Category: Food & Drinks

I was going through some of my old bookmarks and found an article I had saved years ago on the backstory of how Elevation Burger came to be in Kuwait. It was written by Ali Ashkanani, one of the local owners of Elevation and it gives an interesting behind the scenes look into the opening of the brand in Kuwait. It’s worth reading and it’s not too long so check it out here.

There is this really great grills restaurant in the Salmiya Co-op mall that’s been there since the early 80s. What caught my attention the first time I saw it a few years ago was the cool-looking vintage sign outside the shop. It’s a really tiny place with just 4 tables and caters mostly to takeaway. They have Lebanese-style kebab and grills and it’s very affordable. The Kebab plate is 1.250 for 5 skewers, and hummus is 500fils.

The reason I’m posting about this place is the other day while having dinner there I realized something. Nearly everyone working there was over 60 years old. The waiter looks like he’s in his late 70s or 80s and the other staff not that far behind. With the new law that was implemented last year deporting expats over 60 without degrees, none of the staff at the place would remain. I thought it was pretty sad since most of them have probably been working there together like a small family since forever. Now because of the new law, they’d all be forced to separate and leave.

Even the chai haleeb guy in the shop across from the grill’s place is over 60 years old and would also have to leave. It’s so upsetting!

All these old staff you see at your favorite old-school restaurants aren’t going to be there for long. So pass by and appreciate them and the experience before it’s too late.

Here’s a feel-good post to cap off the week. A new cafe opened up in Salmiya called 3-12 and it’s run by adults with special needs. The cafe is located on the first floor of Dalal Mall, the same mall as Sky Cinemas and located across Zahra Complex. You can also check them out on Instagram @cafe_312

After picking up a coffee make sure you pass by Kane Mochi and pick up some ice cream.

I don’t recall this place at all and only found out about it recently. It was owned by Mahmoud Alghanim, the same person behind Pizza Italia and Prego and I believe it opened towards the end of the 80s or early 90s. It was located right next to the Kuwait Towers which is why I find it odd that I don’t remember it.

Last week I found this old 80s KDD advert and one thing that struck me about it was the sheer amount of flavors that don’t exist anymore. And, on top of all the missing flavors, turns out KDD had push-up ice cream (back row, right of the Rockets)which I don’t ever recall. Also if you’re wondering about the blue and green colored ice cream sticks in the back, the green is coconut flavored but the blue I’m not sure. You’ll also notice two Columbia flavors, turns out they’re both similar except one doesn’t have the ice cream center.

I’ve been wanting to try the new sugar-free Vimto out of curiosity but I checked in a couple of supermarkets and wasn’t able to find it. Not sure if its sold out or just not carried everywhere but I did find an even healthier version. Liquid launched a new Vimto flavored drink for Ramadan that’s made with real fruits. Their interpretation of Vimto contains red grapes, pomegranate, pear, beetroot and a dash of rose water.

I tried it yesterday and it does taste pretty close to Vimto but obviously less sugary and with more natural flavors. The only downside is that like with all healthy alternatives you’re gonna have to pay a premium. A 300ml bottle costs KD2.250 while a liter costs KD4.950.

If you want to try it out Liquid is available on Deliveroo, Carriage and Talabat. They’re also on Instagram @liquidkwt

I recently found out about a really good Iraqi kebab restaurant in Salmiya which I decided to try out. Iraqi kebab is different from Persian kebab in that it’s generally not as fatty so you don’t have the same strong aftertaste that stays with you the whole day. It’s lighter which is why I prefer it. The restaurant name roughly translates to the “special (or unique) Iraqi kebab restaurant”, and I think they’ve been open since 2016 since that’s when their Instagram account opened up.

It’s a small little place located in the neighborhood that lies between Restaurant Street and Souk Salmiya. I ordered the normal kebab plate which comes with three skewers, grilled tomato and their freshly baked bread. The kebab meat was tender, tasty and didn’t leave any bad aftertaste. The bread which I think is Egyptian or Egyptian style is baked fresh in store.

Two kebab plates and a side of hummus came out to KD5.750. Due to the pandemic dine-in is closed so you’re either gonna have to eat it while it’s nice and hot in the car, or do takeaway. Their Instagram account is @kabab_iraki and here is their location on Google Maps.

KDD just published their Ramadan commercial called “We Love KDD” and I think it’s great (you’re always gonna win me over with nostalgia). If you’re living in the US and want to order KDD Chocolate Milk, check out my previous post here.

Around a week before they closed restaurants in Kuwait for dine-in, 360 Mall opened up their foodhall. A foodhall is similar to a food court except instead of fast-food restaurants they’re more upscale or artisan. I passed by to check the space out and I thought it looked great with a good variety of places to eat at including some brand new places.

Even with dine-in closed it’s still worth passing by it and picking up food to go. The new foodhall is located at the end of the new 360 Mall extension near Ikea and Nike.

Here is a list of all the places open inside the new foodhall, hopefully I didn’t miss anything:

Alto
Apizza
Bakehaus
Bao
Chotto
Doh!
Elate Tea
GoFresh
Junas
La Maison Du Fromage
Nabat
Natureland
November Co
Off The Menu
Prime Cuts
Raha Stone Mill
Soucolat
Taboonat
Twarrad
Texture
Vol 1
Wachamean
Woop!

The luxury hotel Waldorf Astoria is expected to open towards the end of the year at The Avenues and over the weekend they announced that one of the restaurants that will be opening in the hotel is Roka. Roka is a Japanese restaurant centered around a robata grill and was created by the same restaurant group behind Zuma (a very popular Japanese restaurant).

There is no mention in the press release of where in the hotel it is opening but me and a friend were discussing it and we think it would probably the location overlooking the pool which I’ve highlighted in the photo above.

If Roka does well (which I’m assuming it will do), then I wouldn’t be surprised if Zuma eventually opens in Kuwait as well.

There’s a new drive-thru-only Starbucks that popped up overnight in front of AUK in Salmiya. I think this might be the only Starbucks in Kuwait with just drive-thru and no seating option. The location is pretty great for them, they’re right next to Arabica and Toby’s while also being right off the Gulf Road so it should get pretty packed.

The popular shawerma place Shakir is opening up in Samiya, they’re moving into the old McDonalds location on top of Johnny Rockets. It’s a pretty good location (for me) for a number of reasons, first being that it’s in my hood and secondly because it’s going to be located on top of one of my favorite cocktail shops. The cocktail juice at Shakir sucks (sorry Shakir) but now I can order a cocktail from my juice place while waiting for my Shakir order. Perfect combo.

A new only organic specialist supermarket opened up yesterday called Danke. The supermarket carries a variety of organic foodstuff as well as biodegradable and recycled household items. Yesterday actually happened to be the first day they opened and so they were still busy setting up the place. The bakery for example was not functional last night but should be up and running by the time you read this post.

They’re in a soft launch phase but other than the freezers and the bakery the shelves were all stacked with products from various brands including Alinor, Allos, Bauckhof, Biovegan, Byodo, Lubs, and many more. They also had a small fresh produce section.

The owner happened to be there while I was checking out the place and he told me that although Danke is a local brand the concept was brought in from Germany. That would explain why all the brands I saw were European and mostly German. While trying to dig up info on the brand I noticed they also have an app. I just installed the app and it seems to contain all their products but not sure if it’s working yet. You can download it and check it out yourself here.

The place looks great so it’s worth passing by and checking out. They’re currently open from 8AM to 12AM and are located in the basement of Burj Jassem in Kuwait City. If you don’t know where that is, here is the link to Google Maps. They’re also on Instagram @danke_kw

Have you gotten your loved one a Shani today? [Link]

GQ Magazine published an article yesterday on places to eat in Kuwait put together by Chef Faisal Al Nashmi. The list includes Habra, Al-Shimam, Oak & Smoke, BBT and Tampopo. It got me thinking about what places I’d recommend nowadays and other than some of the ones already mentioned in the article, I struggled to think of more. I think I would add the following:

Cardamon Club, Cocoa Room, Ora, San Ristorante, and White Robata.

For the past year, I haven’t been going out to restaurants as much when I used to frequent Cocoa Room and White Robata for example at least once a week before the pandemic. It’s also why I haven’t posted about anything new in ages, I just don’t feel like it right now. Even Cocoa Room and White Robata which I love and used to frequent on a weekly basis, since the pandemic started I’ve only been back to Cocoa Room once and I haven’t been back to White Robata yet. The only place I seem to frequent often is BBT since I get to eat out of my car, but the rest of the time I’m just ordering delivery.

If you have places you think should be on the list mention it in the comment, to check out the GQ article click here.