The FOOD CLIQUE

Here's the story of the quest of four foodies on a mission to find the best eateries in Abu Dhabi. Brace yourselves. *Do you have a special meeting, get together or party, and need to know the best place to dine or order in for the occasion? Contact us for tailored advice! Our reviews only cover a small percentage of the places that we have tried in Abu Dhabi and we would love to be your personal guide.

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Ramadan Cravings: Part I

Happy Ramadan to all those who are fasting and to those who are not: embrace this month where you'll have even more eating options as everyone is feasting in the evenings!

Our Ramadan Cravings: Part I is going to be about a well known Moroccan restaurant in Abu Dhabi: Agadir. The reason we've chosen Agadir as our first Ramadan spot to have food is that we're sure you'll be wanted authentic arabic food after a long day of fasting, and what better than a delicious tagine or couscous?

One word of caution: do arrive early as it takes quite some time until the food arrives!

Happy Fasting,

T

Agadir, Westin Abu Dhabi Golf Resort & Spa, 02 6169999

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Found Namlait! "White Coffee" has many different flavors of Namlait. They also serve tradional Emirati food with a modern twist 😁🌙 @whitecoffee_ae

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Have you been to AD's newest Italian?

AD's newest italian restaurant that recently opened in Jumeirah at Etihad Towers, (Bice) is located just before the pool facing the sea and Scott's.. We were warmly welcomed by the staff and escorted to the requested table for 4. Starting off, we had the standard favorite italian appetizers Melanzane parmigina and burrata, both were excellent!

    I went for a light main course and ordered the sea bass, which was good.

The others guiltily enjoyed the risotto, which I thought could have been better. 

We ended our goodbye dinner of a good friend with desserts (fondant and tiramisu) with a decaf latte and double shots, which made the experience and sweets even more delightful.

  Until my next review,

  M

  Bice, Etihad Towers, Abu Dhabi

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Catalan's Let Down

Quite disappointed with this one! We had high hopes for this one as it is the first catalonian restaurant in Abu Dhabi! Unfortunately all that we can recommend is the chicken paella..

The bread was so stale, I could hear my fellow cliquer's crunching from the end of the dinner table! Also, our drinks took about 30mins to arrive. The starters, which took a little short of an hour to arrive, were not something that we could come back for.

Of our main courses, what we would definitely recommend would be the chicken paella for two. Very authentic, and full of flavor.

We have high hope for this restaurant and hope that the service and food improves until our next visit.

Until my next review,

T

Catalan, Rosewood Sowwah Island, Abu Dhabi

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The Forge: Best Gratin in Town

You know a restaurant is good if you have an unforgettable experience after only a day of being in service..

We were welcomed with a plate of truffled popcorn, which was quite mild and not overpowering. As for our starters, we tried The Forge Salad which was quite bland and left us a bit hesitant over our main course..

As we were waiting for our Australian Wagyu beef and Black Angus steaks, we were quite entertained as we had to pick from an array of "special knives" to cut through our steaks!

Once the steaks arrived they were perfectly cooked and the green peppercorn sauce was mouthwatering. Now comes the absolutely-mouth-watering-goodpart - the potato gratin. It was sooo goood I can't wait to go back and order 3 sets of gratin sides! The buttered spinach and duck fat roasted baby potatoes were also good, but as long as you also try the gratin!

If you need something sweet after your meal - our favorite dessert on the menu would definitely be the banana foster - yum!!

Until my next review,

T

The Forge Steakhouse, The Ritz Carlton Abu Dhabi, 02-818 8282

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We're back, brace yourselves.

It's been quite a while since our last post, but we assure you we were busy continuing to find the best places to dine in Abu Dhabi!

As we continue our journey of finding the best eateries in AD, don't forget to follow us on other social media platforms:

Twitter: @TheFoodClique

Instagram: Foodclique

Until our next review,

The Food Clique

[foodclique]

Sushi Central

Woohoo another mediocre sushi place in Abu Dhabi.  Sushi Central was satisfactory for a not fancy sushi restaurant.  Our favorite dish was the crab salad; we really enjoyed it and thought it was yummy.  We also enjoyed their Duck Dumplings with Fig Jam.

Unfortunately we weren’t impressed with their sushi.  We understand that it isn’t a fancy sushi place so our expectations shouldn’t be as high, but still we didn’t enjoy it.  I think they could improve their spicy mayo and other sauces that could easily improve the sushi.  We also thought the tempura was average and their desserts were bizarre.  Banana tempura sounds good but it came with a side of “nutella”, that tasted watered down, and it wasn’t appetizing. 

The service was also good.  One of our friends came with us and they noticed he was struggling with the chopsticks so they gave him a clip for them to make it easier.  They were also friendly when ordering and gave off a generally positive attitude, which we have noticed is somewhat rare in Abu Dhabi.

All in all I would come back for the appetizers but nothing else.  This establishment is relatively new so maybe they are still improving.

Until my next review,

C

  Sushi Central, Khaledyah street, 600 520007

http://www.sushicentral.ae/

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Rez B'Haleeb - Souvlaki Heaven!

I've got a feeling Greek food will be our next favorite food obsession! And when it comes to Greek food, you gotta love a good ol' souvlaki!

Rez bel haleeb, a take-away only joint in Al Reef is probably not known to many, unless you live far out in Al Reef! We are however so happy we have found them. They make a mean souvlaki salad that you're sure to enjoy!

We also tried their beef stir fry, burgers and jalepeno poppers. I wouldn't recommend their burgers, but their stir fry was alright/a bit on the heavy side. If you order their large size, be ready to share with at least 3 other people as their portions are mega-sized.

Make sure you call in advance to make your order - this place is packed!! They do offer a delivery service but only for outside AD island orders (Yas Island, Saadiyat, Khalifa A etc). They also do home catering for garden and house parties.

Until my next review,

T

Rez B'Haleeb, Al Reef Arabian Village (near gate 2), Abu Dhabi, 02 586 7111

http://rezbhaleeb.com 

menu: http://www.rezbhaleeb.com/beta/menu.php

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Chicken and less?

Now I want to preface this review with a disclaimer: I hate writing negative reviews.  I hate eating bad food and having to write about it after but unfortunately it has to be done. 

Chicken and More, located on airport road, by Falah Plaza, is a place that didn’t live up to my expectations.  I’m not sure why I was excited to try this place, but I guess it was because a place that has chicken in their name must have good chicken.  The interior of this restaurant, or cafeteria after trying it, has a cool modern interior that I thought could give the classic chicken shwarma a refreshing twist.  I was wrong.  When we ordered we saw them reheating the shwarma to give it to us.  This was an extreme disappointment.  I think this place (interior and location) has immense potential, they just need a drastic menu change.

  Until my next review/hopefully better than this one,

C

  Chicken and More, Al Dhafrah Abu Dhabi, 02 641 4466

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At the shores of Turquoiz

I was more than happy to have dined at this restaurant, where I was doubtful it would be a hit since I had never heard about it, although it's prime location on the white sandy beaches of Saadiyat.

We had a lot of options to choose from, and didn't know what not to recommend! Almost all dishes were perfect, the tempura batter was out of this world (crunchy and delish), the fish and chips was light yet fulfilling and the baked goat cheese was a table favorite.

The staff were super friendly and welcoming! I'd urge you to go along with your best friends and start and early dinner where you can have some fun and feel away from the city even for a little while.

*the dinner was done for a birthday dinner, they accept hosting events and they are very helpful. We ordered our cakes (pistachio passionfruit, and caramelice) from St Regis's Head Dessert Chef Christophe who made two of our new favorite scrumptious cakes..

Until my next review,

A

  Turquoiz, St Regis Saadiyat, Abu Dhabi, 02 4988008

http://www.turquoizabudhabi.com

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International cuisine to please all palettes @ Teatro

Teatro, located in the Park Rotana is a good stop for a reliable restaurant that serves international cuisine. To start we had the eggplant appetizer and the prawn appetizer. We really enjoyed the prawn appetizer and thought the eggplant one was plain.

For main courses we ordered butter chicken and naan which were really good. We were surprised we were able to order such a diverse group of items and still have consistency in quality. We really enjoyed the ambience as well. It was clean, simple and elegant. Definitely recommended to stop in and try out their cuisine. It's also located next to twofour54 so if you don't feel like trekking all the way into Abu Dhabi this is a great place to try. Until my next review, C

Teatro, Park Rotana, Abu Dhabi, 02 657 3333

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Salad Confusion

What do you think when you think salad? You expect to gave a large juicy bowl of green salad. That's not what we got when we ordered from Slices. 

Don't get me wrong - I love their concept and I 100% support UAE homegrown brands. But what I really don't understand are their salads..

When you order a salad at a restaurant, let's say it says: beetroot salad. When you get your salad you expect a salad, as in with other ingredients, not just beetroot. We also ordered a pomegranate salad w/ beef. What we got was a bowl of pomegranate topped w/ beef. I don't understand how that's a salad.

I think perhaps it's more difficult when you're ordering online, because if you're at Slices you can mixed all your "salads" to make a salad, but if you're going to put "salad" on your online menu, we think it should be clear that you can't have it alone!

What we had:

Tuna sandwich

Chicken w/ cranberry sauce sandwich

Brie and cranberry melt 

Rocket salad (rocket with a hint of cucumber)

Beetroot salad (cubed beetroot in horseradish. Who eats a bowl of beetroot in horseradish as a meal!!)

Lentil salad (lentils.)

Greek salad

Broccoli salad

We however applaud for the fresh and organic ingredients that slices uses, but we do hope they're menu becomes more comprehensive.

Until my next review,

T

Slices, Al Maamoura, 02 491 8559

http://www.slices.ae/home @SlicesAE

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The Bakery.

The Bakery is a goodies factory in Dubai that delivers to Abu Dhabi 3 times a week: Sunday, Tuesday & Thursday with a minimum fee of 50DHS but they're sure you'll be above this budget because its pretty expensive.

Until my next review,

M The Bakery, 0552633004

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Our burrata quest continues - Le Deck @ Monte Carlo Beach Club

We did not have high expectations going into Monte Carlo. We thought it would be like any beach club, and weren't sure if the food would be great. We were in for a surprise.

Still on our quest for the perfect burrata, we now give the bragging rights to Monte Carlo - they're burrata was perfect! We loved everything we ordered and particularly like the braised wagyu beef ravioli and the scallops with green apple - divine! You also shouldn't miss out on ordering a side of sweet potato fries, they were also very, very good.

What we had:

Burrata cheese

Scallop w/ pumpkin purée and green apple

Spaghetti 'ala chitarra'

Braised wagyu ravioli

House made pumpkin and amaretto tortellini

Chicken w/ sweet corn purée and popcorn

Sweet fries

Berry salad with frozen yoghurt

Panna cotta

Assiette of chocolate

What we would recommend:

Burrata cheese - best we've had so far

Scallops - cooked to perfection

Sweet fries - yum!

Definitely a place to go to unwind and relax. What's perfect is that Le Deck  has such a chillaxed atmosphere, and it's always refreshing to sit by a pool, and having great food with friends.

Until my next post,

T

Le Deck, Monte Carlo Beach Club Abu Dhabi, 02 6563500

http://www.montecarlobeachclub.ae

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Zaatar goes with Zeit

I left a friend to decide where to have dinner and he took me to his comfort place, Zaatar w Zeit on Salam street (open 24/7!). I noticed that they play various genres of music depending on the time on the day.

When it comes to their desserts, their version of the famous tiramisu is the best I've ever had in Abu Dhabi.

Until my next review,

M Zaatar w Zeit, Al Salam street, 600-522231 www.zaatarwzeit.net

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Camacho - Localized sushi anyone?

If you’re into sushi (which almost everyone in AD is these days) – then you’ve heard about Camacho.

We loved the food, and it would particularly please the typical local palette – as all the sushi was smothered in dynamite sauce.

  If sushi is not your thing, Camacho also serves Italian (which was quite good - we loved the grilled chicken), although I would personally opt for Japanese at Camacho.

A good number of their "best selling" sushis are actually not on the menu, so make sure you ask the manager for all their special sushis ;)

  Until my next review,

T

Camacho, Khalidiyah, close to La Brioche/Choithram, 02 6505600

http://www.camachorestaurant.com

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Peppermill

Having one of the best service I’ve ever experienced in all of Abu Dhabi, peppermill, a new Colonial Indian cuisine in Al Wahda mall’s new extension, is a great place for great Indian food and customer service that will astonish you. 

Despite the trendy interiors, I judged the restaurant based on the demographics of the restaurants customers. It was filled with Indians, who obviously know where to find authentic Indian food.

I started off ordering Mutter Drakash Ki Tikki. ‘’Fine choice’’ the waiter replied and it was indeed, a potato green peas pattie stuffed with grated cheese, nuts and raisins deep-fried. We also tried the tomato soup, marinated chicken and marinated prawns. All were good.

Chicken Biryani was one of our main courses, well seasoned and had just the right amount of spice. We also tried marinated pieces of chicken cooked in creamy tomato gravy that were good too.  We ordered a side of buttery perfectly baked naan to go with the chicken, something we’d recommend doing. 

For desserts we all shared a delicious beautifully presented rasmalai, topped with creamy saffron sauce.

Until my next review,

M

Peppermill, 2nd floor, Al Wahda mall extension, 02 6225586

www.peppermill.me