No news is good news

Al Sondos Suites by Le Meridien, Dubai News Café

I'd always wanted to visit News Café. More for its name than anything else, really.

I thought of a coffeeshop bustling with people, discussing current affairs and hot gossip. I pictured newspapers rolling off the press with screaming headlines.

All hyped up myself, I rushed in for lunch one public holiday. And realised, instantly, the folly of assumptions.

News Café does not encourage any hype. Very laid back that afternoon, it offered me a lunch buffet for Dh85 that I was very glad to pass.

The hot dishes I could count on the fingers of my right hand. The cold pizza slices didn't tempt me.

The lady cooking fresh pasta wasn't quite sure what she could make for me, so I said no thank you.

So it was with great relief that I turned to the menu. I found a nice-ish selection of soups, salads, sandwiches, pasta, risotto, meat and fish main courses. We wanted a proper lunch, so went in straight for the main courses.

My Kadai Jhinga was good, a rich curry of shrimps, tomatoes, onions and capsicum.

I felt the shrimp was a bit overcooked, but I still enjoyed it. I had it with a some saffron rice, a papadum and pickle, but sorely missed the mango chutney.

Plate and palate

My companion also chose rice, but the Italian version. His seafood risotto was filled with mussels, clams, shrimps and bits of hammour, octopus and crab.

He liked his roast rack of lamb better. The meat was tender, infused with crushed herbs, and served with a side order of veggies and a cheesy gratin of potato. Everything sat happily on the plate and palate.
My Szechwan prawns were big and fried, but a little bland.

Our children, meanwhile, had turned down the pizza and eaten the golden fish fingers.

And then came dessert - the best part of the meal. My chocolate fondant had a rich, warm heart that simply oozed goodness. I loved it with the cold vanilla ice-cream and licked the bowl clean.

The girls had big bowls of vanilla and chocolate ice-cream and gave them a double thumbs-up.

The service was reasonable if slightly off-hand, the portions good, the price just about okay.