of Emirati dishes in a fascinating atmosphere and captivating interior design, inspired by the houses the pearl divers of old would have lived in, known as tawashe.
Everything in the restaurant seems well-researched and studied to recall a rich culture. From the lanterns dangling from the ceiling to hanging carpets from fake balconies, to a huge cement and plastic tree in the middle of the hosh (the main dining area), to the menu, which is printed on two sides of bamboo fans or mahafa. The entrance of the restaurant, located on the mall's canal side is another story, duplicating what the front yard of an old house in the sixties of the last century would have looked like. A life-size camel, horse and monkey sit alongside a vintage blue Land Rover.
The menu offers scores of Emirati dishes — salads, soups and fish and meat cooked in a variety of mouth-watering sauces.
Sambosak, the pastry stuffed with several kinds of vegetables, is a must try. It is delicious, crunchy and light.
A highly recommended dish is nadhar mashwi — grilled squid seasoned with special spice. It is served with bread and rice.
The food is well-cooked and light, to the extent that it would be difficult to decide when to stop eating.
Equally difficult would be the decision when dessert time comes. The restaurant offers several types of sweets, so it is a good idea if at least three are ordered, as portions are small. Must-tries include "Bobber mixture" (pumpkin pudding), Khabisah (sauteed flour and molasses mixture) and the Baathith (crumbled dates in roasted flour and butter).
Arabic coffee served in traditional cups or tea served in small glasses adds a pleasant final touch.
Though the majority of the diners are Emiratis, there are many foreigners and expatriates including Arabs, westerners and Asians. The restaurant offers late lunches and dinners in a relaxing atmosphere.
"I don't feel I am in Dubai," a diner said while enjoying her lunch, in reference to the fast pace of life in the city. "When I go to other restaurants, I feel I am there for eating, and I see people eating quickly and leave. But here, I feel I am relaxed and I see people taking there time in eating and chatting."
