Hello September. Why celebrate three chefs only when you can have four?
Save the date for a #FourChefsDinner. 29th October. Plus must-try dishes.
I am kicking off the new, busy season with a couple of save the dates 😋
Firstly, my next dining experience will be a #FourChefsDinner - rather than the regular #ThreeChefsDinner. Why not with so much talent to showcase? 29th October. The culinary theme is Iberian, aka a mix of Portuguese and Spanish. If you would like to sign up to the email when the experience is ready to book at the end of this month (and are not already on the dinners database), please pop your email HERE. Venue and chef line-up will be revealed then. Paid subscribers will receive the booking email 24 hours in advance.
Secondly, our next group online call (another paid subscriber perk) is on Monday 23rd September at 6pm UAE time, where you can ask me any foodie questions. If you would like to join, please drop me an email on samantha[at]foodiva[dot]net - and I will send through the Zoom link.
I’ve been eating…
As I constantly play around with my Substack content (agh!), I am tweaking this section of the newsletter to highlight my number one must-try dish from some of my recent restaurant adventures.
Itadaku: Japanese restaurants in Dubai don’t get more authentic than this gem by chef Masaru Sakagami in Wasl Vita mall. Eggplant with sweet yuzu miso, aka Nasu Dengaku from the hot appetiser section. AED48.
Fusion Ceviche: Yes, you should definitely try one of the myriad of ceviches at this bijou Peruvian eatery in JLT, but it would be a crime to skip the beef empanada ‘de la abuela’, aka grandma’s pie. AED30.
La Nina: One of Dubai’s most underrated high-end restaurants. At ICD Brookfield Place, DIFC. Tiger prawns with mini baguette begging to be ripped apart and dipped in sweet Romero pepper and chilli oil. AED115.
Alici: Mr S chose this Italian seafood favourite at Bluewaters for his birthday dinner. A kilo of sea bream baked with cherry tomatoes and olives. Easily feeds three. AED285.
Hawkerboi: South-East Asian hawker stall fare in a licensed JLT venue. Grilled prawns with a curry leaf butter sauce from the charcoal BBQ section. AED60.
Kooya: Food forward Filipino fare by chef JP Anglo in Dubai Marina. The ‘Tapsilog’. Beef tenderloin strips with two sunny-side eggs and garlic rice. Mix together for a textural bomb. AED40.
We hosted a small dinner party chez nous over the summer. I booked French deli Odeon to cater with a ginormous spread of French dishes that I chose from the catering website. As many of you asked for my menu over on Instagram, I am sharing here too.
And a birthday cake order for Mr S. From Palestinian Luma Makhlouf of Lumas Cakes (and Maiz Tacos). Dark chocolate ganache, passion fruit cream, hazelnut cocoa crumble and Swiss meringue butter cream. AED360 (feeds 12).
I’ve been travelling…
Back to the motherland - Cyprus for only a short break, sadly. The summer has been hectic work-wise. My most popular culinary travel guide is now updated here. With Google maps link to a staggering 88 restaurants and boutique hotels here - and, randomly, a link to the east coast beach filmed for Find Me Falling on Netflix!
A reminder…
If you’ve been travelling this summer and missed this promo from the July newsletter - Le Clos, the fine wine arm of MMI, has opened its first domestic store in Dubai, outside the airport! At Montgomerie Golf Club in Emirates Hills staffed by a WSET-qualified team with zero wine snobbery. They are offering FooDiva readers an exclusive 15% discount for multiple visits at this wine boutique AND the airport stores until 30th September. Simply mention the promo code FOODIVA15 at the check-out till.
And before I sign off…
Last week marked a milestone for me. My 25th Dubai anniversary. I landed in this city I have long called home on the 27th August 1999. So I have lived here longer than my birth country of Cyprus! At the age of 26, I swopped my fashion PR hustle for a comms job here with Tony Lewis’ agency Total Communications. He kindly took me for dinner on my first (or second?) night to Alamo, the golden oldie Tex-Mex joint at Dubai Marine Beach Resort that is no more. My Instagram poll showed that 59% remember Alamo. Heartening to see my following over there comprised of so many old-schoolers like me! Hands up if you know what I’m talking about.
I’ll leave you with the earliest photo of me here that I could dig out from my store room. In the desert, at Al Maha, when my parents visited a couple of months after I arrived.
Constant wishes for a free Palestine 🇵🇸🍉🕊️
FooDiva. x
If you’ve recently joined my Substack tribe, you may have missed…
My welcome launch newsletter.
A special edition newsletter in support of all things Palestinian.
Two opinion pieces: Michelin Dubai guide & MENA 50 Best Restaurant Awards.
Recent restaurant reviews: Osteria FunkCoolio; Rare.
My Where Restaurateurs Eat monthly column.
A couple of culinary travel guides. Baku, which includes do’s & don’ts of restaurant travel research. How to eat your way round Manila during a typhoon.
Past newsletters: November; December; January; February; March; April; May; June; July.
My 2024 guide to Dubai’s top restaurants. A record 45 homegrown concepts. Paid subscribers also receive a PDF of this guide.
I update My Little Pink Lifestyle Book with new finds every month.
A private one-hour Zoom call with me to pick my brains. More info here for F&B industry enquiries - and here for foodie/ diner queries.
Looking for a gift for a foodie friend? Perhaps consider an annual subscription to this newsletter, breaking news and the added perks. You’ll have my forever love.
Birthday cake game on point.