Category: Food & Drinks

I don’t know why it took so long but we finally have a dedicated cheese shop in Kuwait! La Maison Du Fromage is a new store that just opened up and specializes in everything cheese. Right now they have over 60 different kinds of cheeses but they’re expecting 40 more kinds to arrive soon with the majority not available in supermarkets.

The store is pretty cute but they’re still in their soft launch stage so they’re still stocking up on their products. They will soon have cold cuts, caviar, truffle and truffle oils as well as kitchen tools for cheese. Basically, they’ll be carrying everything you expect a cheese store to carry except for the wine.

La Maison Du Fromage is located in Salmiya near Gia. Their instagram account is @lmdfkw and will be active soon. If you want to check the place out they’re open from 10AM to 10PM and here is their location on [Google Maps]

Not sure if you know this or not, but like watching people play video games is a huge thing, watching people eat is also a pretty huge, at least in Asia. The actual term for it is mukbang which is a combination of the Korean words for eating and broadcasting.

The first time I came across a video of someone eating was back in 2012 when I posted about Emmy who was sent a box filled with sweets and snacks from Kuwait to try. Nowadays though the videos I tend to watch don’t have any talking, they’re usually just of someone sitting in front of their phones and broadcasting themselves eating something. The only sound you’ll hear come from any crunching or slurping that’s taking place. An example is the video above which has 24 million views and is just of a guy eating some crispy fried chicken.

I’ve always found this fascinating so when a friend of mine called Fajer started doing something similar here in Kuwait I got super excited. I’ve known Fajer for years, she’s always been a big foodie and I always love going out to eat with her. Recently she started gaining popularity with her food eating videos. At first, she started posting them on her personal instagram account, but then she got invited by the popular local food account @q8food to do live broadcasts of herself eating there. That’s when she really started blowing up and now even has her own account @fajereats.

I honestly think its a brilliant idea and I’m not only saying that because she’s a friend. With every girl in Kuwait left and right trying to be a fashionista, I love how Fajer is having fun by just being herself in front of the camera, stuffing down a 5 patty burger because she feels like it.

So if you’re into mukbang or curious to check it out, she does a live broadcast a few times a week on @q8food and you can also check out some videos on her own account @fajereats.

Singarea, the popular Asian supermarket now carries live French oysters! They say they’re the first in Kuwait to carry live oysters but that can’t be true right? First or not first it doesn’t really matter though, if you want live oysters I don’t know of any other place you can get them. If you’ve never been or heard of Singarea then click [Here]

Oh G! is an ice cream business that I found out about from a friend. I had originally tried their ice creams at Tampopo last week and thought they were delicious so when I found out Oh G! had provided the ice creams, I decided to order some for me.

At Tampopo I had tried two flavors of for dessert, a dark chocolate with sea salt, and a Yuzu ice cream. But, Oh G! change flavors every week and when I wanted to place an order from them they had the following flavors for me to choose from:

Naughty
– Dark Chocolate Sea Salt
– Dark Roast Arabica Coffee

Nice (v)
– Banana Brûlée Walnut
– Peanut Butter & Cacao Nibs

I ended up ordering a pint of each except for the peanut butter since I hate peanut butter (Note: I really hate peanut butter). All three flavors were delicious with my favorite combination being mixing the dark chocolate with the banana brûlée together and eating it like that (Note: I really love banana mixed with chocolate). The pints cost KD4.5 to KD5 depending on the flavor and they’re good enough for 6-8 scoops so they’re not overly expensive. If you’re an ice cream fan and are looking for a new place to try ice cream from then give Oh G! a try. They’re on instagram @ohg.kw

I just found out that the popular British online food delivery company Deliveroo is coming to Kuwait. Deliveroo is the British equivalent to Carriage and they operate in over two hundred cities including Dubai. Kuwait is going to be a pretty tough market for them since Carriage and Talabat have the market cornered here, but competition is always great for us.

After my last post on who has the best apple pie in Kuwait, a number of people recommended The Pie Shop so I ended up trying it out this past weekend. Was it any good? Yes it was!

Johnny Rockets or The Pie Shop? That’s a harder question to answer because it’s like asking me which is better, Five Guys or Johnny Rockets? Both burgers are good and they’re both very different, same with these pies.

The apple pie from The Pie Shop definitely tasted healthier, after having a big slice I didn’t feel guilty even though my slice was huge. You can clearly see all the sliced apples inside their pie while with Johnny Rockets, their pie has more of a chunky apple jam kind of filling. I prefer the Johnny Rockets mushier style filling but The Pie Shop crust was definitely better. The Pie Shop apple pie also looks perfect.

Price
Johnny Rockets: KD6.150
The Pie Shop: KD9

So my recommendation? If you’re picking up a pie last minute or craving a slice and want one right now? Definitely Johnny Rockets. On the other hand, if you’re invited to a lunch or dinner and want to take a pie with you, then go with The Pie Shop for sure. Keep in mind though, with The Pie Shop you need to order a day in advance. Here is a link to their instagram @thepieshopkw

I hate molokhia but, @cosmicxcircus somehow convinced me that I’ve been having bad molokhia all my life and that I needed to try it at her favorite place. She sold me on the theory and told me about a small hole in the wall in Hawalli called Layali Zamaan that supposedly made the best molokhia in Kuwait. So I decided to head there with her and a couple of other friends to try it out.

There are mainly two kinds of molokhia, the soupy Egyptian molokhia and the leafy Lebanese version. As this was an Egyptian restaurant they made the soupy kind. The molokhia meal at Layali Zamaan consists of bird tongue soup (chicken broth with orzo pasta), leafy veggies, rice, protein, Egyptian bread, and of course, the molokhia.

You have five different proteins to choose from, duck, chicken, meat, pigeon, and fish. I was curious to try the pigeon since I’ve never had it before but, since I was already out of my comfort zone with the molokhia, I decided to stick with meat.

The bird tongue soup which didn’t really look appetizing turned out to be actually really good, and I love carbs so the bread was great, and that is about it. Turns out I still really dislike molokhia because I hated it at this place as well. The whole time I was there I was thinking about what I would order off Carriage once I was back home. Everyone else I was with LOVED the molokhia but I have no idea why.

The best thing about Layali Zamaan for me was that it was located around the corner from the popular ice cream shop Bikdash Al Sham. The second best thing about Layali Zamaan was the price. We were four people and the bill came out to KD5.500 which I guess is a steal if you like molokhia. If you’re interested in trying the place out, they’re located in Hawalli, here is their location on [Google Maps]

The Eggslut hoarding went up a few days ago and it looks like it’s now been changed with the one above where they’ve covered the “u” in the word slut with an egg. Doesn’t look like they’re actually going to call the place Eggslot or else they would have already gotten the @eggslot account on instagram and the accompanying domain names.

Below is the first hoarding they had up:

Out of curiosity for those of you who were offended by the name Eggslut, if they do end up calling it Eggslot does that make it ok for you? Even though you know the name of the place is actually called Eggslut and they just replaced the letter “u” with an “o”? What if they added letters so for example they decided to call it Eggslutkt or maybe Eggslud, would that also be ok with u?

My personal favorite has to be the Johnny Rockets apple pie.

For those of you who didn’t believe me or think no way a place called Eggslut would be allowed to open in Kuwait, well, I was right. The hoarding for the first Eggslut store in Kuwait just went up in Crystal Tower, they’re opening right next to Starbucks.

Eggslut is an LA-based gourmet food concept where all the items on their menu feature eggs.

The Untitled Deli belongs to two of my friends and ever since they opened I’ve been nagging them to get on Carriage, and finally, they did. They also added a bunch of new sandwiches to their menu.

So check them out on Carriage, and make sure you visit their Instagram @theuntitleddeli.

I love eating outside and I rarely eat home cooked meals, in fact, I don’t even remember the last time I ate a home-cooked meal. So, I’ve been wanting to put together a list of my favorite places and I finally got it done. I’ve divided my favorite places into categories, it wasn’t easy in some cases just choosing three, but I forced myself to do so to keep things consistent. Check out my favorites below and let me know what your favorite places are:

Restaurants
1- White Robata
2- Mana
3- Lavan

If I had to choose just one restaurant to eat at forever, it would probably be White Robata. I’m there usually once a week and would go more often if it wasn’t so freaking expensive. So much good food combined with incredible staff make this easily my favorite restaurant in Kuwait at the moment. Mana, on the other hand, is a lot more accessible and great for going to in groups. They’ve got the best guacamole in Kuwait and generally, everything I’ve tried there has been really good although the rosemary chicken is my goto dish. Finally, Lavan is my favorite Indian restaurant. I go there mostly for their tandoori grills since I’m always trying to eat healthy, but I always manage to convince myself to have one of their delicious biryanis as well.

Healthy
1- Super Foods
2- Leila
3- Little Rubys

There are a lot of healthy places nowadays but these three are my goto ones. Super Foods doesn’t need much of an introduction since I think they’re the most popular healthy food place. They’ve got great snacks, cold bowls, delicious sandwiches, and even healthy desserts. They also have a lot of drinks to choose from including my favorite, their Blue Majik. The next place would be the Lebanese restaurant Leila, like most Lebanese restaurants, it’s a great place for healthy options since they have salads and grills. But, what sets Leila apart is their light menu which contains food options with even lighter dressings and more healthier sides. I know Little Rubys might seem out of place on this list since they’ve got delicious burgers and crazy good fries, but they also have my favorite salad in Kuwait, their pumpkin salad. It’s a baby spinach salad which I usually have them add grilled chicken too, so delicious.

Breakfast
1- Cocoa Room
2- Lunch Room
3- Baker & Spice

I had difficulty deciding on the number one spot here, it should be Lunch Room but since it’s more convenient getting a table at Cocoa Room I chose them as number one. Lunch Room is my favorite breakfast spot at the moment but the place is small and so there is always a waiting list. And unlike Cocoa Room, you can’t call ahead and put your name on the list so you have to go there, put your name and then just sit in your car since there isn’t anything else around them to do. Cocoa Room is also always super busy but I tend to call them an hour before I plan to be there to put my name on the list. Then, usually by the time I get there, my table would be ready or I just have to wait for one or two tables before it’s my turn. Baker & Spice is my healthier choice here, but during the summer months, I tend not to go to Baker & Spice since I enjoy the place more sitting outdoors especially at their Souk Sharq location.

Delivery
1- Joa
2- SimSim
3- Clean Eats

Before Carriage came to be, I think I used to only ever order food from Hardees. Now I’ve got a whole list of places I order from but these are my favorite ones. JOA I love ordering from when binge watching a show with a friend or when I’m having movie nights. Their poke bowls are the best and they’ve also got affordable sushi rolls if I want. SimSim is a place I find delicious but I try not to order them a lot because they’re all carbs. SimSim easily have the best flatbreads in Kuwait (get the pumpkin or musakhan) as well as a delicious rose water flavored knafa for dessert. Finally, Clean Eats I heard about at first because of their delicious yoga bowl which is what I used to order all the time but then I started making my own bowls. Now I tend to mostly order their banana and chocolate chip overnight oats since its a great source of energy before I hit the gym.

Cheat Meals
1- CHKN
2- Arby’s
3- Eighty Six

This was another category I had trouble trying to pick a favorite place. Both CHKN and Arby’s have perfect cheat meals but I decided CHKN was slightly better because of their sides. I tend to order their Slaw CHKN sandwich with the original CHKN bites on the side. So soooo good, it’s like the best fried chicken burger ever. Arby’s on the other hand, I just order their Double Roast Beef N’ Cheddar sandwich but that’s all I really want from life sometimes. Full disclosure on the third spot which is Eighty Six, they’re one of the brands I work for at the moment so I literally go to sleep thinking about them. So although I might be a bit biased here, I’m really a huge fan of their Billie Jean burger as well as their Saku Saku chicken burger.

So there you have it, my favorite spots around Kuwait right now. I might more add categories to this if I think of anything but this should be good for now. Don’t forget to let me know your spots!

The popular Korean restaurant Korea Grill launched a new menu a few days ago. The biggest two changes are the much larger ramen selection as well as an increase in prices. Check out the new menu [Here] and [Here]

If you’ve never been to Korea Grill before, they’re located in Maidan Hawalli inside the New Park Hotel. Here is their location on [Google Maps]

Back in 2012 I posted that Alshaya wanted to bring the super popular American franchise Chick-fil-A to Kuwait. I wrote about how talks had failed since Chick-fil-A wanted Alshaya to close on Sundays (they’re a very Christian company) and Alshaya didn’t want to. Instead, Alshaya was trying to convince them to change that rule for the region but Chick-fil-A wasn’t backing down and the deal fell apart.

Then, a couple of years ago I posted that Al Sayer was in talks with Chick-fil-A. Al Sayer denied it but based on my sources at Al Sayer and the aggressive call I got from the Al Sayer Franchising team it felt like they were, in fact, talking with Chick-Fil-A.

I guess those talks failed because fast forward to today, I get an email from my source letting me know that Alshaya have finally signed with Chick-fil-A. No idea if Alshaya have agreed to close on Sundays or if Chick-fil-A have loosened up their policy for the region, but either way, I don’t care. With Chick-fil-A coming to Kuwait, the only other franchise left that we really need is In-N-Out.

Last night I was at The Avenues and decided to pass by the newly opened Pick. When I got there I walked up to the tiny 2 person line behind the cashier and waited for my turn. While waiting, I noticed a long queue on the left side of the place lined up behind another cashier. I realized it might be a one-line queue for two cashiers and that I might have been cutting the line. Or maybe the other people didn’t realize there was a second cashier?

I decided to leave Pick because the situation was confusing, but decided to message them on Instagram just out of curiosity to see if it was actually two separate lines, or one line with two cashiers. My exchange with them was so good I felt it was worth posting about.

Firstly, someone saw my DM right away, they then quickly responded to my question and were apologetic and admitted the situation was actually confusing. The whole conversation was so friendly and sincere, they made me an even bigger fan of the brand.

The situation made me realize again how amazing social media has become for communicating with brands, especially when you have a problem. I’ve DM’d brands a ton of times either to complain, give feedback, ask questions or even to try and cut through lines at clubs (Thank you @the.garten). Other than my internet provider I no longer contact brands any other way. When I had an issue with AVIS in the US I tried calling them on the phone and after spending an hour either on hold or trying to navigate their robotic call center, I decided to tweet them. I ended up getting a response back on twitter in less than 5 minutes! In Kuwait it’s been no different, other than the local Ikea and Jeep dealer (still waiting for a response guys), my experience with customer service on instagram has been pretty good so far. I love it.