Dubai Ramadan Iftar Review: Mizaan at the H Hotel Dubai

I had visited The H Hotel once for the University of the Arts London’s alumni and Dubai short courses event at the uber cool Okku restaurant and lounge. You can read all about that event here. Yesterday however, I was back to The H Hotel Dubai for a different type of socializing. Me and my friend Lianne had gone there to check out the Ottoman inspired Iftar at Mizaan all day dining restaurant.

The H Hotel is located at the unique address: One Sheikh Zayed Road. So you can’t miss it as it’s the first property building on the road. Although I must admit that me and my friend actually missed the hotel while we were coming out from a parallel back street! but eventually found our way and arrived just in time for Iftar.

The Iftar buffet at Mizaan includes contemporary Ottoman and Arabic signature dishes. With a number of those dishes prepared by Celebrity Chef Silvena Rowe from the BBC Food show Saturday Kitchen.

Karkade (Hibiscus Tea) served in a unique style

Salad Buffet

There were two salad buffets available at the Iftar. One had a selection of Western salad options and the other included a variety of fresh Middle-Eastern salads and mezzas, such as the usual hommos, motabbal and others. But what was remarkably unique were the many variations of the labneh bites. These were mixed with Sumac spice, Zaatar, pistachio, and black seeds to name a few!

The Mizaan Iftar buffet had a good variety of main course options for both vegetarians and meat-lovers alike. If you’re a seafood fan, you won’t be disappointed either. As there was a spicy Hammour fish fillet dish and grilled jumbo prawns on display. I loved the combination of Moroccan tagines (chicken and vegetable options) next to other signature Arabic dishes (lamb ouzi). And best of all, everything served was cooked to perfection with great attention to detail and culinary quality and authenticity.

Desserts

You could choose from a selection of gourmet dates, traditional Arabic sweets, or the more popular Western desserts.

Entertainment: Live Arabic Band

After our superb Iftar, we headed to the Majlis area to have our coffee and tea while listening to the wonderful Arabic tunes played by the two piece band in the lobby.

Iftar Buffet Cost

The Mizaan sumptuous Iftar costs AED 180 per person. But since we had the Entertainer voucher, we only had to pay for one Iftar and got the second one as complimentary 😀

Conclusion

I personally have found the Iftar at The H Hotel Dubai as one of the best Iftars in town. Considering the quality level of the food served, the variety of the buffet selections, the friendliness of the staff, and the entertainment and ambiance. I would love to go back to this Iftar next year and experience it all over again 🙂

Have you been to any Ramadan Iftars or Suhoors this year? If so, which ones and how would you rate your experience?

That’s it for our Iftar reviews for this year. But stay tuned to our page for another type of review coming soon!

Till then, enjoy the rest of the holy month. Whether you are observing the fast or not 🙂

Dubai Ramadan Iftar Review: Abd El Wahab The Fisherman

I must admit that it was a strange day full of awkward moments and situations for both me and my expat friend! Walking towards the newly opened Abd El Wahab The Fisherman restaurant at Pier 7 in Dubai Marina felt like a competition of who had more weird stories that day.

I couldn’t wait to tell her about my – hair salon appointment gone mad – story while she was showing me the cat bites on her foot! yes, it was one of those days when nothing seems to be going right I guess.

Despite our frantic and manic Monday stories, we still managed to have a great time at Abd El Wahab and were also rewarded with freshly prepared sea bass fish for our main courses. In addition to an extra fish that we couldn’t dream of having because we were simply too full.

My friend thought that the food served was enough to serve three more people. And was amazed at how our table was completely full of a spread of delicious Lebanese mezza plates.

The restaurant has a nice view of the Dubai Marina skyline…

Iftar Menu

The Iftar at Abd El Wahab The Fisherman comprises of a set menu that includes Ramadan drinks, soup, Lebanese Mezza, Main course, and Dessert. For the main course, you get to choose between a plate of mixed grills or a daily dish. Today’s daily dish was “kharoof mahshi”.

Since my friend is vegetarian and can only eat seafood, and since we were both looking forward to trying the seafood at this new Lebanese seafood eatery, we asked the supervisor if we could have fish for our main course instead of the grills or daily dish. To our surprise, we not only got two sea bass pieces of fish for our mains, they even served us an additional fish 😀

Lebanese Mezza at its best at Abd El Wahab The Fisherman

If they could work on enhancing one thing, what would that be?

My friend was beyond shocked when a waiter took away her starter plate while she was still eating her hummos! throughout our Iftar, the servers seemed to be in a rush to clear our plates or the table, bring in the next course, or simply offer us some refreshing napkins!

I repeat, during Iftar, it is highly important for the servers to take into consideration that us clients have been fasting all day and would need to take our sweet time in eating and taking breaks between courses! It’s even more agitating when you can sense that there is someone watching over your shoulder to see if you are done with your plate, so that they can take it and bring in the next one! It really takes away from the whole – meant to be relaxed – dining (or in this case Iftar) experience!

So please have some mercy on us and let us take down our meal slowly and with ease.

Cost

The Iftar set menu at Abd El Wahab The Fisherman is at 135 AED per person. It includes soft drinks, Ramadan drinks, soup, starters, a main course, desserts and coffee or tea!

Conclusion

After our superb Iftar, we had a short stroll at nearby Marina Mall before sitting down at Cafe Nero to chat. To help us digest our huge Iftar even better, a live band were playing the Oud at the mall’s main lobby. The chilled tunes helped us relax and unwind after a long and unusually awkward day!

Oud Player at the center of Dubai Marina Mall

Random Post: Life in JLT, Dubai

Introduction

Followers of my blog might assume that I live a hassle-free lifestyle and that I’m constantly doing luxurious activities and getting pampered at high end spas or beach clubs. But the truth of the matter is, that there are always two sides to any story. And that’s what this post is all about: The other side of my lavish Dubai lifestyle.

So allow me to use this blog and writing this post as a form of therapy. Since well I need to let it out, and no, telling every person I meet about my noisy neighbors is still not enough relief!

When I first viewed my current studio apartment, I thought it was perfect; it was compact (which meant easy maintenance), it had a balcony with a relaxed view of a lake, it was on a high floor (just like I wanted), it’s within walking distance to the metro station (I don’t drive, so that’s very important for me), and another great selling point to me was this: the building was brand new so no one has stayed in the apartment before me.

There’s one highly significant point that I didn’t notice though, and it makes a great impact especially when you live in a small studio apartment in a building that doesn’t have sound proof walls nor is built using good quality materials. And that point is: the neighbors.

Short History and Facts

When I first moved to the apartment in 2011, there was a Lebanese couple with their toddler staying in the apartment opposite my apartment.
Occasionally, you would hear the kid crying and the mother screaming at the top of her lungs at him. Which lead to more crying by the child.
A year or so ago, the mother had a second baby (girl). So now the crying comes from two kids, and the screaming from one or two parents (depending on who’s around).
Recently, she hired a nanny. But sometimes, she kicks out the kids with the nanny out of the apartment. That’s when they sit in the corridor and the noise or nanny’s singing voice become even more clear.
A previous neighbor of theirs went to their apartment once and asked the lady if she could help her with the little kid. As she felt that “something unusual” was going on in their home.

The amount of negative energy in that house is immense. The only time it’s peaceful and quiet is when they are out or if it’s very late and the kids have gone to sleep! most of the time, I have my radio switched on, but as soon as I turn it off, I would hear the noises of the mother shouting at her kids or the kids crying and screaming.

I do tend to work from cafes on most days of the week, but it’s nice to stay in and relax at your home every once in a while. Well, guess what? I can’t do that now! so I have to keep myself and my schedule fully occupied in order to spend more time outdoors than at my own home!

OK honestly I do that mostly because I also need to be out there all the time since I’m still building my career and my blog and everything. But if I had a proper desk at my place and a quiet atmosphere, then I wouldn’t have to keep looking for new wired cafes to go work at!

I’m not an expert in parenting or motherhood, but isn’t it common sense that when you scream at a child from the top of your lungs in a hysterical tone of voice (and possibly use other forms of abuse), they will only cry harder and continue crying for a longer period of time?

I mean hasn’t she figured that out by now? I think for her own health and sanity, she should try other ways of disciplining her children and making them behave the way she wishes.

So while I am getting ready for my next stress-relieving massage treatment, glamorous dinner, or lazy day at a posh beach club, I would hear the ongoing disturbing noises from my disrespectful and shabby neighbors. Or more recently, the maid’s enchanting melodies of ABC or Twinkle Twinkle Little Star!

What does the future hold?

My rent ends next year in April, and when I told a friend about my noisy neighbors and that I plan to just renew my tenancy for this year, she was shocked and said: “and you will tolerate it all this time?”

Well, let me just say that I have a high tolerance for agitating and irritating situations and people. Since I have dealt with a good number of them my entire life.

I know that I’m looking forward to moving to another building next year. Hopefully to a one-bedroom that will save me any new drama or noisy neighbor surprises. What I’m not looking forward to though is the hassle of moving to another place, with all of my furniture, kitchen appliances and of course, personal belongings. And the cherry on top of it all is this:

I have to do it all by myself.

Final Thoughts

Are some of us destined to a lifetime of suffering? sometimes, it seems that we can’t escape from bad situations or people no matter how hard we try to avoid them or cut them out of our lives. Maybe we tend to attract challenging situations on a regular basis. Which means that we are constantly growing and learning and developing into more mature, wise and compassionate human beings. After all, suffering does make you more humane and tolerant of others.

The next time you see me in a negative or down mood, don’t ask the reason behind it. It will most probably be my mental neighbors 😀

Dubai Ramadan Tent Review: Emaar Ramadan Tent – “Downtown”

When my expat friend told me that she wanted to try a traditional Ramadan Iftar, I wasn’t sure where to take her. I had been to a few Iftars over the course of the three years that I had been living in Dubai. And being someone who always likes to try new things, I was certain that I didn’t want to go to any of the places that I had already been to in previous Ramadans. That’s when I remembered the most recent addition to Dubai’s Ramadan tent scene: Emaar’s Ramadan Tent; also known as “Downtown”.

The spacious glamorously decorated tent is setup across three main seating areas:

Large indoor area, also known as courtyard. This section has regular dining tables and is surrounding the buffet.
Private Majlis; this seating offers a semi-private dining experience with dim lighting and majlis style low seats and tables.
Glass Garden; the seating here is also majlis style. This area offers great views of Burj Khalifa and Downtown Dubai.

Buffet Options

If you are a vegetarian or only eat seafood like my friend, you could be disappointed as most of the main course meals are meat based or contain some type of chicken, beef or lamb. That left very limited options for my friend to take from. Those included pasta, a seafood dish and some vegetables!

However, if you are a meat-lover then you are in for a great treat. Traditional Arabic dishes were served next to International cuisine favorites.

You can expect to see Arabic dishes such as Lamb Ouzi, Chicken Muloukhia, Dawood Basha, Kebba bel laban, and many others.

Entertainment

A talented oud player gave the iftar a chilled and relaxed ambiance by playing classical Arabic tunes. This added a cool vibe to the whole Iftar experience at this elegantly decorated tent.

What Needs Enhancement

Despite the great food and ambiance at this modern tent, the service towards the end of the iftar was agitating!

Ten minutes before they were going to close the Iftar (it ends at 8:30), the waiter informed us that they will be removing the food trays from the buffet at 8:30. My friends and I agreed that an hour and 15 minutes is not enough time to eat a three course meal (especially after fasting the whole day). This lead to me rushing into my dessert plate right after I finished my main course. Resulting in a bad stomach ache afterwards and having difficulty to walk straight! 😀

Another offensive gesture that the waiters did was bringing the check to our table without us asking for it! They were pretty much in a rush to get us out of the place as soon as possible and were not attempting to hide it! It seemed like they had to clear the table quickly to make it ready for the next batch of clients coming for Suhoor at the tent. We all understand that this is a business in the end of the day, but customer service makes all the difference in any dining experience.

Tip

Don’t miss out on the apple crumble tart! It’s simply divine!

Price

Iftar Buffet costs 170 AED per person.

For Bookings

You can send a private message to their Facebook Page, since the lines are usually busy.

https://www.facebook.com/DowntownDubai

Personal Tip

The best thing that we did after our rushed Iftar was to walk all the way to Dubai Mall. That really helped me feel better after my bad stomach ache, and I would strongly suggest that you do the same!

Dubai Professional Photographer Recommendation: Yasir Saeed Photography

I can’t recall the last time I had my picture taken by a professional photographer. But I think it was around 15 years ago at my last year of high school for the graduation ceremony 🙂 Fast forward a decade and five years later, I got the opportunity to have my pictures taken again by a professional photographer: Yasir Saeed Photography. Only this time, the setting was different…I was residing in Dubai, doing the photo shoot mainly for my blog and online profiles, and most importantly; I didn’t have to worry about the veil messing up my hair as I wore it to get to my photo shoot location when I was in Saudi in the late ’90s 🙂

Another significant variation between the two shoots that I must mention is the fact that I had my pictures taken by a male photographer. I found it so incredibly easy to connect with Yasir Saeed. As he too grew up in Saudi; more specifically in my hometown. He even lived in the neighborhood that I’m mostly familiar with. Indeed, it’s a small world after all 🙂

I had some ideas for the poses for the shoot, which I jotted down on a piece of paper to show to Yasir. However, since the photographer had the right skills and experience, we didn’t really need to refer to my notes for some inspiration. Instead, the ideas and poses came naturally as we moved from one session to another. All while playing dress up with three of my favorite dresses and with the use of a lovely bright eye mask for some added funky and mysterious style.

The photo shoot session was a lot of fun, especially when I laughed out loud at myself and my failed attempts in replicating the poses that Yasir was suggesting to me 😀

If you are reading this and thinking any of the following:

I’m not photogenic.
I’m not a natural poser.
I feel camera shy.
I always look bad in pictures.

Rest assured, that you won’t have anything to worry about with Yasir Saeed Photography. As he won’t put any pressure on you to pose or act in a certain way in front of the camera. On the contrary, he will allow you to just be your natural self and do whatever poses you like. The whole photo session atmosphere was so relaxed and chilled, that anyone would quickly get used to the camera lens and start creating their own photo portraits using their imagination 🙂

Whether you are looking to take some spontaneous and fun shots of yourself for personal use to frame in your home, or you would like to update your LinkedIn, web site, or social network profile photos for business use and self-branding purposes, look no further than Yasir Saeed Photography. His great talent, unmatched skills, and immense passion for what he does are widely evident in the photos he produces.

Have a look at some of the photos from our amusing, exciting and ultra cool photo shoot session…(contact details at the end of the post).

Contact:

Web site: http://yasirsaeedphotography.com/

Facebook Page: https://www.facebook.com/YasirSaeedPhotography

Contact Yasir Saeed and get ready for an exciting and amazing photography session experience! I personally can’t wait to do a second photo shoot with Yasir when the weather cools down in Dubai and we can get creative outdoors 🙂

Giveaway # 1 : TWO YAS WaterWorld Day Passes!

We are running a special summer season giveaway on our blog! We have a pair of day passes to YAS WaterWorld in Abu Dhabi to give away to one lucky reader.

The details are as follows:
How would you like to visit the UAE’s largest and newest water park for a fun-filled day of exciting rides and thrilling attractions?
Undefined Declarations is giving one lucky winner a pair of day passes to YAS WaterWorld Abu Dhabi!

Note: Entrants must be residents of the UAE and must be able to collect the prize from Dubai.
Good Luck!

All You need is To Follow the Instructions Below

Career Life: Barajeel Bloggers Lounge Meetup :)

Let me start by giving you a short history about my meetup.com story. Before living in Dubai, I didn’t know what meetup was. A few friends that I met in Dubai told me about it and were suggesting that I join the site to meet new people and make new friends. But since I was and still am on a journey of changing careers and trying to become financially independent, meeting new people and making new friends wasn’t exactly at the top of my priority list. Thankfully, I find it easy to meet new people and make friends without needing to join a social networking site for that.

Then, I read about The Dubai Writers’ meetup group in a magazine and decided to join them and attend their meetups! You can read about that here. My meetups with that group didn’t last for long though. And since then, I haven’t joined or attended another meetup.

That changed today when my dear friend from the blog What I Just Love told me about the Barajeel Bloggers Lounge meetup group. Which is a newly launched group created to bring together bloggers from the city of Dubai in an effort to exchange ideas and discuss blogging tips and tools.

It was my first meetup with the group. And I must say that we had a very interesting and engaging discussion. We all had different ideas to share, and everyone was happy to contribute and talk about their personal blogging experience. Meetups are always a great opportunity to meet like-minded people who share your passions, interests, goals and aspirations.

Honestly, I look forward to our next meetup and I would recommend this meetup to any bloggers in the area who are interested in sharing and discussing ideas.

I must admit, that although It may have taken me a while to learn the right way to do things in an international city like Dubai, I’m glad that I have found the path eventually. I’m also greatly thankful to the Universe and GOD for bringing the events and people that are relevant to my goal closer to me. And for constantly reminding me that I’m not alone in this challenging, yet fun and exciting ride.

If you are a blogger who is interested in joining this meetup group, go to the following link and join us!

http://www.meetup.com/Barajeel-Bloggers-Lounge/

Dubai Spa Review: Tips and Toes

First, I would like to wish all our Muslim readers a blessed and peaceful Ramadan. I hope that you are trying to take things at a slower pace like we are. And maybe you can take some time off to pamper yourself and treat your body for a relaxing and detoxifying massage.

Today, I headed to Tips and Toes salon at Dubai Media City to try out their new Rattan Foot Reflex treatment.

Summer Promotion

The spa is offering a 30% discount on all full-priced services booked between 9 am to 3 pm throughout July.

What is a Rattan Foot Reflex treatment?

I was told by my massage therapist that foot reflexology has originated from China. And of course is practiced all across the globe. In China, hot stones are used in the foot reflexology. Which is unfortunately not available at this salon. The Rattan Foot Reflex is a foot reflexology treatment where rattan sticks are used to massage the feet instead of the hands!

The therapist alternates between two rattan sticks during the treatment. A short, small stick is used to target the pressure points on the sole of the foot. While another long stick is used on the side of the foot, and held against the bones. It’s also used on the lower half of the leg in a massaging motion.

The therapist explained to me that extra care must be taken when using the stick to avoid injury. So the person doing the massage must hold the foot with the other hand.

Facts

Foot reflexology can be done on a daily basis. Anyone can do it for themselves by using their hands to exert pressure on the points matching the different body organs.
At first instance, the rattan treatment can be painful on some points such as the tips of the toes. So I must add that this treatment is not for the fragile souls! I would say it suits anyone who loves strong massages that use hard pressure. Even when a solid object is used to apply that strong pressure.
The pain associated with the rattan treatment pressure motion will lessen with regular massage sessions.

Benefits of foot reflexology

Improves blood circulation.
Reduces stress and body tension.
Strengthens the immune system.
Cleanses the body.
Purifies the body from toxins.
Helps to regulate periods and relieves other hormone-related issues.
Makes the body feel lighter.

My Therapist

I was pleased to get the treatment done with a Balinese therapist. She’s actually based in the salon’s “Greens” branch, but was at the Dubai Media City salon for a temporary period. So if you want to get a massage done with her, just call up “The Greens” branch and ask for the Balinese massage therapist. She’s the only one 🙂

Treatment Cost

The regular price for the Rattan Foot Reflex treatment is 150 AED for 40 minutes. But I only paid 105 AED since I booked the appointment between 9 am to 3 pm. So I got a 30% discount off of the regular price.

Contact

To find the nearest Tips and Toes branch, check their website at the following link:

http://www.tipsandtoes.com/

I decided to get a polish change as well!

Undefined Declarations is Moving to a New Home!

Dear faithful readers and followers,

My blog will be moving to a new domain name soon. As you all know, it’s essential to have a (.com) domain name in order to be taken seriously in the business world. And although this blog has been standing strong all this time without any sponsorship of any kind – and will continue to do so with your support – this step must be taken sooner or later for the blog to be more successful and reach a greater amount of readers.

I promise that it won’t be long. The new site should be up and running within a week or so. You can also look forward to more interesting reviews and posts.

If you liked what you’ve been reading so far, then I would like to ask you to follow my Facebook Page by “liking” the page on the following link:

https://www.facebook.com/UndefinedDeclarations

That way, you will stay updated with my news, and be in the know once the new site is launched.

I also have a private photo shoot scheduled for tomorrow and I will be posting the photos from that shoot on my Facebook Page. This will give you a closer look of who is the author behind this blog and a short bio about myself will be shared along with the photos.

Thank you to every single one of you for supporting this page and I look forward to seeing you soon.

Love,

The Rebellious Saudi Diva

The Carnival of Weekend Wanderings – Undefined Declarations Edition

First of all, I must apologize for the delay in writing and publishing this post. My hosting date is today, but I think I should have posted earlier in the day. But when you get used to the “working from home -or in my case – cafe blogger lifestyle”, you can’t help but organize your daily schedule to fit yourself and yourself only! And when you have a lot of things running in your mind and phone calls that you need to make, then writing this post comes right after lunch 🙂

So in between calling up the exam center to inquire about my IELTS test this weekend, preparing for a private professional photo shoot scheduled for next week, booking my salon hair appointment for the shoot, and making sure that I regularly update my Facebook Page, I present to you my personal edition of the Carnival of Weekend Wanderings.

I was first introduced to the carnival by the gracious blogger Grace from Sandier Pastures, who is currently on holiday (more of a so-called holiday as you will learn from her most recent post). This carnival simply gives you insight into what other bloggers have been up to in their weekends, and shares their fun weekend stories.

The Animated Nomad tells us his story of how he met the musical artist Noush Like Sploosh at The Lime Tree Cafe in Dubai. Impressive I must say! You can read all about it here.

Sheila from Shoutingwind.Com shares with us her story of visiting Atlantis’s popular Aquaventure water park in a unique trip before the park had actually opened its doors for the public!

Newly launched site Dubai Hipster brings you a review of a cool sushi eatery in Dubai. This blog is your essential guide to getting absolutely anything done in Dubai.

If anyone of you is planning a trip to the West Coast of the U.S., then check out Sojustnice‘s review of a recent trip to Venice and Santa Monica. The photos posted in that page made me want to go there now!

For vintage fashion lovers, The Heritage Studio; a blog about all things vintage brought to life in a contemporary light, tells us their unique story behind a rare Italian vintage high-end statement bag!

Moving on to another story in another continent, fashion and lifestyle blogger What I Just Love shares with us her exciting business trip to Tanzania and Kenya! Giraffes,baby elephants? she’s got it all covered 🙂

Wondering about what Baku – Azerbaijan’s capital city is like? The Travel Manor has just made a recent trip to the city and has documented the most interesting bits of his trip here.

If you are planning a weekend away from the hustle and bustle of Dubai city life but don’t wish to go too far, The REAL Geordie Armani has the solution! read all about her weekend stay-cation at the wonderful Palm Tree Court Resort and Spa.

Another Dubai hotel review courtesy of Her Perfect Black Dress brings you all that you need to know if you’re planning a stay at Dubai modern four-star property Media One Hotel. Check out her honest review here.

Confused about what souvenirs to get for your family and friends from the UAE? The Global Gazette gives you some great tips on what to get when souvenir shopping in the capital.

Summer is the season of weddings, and what better way than to read a poetic post about a June wedding party? it’s brought to you by Art and Ginger Chai Conversations.

Last but not least, Well Traveled Pet; a blog about dog-friendly places, restaurants and travel products shares with us a camping trip post all the way from St. Petersburg, Florida.

I hope that our friends’ weekend stories got you inspired to plan your next weekend! Until the next carnival, have a wonderful weekend and happy blogging!

Love,

The Rebellious Saudi Diva ~ Undefined Declarations