How Dubai mum and mother-in-law duo created a healthy fast-food brand with homemade twist and fresh ingredients

Purple dimsums, or mouthwatering pizzas? Perhaps a jackfruit bahnmi, which involves bell pepper, mango and Thai red chilli in a cosy baguette with some spicy mayonnaise dip and coriander.

How

Maybe some sweet treats with jaggery, and that will taste just as good.

No, this isn’t a delirious ramble; it’s what you start considering after seeing the range of Dubai-based Dhwani Maheshwari’s creative and coloured dishes that she curated with her mother-in-law.

And in case you’re still thinking about the brightly purple dimsums: They’re not artificially coloured. They’re real.

Fast food just got better and healthier. How?

A family passion-project

A little quick-thinking, a dash of creativity, and a genuine love for eating what you enjoy—just in a way that doesn’t leave you feeling guilty afterwards. That’s the spirit behind Dip Dash Restaurant and cafe, Al Barsha, a homegrown Pan-Asian food brand created by Maheshwari a former HR professional, and her mother-in-law.

The idea came to life shortly after she moved to Dubai in 2019. “Life was all about my children,” she recalls. Like many worried parents, she noticed their increasing preference for junk food—and a disinterest in traditional Indian meals. Instead of battling them at the dinner table, Maheshwari got curious.

Is there an actual possibility of making fast food that’s delicious…and good for you?

That question became the spark behind Dip and Dash, a concept blending the soul of Asian cuisine with the integrity of clean eating.  Maheshwari modestly explains, “I don’t have culinary experience and neither am I a chef. I just wanted to make good fast food that’s healthy.”  

Maybe you don’t need to be a professional chef to start something of your own. Perhaps, you just need to love food and get a little creative.

A kitchen-born brand

Sometimes, an idea and dreams of delicious outcomes is all it takes. And, there’s unbridled joy and pride as Maheshwari recalls the days of planning the restaurant. Her story begins at home, where she and her mother-in-law decided to come up with the concept of making healthy food, dips and sauces from fresh ingredients, without feeling the need to rely on any market-based products.  “The dips were all curated by her,” explains Maheshwari, explaining the restaurant’s name

From tomato sauce made by boiling fresh tomatoes and adding their own touch of basil, to hand-ground curry pastes, everything at the restaurant is in-house. “We never relied on store-bought sauces,” she says. Even crowd-pleasers like pizza got a healthy twist, with millet and multigrain flour bases, tomato basil dip instead of sauce, and tofu replacing cheese for a completely vegan option.

Reinventing the familiar

Maheshwari and her mother-in-law played chemists in the kitchen, testing, tweaking, and transforming everyday dishes. There’s the paneer tikka sushi, for instance—a mash-up that nods to both Indian and Japanese influences.

Or their Asian-style hummus: pumpkin-based with avocado salsa and chilli oil. Instead of white-flour noodles, you’ll find buckwheat, udon or rice noodles on the menu. Burgers come with a tofu patty that’s so flavourful, even kids love it. And their bánh mì? Yes, also made from scratch.

Finding a team that cooks with heart and soul

The early days weren’t easy. “We started with a team of four,” Maheshwari says. “They weren’t culinary chefs either, but I just wanted people who knew how to cook and loved food.” It’s that same love that’s baked into the food, be it home or the restaurant, where fast food isn’t something to feel bad about, but something to look forward to.

It became a family effort, and her children named the dishes on the menu. So, you’ll see names such as  ‘Better bitter melon’, and ‘Hello Pomelo’ and ‘Wow Bao’, adding to a rhythmic tune for the menu.

So, maybe you don’t need a fancy degree to start a restaurant. Maybe you just need a craving to do things differently, and a belief that food, even fast food, can bring some colour to your life.

The lesson?

As Maheshwari says, fast food doesn't have to be unhealthy, greasy, or guilt-inducing. With a little imagination and a whole lot of heart, it can be vibrant, nourishing, and made from real ingredients that do your body good. It’s not about giving up on flavour or fun—it’s about redefining what convenience looks like on a plate. Fast food, when made thoughtfully, can be just as wholesome as a home-cooked meal, sometimes, even better. And maybe that’s the future of food: quick, colourful, and consciously made.