DUBAI The holy month is upon us finally and a great place to end your fast this Ramadan is the Kempinski Hotel Mall of the Emirates where an air-conditioned marquee on the terrace of Olea – the popular Levantine restaurant - has been set up to welcome up to 300 diners. The dulcet tunes of a live Qanun, the popular Arabic stringed zither with a narrow trapezoidal soundboard and a stunning dusk-time ambience, as I saw at a pre-Ramadan iftar last week, gives this place the perfect Arabesque charm.
The real deal however is the buffet. Made up of popular dishes from Jordan, Lebanon, Cyprus, Palestine, Syria and Turkey, it truly is a celebration of Olea’s Levantine heritage. From jallab to qamar al din there’s a range of traditional drinks, but make a start with one of their traditional soups such as chicken freekeh, a Jordanian green wheat soup with chicken, or a Turkish lentil soup along with their hot mezzes like lamb makanek, fried kebbeh and samak bezre. While the ever popular Hommous and moutabel and the usual favourites like modardara, basterma, shanklesh and tabbouleh make up their line-up of cold mezzes, best enjoyed with a choice of oven-baked Arabic bread or Manakesh – filled with cheese, chili-cheese and zaatar-cheese.
There’s an elaborate list of main courses as well, but one of their signature items remains the mansaf lahem, a lamb dish from Jordan cooked in dried yoghurt and served with rice and flatbread and garnished with almonds, pine nuts and spices. You can’t miss the imposing lamb ouzi as well - a traditional iftar offering of a whole baby lamb with fragrant oriental rice. If that’s not enough meat-wise, then there’s more on offer in their mixed grill comprising shish tawok, shish kebab and lamb Kofta.
Do spare some appetite for their desserts – featuring gems like soft kunafa, a levantine cheese pastry soaked in a sugary syrup and osmalliah, the crispy baked vermicelli item topped with orange blossom clotted cream, rose petal jam and roasted pistachios. Mountains of delicately arranged baklawas and a chocolate fountain complete a fascinatingly sweet story whose highlight is the Lebanese halawat al jibn that roughly means ‘sweetness of the cheese’.
We recommend: mansaf lahem, lamb ouzi, mixed grill, halawat al jibn
Details:
Meal for two: Dh350 (soft and traditional beverages)
Location: The Kempinski Hotel Mall of the Emirates
To book this iftar, contact: 04-409 5999
Timings: sunset until 9pm
Santo Sundays timings: 6.30pm – 11.30pm
Ratings:
Ambience: 5
Food: 4
Price: 4
Overall: 4
