|
|
|
|
|
 |
|
| Abu
Dhabi, U.A.E |
|
 |
|
Society - Extraordinary
May - 2011 |
|
6
Stars & 5 Stripes
Cuisine & Service |
|
 |
|
The Ultimate Award:
Seven Stars and Stripes® |
|
|
|
| It’s a customary offering of Abu Maan dates and
fragrant spiced coffee that greets all who come to eat at
Mezlai
Restaurant (CLICK HERE) at the
Emirates
Palace. It is evident that this being the first restaurant in the world
featuring Emirati Heritage cuisine, all persons who enter are considered guests
and welcomed in this traditional way. Standing while enjoying this welcome
treat is not an option and you are encouraged to sit and relax in a comfortable
nook of cushy Bedouin style sofas and pillows.
You’ll
notice the walls (CLICK HERE) adorned with Bedouin Kunjah knives with their
peculiar angular shape as well as palm fiber baskets, mats and typical pyramid
shaped covers that desert people used to protect food from flies. |
|
| Other objects such as
a timeworn millstone and a fresco depicting desert life from the beginning are
proudly on display, as it seems there is a resurgence of Emirati pride in their
almost forgotten roots. After all, it is not easy to call to mind visions of
dromedaries drinking at oases when looking at the Emirates Palace from the
beachfront or the skyline of the cities of Abu Dhabi or Dubai. |
|
|
|
|
| The tradition continues after a brief pause for the
welcome
refreshments (CLICK HERE) and as you walk into the restaurant past window
treatments resembling desert tents you are seated on furniture with design
elements that evoke a sense of Arabic geometric patterns and shapes. It is
obvious that Kempinski management had spent a lot of time considering every
last detail of Emirati pride of their history, which although unique is often
overshadowed by their larger neighbor Saudi Arabia. An open kitchen, spotless
and modern is the focal point for all to see and a team of 12 chefs is under
the leadership of Executive Chef Ali Salem Ebdowa, a man with extensive
experience in the cuisine of the Arabian Peninsula and the Middle East.
|
|
 |
|
| Mezlai
Restaurant - Cuisine |
|
|
| Upon being seated we are presented with a typical
refreshing Emirati beverage of pineapple-passion fruit juice with pomegranate
seeds along with some dipping sauces made of mashed eggplant, onions, garlic,
lemon and tahini (sometimes called Baba ghanoush) and Hummus, a
puree made with chickpeas, garlic, lemon and tahini. We relished this lite
snack with artisanal breads, including Emirati Rgag bread wonderfully
produced by Executive Pastry Chef / Master Baker Josef Teuschler who handles
the baking for all the restaurants at the Emirates Palace. |
|
|
|
|
Emirati cuisine
features seafood as a mainstay and being surrounded by the waters of the
Arabian Gulf, it is easy to see why.
Shark
Velute with Garlic, Saffron and Cream (CLICK HERE) didn’t quite tell
the whole story from the menu description until the dish was presented at the
table. A rather large plump mussel garnished with delicate strands of garlic
chives, arrived sitting atop tender white morsels of shark meat. |
|
|
| The server then began to pour a silky smooth stream of
velouté sauce, golden yellow and one of the four ‘mother
sauces’ of international cuisine. The velvety stream continued until the
shark meat was covered and the mussel was left above the liquid as if it were
an Emirati Shasha, a traditional fishing vessel
floating
atop a golden sea (CLICK HERE). More local cuisine including Grilled
Lobster with Calamari and Shrimp proved to be juicy and plump with
delicious caramelized grille marks decorating all exposed meaty sections
evenly. |
|
| This was followed by
the Bedouin specialty of Lamb Shoulder ‘Medfoun’ consisting of
marinated and roasted milk-fed lamb, topped with a thick compote of chickpeas,
garlic and tomatoes and seasoned with aromatic spices |
|
 |
|
| Mezlai Restaurant - Cuisine |
|
|
|
| Next came two of my absolute favorite sweets for
dessert; a crepe-style pancake of saffron, cinnamon and cream cheese honey
orange sauce called Shebab, and Betidha, made as a sort of date,
saffron and cinnamon cookie sandwich filled with fresh cream. With awesome
treats like that it would make it a lot easier to live out in the desert for a
while. We compliment Chef Ali for his adherence to the traditional cooking
techniques and recipes of the historical peoples of the Emirates as modern
times tend to overshadow the past before these special rituals can be saved.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
by Edmund & Thorsten Buehrmann
Editor: John
Lomitola
Editor-in-Chief: Ingrid Lemme |
|
| © 2011 ~ Seven Stars and Stripes,
Inc. |
|
