TBK Eats 2- The Arabian Tearooms at Al Fahidi and EXPO 2020

         The Instagram spot outside the Arabian Tea rooms back in 2021

Back in July 2021 I stayed at the Arabian Courtyard hotel in Bur Dubai unfortunately had breakfast in their Phoenix restaurant on the first day. They had such delights as "canned fruit" ( yes, the label really said that!) , dates, arabic bread and toast. When the waiter saw me searching for something edible he explained the Chef would cook my egg to order and I asked for fried egg. It was swimming in grease and not cooked in the centre and I ate it which resulted on food poisoning. I decided not to have breakfast at the hotel again and set out to find somewhere else. Just down the road at Al Fahidi I found the Arabian Tea Rooms and it became a regular haunt for my friends and I. 

        The inside of the Arabian Tea rooms back in July when it was very quiet

According to one website:

"If you fancy a spot of tea while wandering around the historic Al Fahidi area, look no further. Find a selection of sandwiches, pastries, salads and desserts to go with your beverage of choice, as you soak up the sounds of rustling trees and birds in this leafy courtyard.

Arabian Tea House offers more than 150 different types of tea and drinks, including mint lemonade, or a house blend of black tea with herbs and fruit. There are so many to choose from, you’ll have to come back more than once to get a taste of all the exotic blends.

Sample local culture at Arabian Tea House

A popular eatery among tourists, this cosy spot is also one of the best places in the city to try authentic Emirati cuisine and a piping hot cup of traditional Arabic coffee. Recommended dishes include the regag bread, a tempting slice drizzled with honey and stuffed with egg and cheese, and khabisah, a sweet blend of sautéed flour and molasses.

The atmosphere alone is enough to draw you into this quaint little café, where you can still see the heritage of the old district away from the buzz of the city. The tea house has grown with Dubai, opening five new branches in the UAE and one in Egypt."

Source: https://www.visitdubai.com/en/places-to-visit/arabian-tea-house ( accessed 6,2,22) 

I worked my way through the menu while I was in Dubai tasting such delights as pancakes with maple syrup:

They had a big oven in a special room ( with windows into the restaurant so you could watch the staff making the bread) and many of the dishes like the breakfast Omlette were served with fresh hot Arabic bread. The waiters would come around with baskets of bread and offer extra pieces of bread free of charge as you ate. 

                          One of my favourite healthy breakfasts 

The staff were from many countries and always happy and smiling. As I became a regular they would pass by my table ( even if they were not serving me) saying "welcome back"  or " Nice to see you again" , or " how are you today sir". Each time I left they would say " see you again soon"

 

            I loved their Hummus too, especially with the hot bread

I think one of the reasons I liked the place was because it was so well organised, with different staff wearing different waistcoats. Some would be on reception, greeting people and taking them to the tables including a very sweet lady from Bangladesh and a Phillipino. Others were waiters taking orders, including a very gwapo Pinoy. Then there were table clearers, juice makers, the baker, and the supervisors ( red waistcoats) who patrolled and allocated tasks to anyone not serving . These included folding serviettes, straightening the pictures , feeding the birds etc. It reminded me of my Little Chef days where one of our slogans was " If you have time to lean you have time to clean! " There were 4 budgerigars in two cages in the centre of the restaurant that would tweet away. One was very makulit ( naughty) and kept escaping! But he would only sit in top of the cage and taunt the bird left inside!

They were also very good at promoting themselves and at Eid last year came around with a photo frame and took photos of the customers for their Instagram page like the one above. 

So it was natural that I should return in 2022, because to me the key to being a really good restaurant is to be consistently good over a period of time. John Maxwell talks about 4 levels of leadership and the highest is where you develop new leaders. In 2021 Expo opened and the Arabian tearooms opened a new branch there. Back in August 2021 they were recruiting and training staff for the new location and when I returned in 2022 they had vanloads of staff and food outside the Al Fahidi branch, ready to go to Expo. Joshua and I tried the Expo branch and it was as good as Al Fahidi one and it was in a great location by the Al Wasl dome.

In January the branch in Al Fahidi was full the first time I went. They eventually found me a seat outside. They gave me a menu and I selected some food I liked when I visited before . However the waiter told me I could not have it as they were only serving breakfast.  I looked at my watch having had my breakfast at IBIS Al Barsha at 6am and now 6 hrs. later, at 12 noon , being diabetic, I needed lunch. It reminded me of Kuwait where many restaurants do not serve lunch until 2 pm!  (https://thebritishkabayan.blogspot.com/2020/10/so-did-kuwait-live-up-to-hype-second.html)

A family of 6 sat behind me and after much discussion agreed on their food selection and tried to place their order to be greeted with " We only serve breakfast until 12.30 ". The man said fine then we will order breakfast now ( by then it was 12. 15 ) and then have lunch! 

I wish restaurants would realise they were there to serve customers and give them what they want! I ate my second breakfast quickly and asked for my bill. After some delay and getting so frustrated I got up to go as other people were waiting for my table. Then the angry waiter told me to sit down and they will bring the bill! I stayed standing and was given the bill for the breakfast and lunch of the family of 6 which I declined to pay! I walked out, disgusted , never to return.

As we used to say in our Little Chef days- " You are only as good as your last breakfast!"

I never went back again- a previous regular customer lost!

This is TBK signing out from Dubai as usual with Ingat Palagi and Kita kits Palawan ( and Bahrain)