2:48AM - Entertaining Kuwait since 2003

I wasn’t planning on posting about this until I bought a watch for myself, but I don’t need another watch so I need people to go buy everything and not leave anything for me to impulse buy.

Al-Batel is an old watch store that was established back in 1959. Back then they used to carry a number of watch brands including Breitling, Heuer (before they were purchased by TAG), Nivada, and Zodiac. Incredibly, they still have unsold watches available for sale (New Old Stock) dating back to the 60s and 70s. They have some of them listed up on their website but they have more on display in their shop in Mubarakia next to AlFares (Google Maps).

If you’re into vintage watches then definitely check them out ASAP. Their prices are pretty much the same compared to online prices for used versions of these watches except the ones they have are all new. Link

If you’re looking for a new exhibition to check out, the popular lifestyle Instagrammer @kickstq (Tareq Qaddumi) opened up his exhibit “Hella Paragraphs” yesterday evening at the Contemporary Art Platform. The exhibit focuses around Tareq’s battle with instagram and their algorithms:

Instagram introduced a new algorithm in 2016 that affected the engagement of millions of users. In reaction to this change, popular accounts with public outreach responded with efforts to take back control over content visibility, comment on lack of privacy and targeted censorship. These works make a statement against Instagram’s controversial algorithm and the consequences it has on popular users such as Tareq Qaddumi. Qaddumi uses his works to show his personal battle with an algorithm that continues to get in the way of expressing himself freely and making an impact in the way he chooses to.

The Contemporary Art Platform is located at the Design District, here is their location on Google Maps.

If you’ve ever searched for a product on Google then you’ve most likely come across the website DesertCart. It’s an online store that will ship and deliver items to you from around the world, think of it like if Amazon and Shop&Ship merged together because that’s what DesertCart is. DesertCart’s catalog is composed of items from various other websites but with the added convenience of being able to ship the items directly to you.

I haven’t had a reason to ever use them, I just order my stuff directly from Amazon to Kuwait or have items shipped to my Shop&Ship mailbox. But, a couple of weeks ago, I ordered a Dewalt Cordless Tire Inflator from Amazon. It’s really the best cordless inflator you can buy and my friend has one which we use at the race track. It’s super convenient and runs on batteries which you need to purchase separately since they aren’t included with it. The local Dewalt dealer sells 18V 5000mAh batteries for 35KD but I wanted to get 20V batteries which they don’t get locally. Amazon also doesn’t ship batteries directly to Kuwait nor does Shop&Ship. MyUS do ship batteries but they’re too expensive and so wouldn’t make sense with such a low-value item. So I started googling other options and I ended up finding a Dewalt 20V 4000mAh battery for sale on Desert Cart for 29.600KD plus 3KD to ship to Kuwait. So 32.600KD total and that also included customs. So I placed the order.

The battery turned out to be available in the UAE and within a couple of hours, it got sent to the DHL warehouse and prepared for shipping. I got a notice by email that the item was classified as “dangerous goods” and that it needed more handling and packaging but that they would still ship it. Due to it being classified as dangerous, shipping took a bit longer than usual since I don’t think batteries can’t be mailed on regular flights. A week later, I got the item.

Throughout the whole process, my order tracking was updated constantly, and overall my experience was pretty great and I’d order through them again, but I did run into issues:

• Originally I wanted to purchase two batteries, for me and my friend, but every time I tried to pay for the items I got a weird error regarding payment. I got in touch with their customer support through live chat which was impressive, but after trying a few things and placing the order from different browsers, we couldn’t figure out the issue. I then tried purchasing just 1 battery and the order went through. Turns out that there was only 1 battery in stock which is why my previous orders were confusing their system.

• The second issue I ran into was with my account. I have an account but no password, everytime I try to log in I need to enter a code that gets emailed to me. There doesn’t seem to be a way for me to create a password for my account and I think I have three different accounts with them all using the same email and number? I don’t know, it’s confusing because when I log in from the app on my phone, I can see my previous order. When I log in from the browser on my Macs, I can’t. Also, I verified my phone number on my MacBook but now when I logged in to DeserCart from my iMac I noticed my phone number wasn’t verified so I just verified it again. It’s really buggy.

• All my issues with them seem to be related to random strange bugs, the menu button on the iPhone app for example pulls up an empty list (see above). It’s really odd because they’ve been around for years now so how come no one has run into all these issues before?

But, as I mentioned, my experience was pretty positive since I ended up getting an item which under normal circumstances I wouldn’t be able to get. Even talking to their customer support was a positive experience. I’m still not sure what I’d use DesertCart for again since I don’t need any more batteries, but what’s going to happen from now on is that anytime I want to order anything online, I’m going to check and compare the cost to DesertCart. I just really hope they work out all their kinks. Check them out at desertcart.com.kw

Have you tried them before? Did you face any issues?

Bin Nisf which is probably one of the most popular and largest hardware stores in Kuwait have now officially launched their website. Previously they had a website but you could only search for items but not order from it. As of yesterday, the website is now fully functional although I did run into a few annoyances so if anyone from Bin Nisf is reading this, here are my comments:

• Website looks like it was designed in 1998
• When searching for an item you can’t tell if it’s available or sold out until you click on the item
• While browsing for products by brand, you have brands listed even though you don’t carry any items by them

That’s pretty much it so far. If you want to check out their website it’s binnisf.com. Shipping is 2KD if the value of your items are under 30KD and free if the value is over 30KD.

I like how everything is starting to come back again, it’s definitely giving me a sense that life is getting back to normal. Just as Staged in Kuwait is coming back, NFL Kuwait events are also coming back for this new season. They’ll be announcing details on their instagram soon but for now, they’ve released a complementary schedule poster that has all the season games in Kuwait local time.

If you want to pick up a poster, they’re available at Rite Cafe in Cube Mall, Salmiya from 10:00am to 3:00pm. There is a limited number of posters available and so there is a limit of one poster per fan. To stay posted on the NFL Kuwait activities, follow their Instagram account @nflkuwait

Staged in Kuwait, the popular local community theatre group is coming back and they’re looking for new talent to join their team.

Theatre is coming back – with your help! Come join the team at your local community theatre this year and get involved in the fun of creating live performance events.

The Welcome Lunch for our tenth season will be held on Friday Sept. 24th at noon, in our new Fintas home. Meet the team, and find out how you can get involved, onstage or off, in any of our activities.

PLAYS • MUSICALS • PANTOMIMES • IMPROV COMEDY • OPEN MIC NIGHTS • SOCIAL EVENTS • DRAMA CLASSES • AND MORE

We can’t wait to meet you. Our next show is counting on it.

They’re lookoing for directors, choreographers, designers, actors, singers, dancers, costumiers, painters, technicians and influencers. If you’re interested and want to find out more, visit their website stagedinkuwait.com

If you’re interested in Japanese desserts, then there are two concepts that you should check out and they happen to be located right next to each other. Over the weekend I passed by The Port food complex off the Fahaheel Expressway, it isn’t really that interesting of a place except for the fact it houses two Japanese dessert concepts, Kumori and Fuwa Fuwa.

Fuwa Fuwa
They opened up a few months back and have fluffy Japanese pancakes, Asian bubble waffles and Taiyaki ice cream cones. They offer delivery except for their ice cream items. @fuwafuwa.kw

Kumori
Unlike Fuwa Fuwa, Kumori has actually been around for some time now. Previously they were simply called Japan Bakery and I had posted about them back when Kuwait was going through a cheesecakes phase. They eventually rebranded to Kumori and opened up a location at The Port. Their cheesecake is still my favorite fluffy Japanese cheesecake but they also have other items like sweet and savory baked goods, bubble tea and some other fun-looking drinks with cotton candy. They also deliver. @kumori.kw

If you want to check both places out, here is the location to The Port: Google Maps

There are a number of other Japanese dessert concepts in Kuwait just not at The Port, for example, Kane Mochi and Kotton. I should probably put a comprehensive list together of all the Japanese dessert concepts since there can’t be that many, so if you know of ones I haven’t mentioned, let me know about them in the comments.

If you’re looking for a fun activity to do, the Kuwait Bowling Club in Salmiya has reopened again. The bowling alley which is one of the largest in the region with 48 regular bowling lanes and 10 VIP lanes originally opened in the summer of 2019, but then closed down during the pandemic. Now it’s open again but only for those who have been vaccinated.

The price has also gone up slightly, it’s now 3KD per game per person (previously 2KD) while the VIP is 5KD (previously 4KD). Their opening hours are from 8:30AM to 1AM and for more info on the club, check out my previous post here.

Just a quick update on my previous post on the Grand Mosque Tours. You now no longer need to pre-book a Saturday tour, walk-in tours are now available. Check the previous post for more details.

The movies below are now showing at Cinescape, Grand Cinemas and VOX:

New This Weekend:
Fatale (5.4)
Luca (7.5)
Malignant (6.7)
Queenpins (6.7)
Settlers (4.7)
Spycies (5.6)

Other Movies Showing Now:
Black Widow (6.8)
Candyman (6.2)
Cruella (7.4)
Escape Room: Tournament of Champions (6.1)
Free Guy (7.7)
Prisoners of the Ghostland (6.1)
Reminiscence (7.4)
Rogue Hostage (3.1)
Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings (8.0)
Space Jam: A New Legacy (4.4)
Ted Bundy: American Boogeyman (6.6)
The Night House (7.0)
The Protege (6.6)
Till Death (5.8)

Classic Movie Showing Now:
Face/Off (7.2)

The films below are also now showing at the Scientific Center IMAX theater:

IMAX Movies Showing Now:
Antarctica (N/A)
Backyard Wilderness 3D (7.7)
Turtle Odyssey (7.2)

Numbers in brackets refer to the IMDB rating at time of publishing.

It’s been a while since I put together a breakfast list and since my last list, some new places opened up, some closed down because of the pandemic, and some just stopped serving breakfast due to lack of staff. Below is the latest list I’ve put together along with their breakfast timings (note: breakfast timings, not operating hours). This is also not a list of every single place that serves breakfast in Kuwait, this is a curated list. If there is a restaurant you think should be added here, let me know in the comments.

My two go-to places are still Cocoa Room and Baker & Spice but check out the whole list below:

Angelina
9:00 AM – 12:30 PM

Baker & Spice
Weekdays: 8:00 AM – 1:00 PM
Weekends: 8:00 AM – 2:00 PM

Bakehaus
8:00 AM – 8:00 PM

Cocoa Room
8:00 AM – 2:00 PM

Dar Hamad
8:00 AM – 12:15 PM

Cheesecake Factory
Friday & Saturday: 10:00 AM – 2:00 PM

Frankie’s
9:00 AM – 2:00 PM

Gia
Avenues: 7:00 AM – 1:00 PM (Avenues)
City / Salmiya: 6:00 AM – 4:00 PM

Ladurée
9:00 AM – 10:00 PM

Lazy Cat
Weekdays: 7:00 AM – 12:00 PM
Weekends: 7:00 AM – 2:00 PM

Lunch Room
360 Mall: 9:00 AM – 3:00 PM
City: 9:00 AM – 6:00 PM

Madeleine
Wednesday to Saturday: 8:00 AM – 2:00 PM

Madison & Heig
8:00 AM – 12:45 PM

Magma
9:00 AM – 3:00 PM

Mana
Avenues: 9:00 AM – 12:00 PM

The Breakfast Club
6:30 AM – 3:30 PM

The Early Bird
Crystal Tower: 7:15 AM – 2:30 PM
Jabriya: 5 AM – 3:30 PM

The Kind Ones
6:00 AM – 6:00 PM

The Social Table
8:00 AM – 1:00 PM

Notably absent: Johnny Rockets, Barba, Bouchon, Princi and LeNotre. I couldn’t get a hold of them.

Since last week’s list proved to be popular, here are some more new places for you to try out.

Baba G – A shawerma place located in the city
Beef & Liberty – A smashed wagyu burger concept
Chickz – A delivery only fried chicken concept
Crust Pizza – A tiny pick-up and delivery only Neapolitan pizza concept
Eli’s Burgers – I don’t get their instagram account 🤔
Frank’s Steak Sandwiches – A delivery only concept based around Philly cheesesteaks
Good Fillings Pie Shop – They have 3 kinds of pies (definitely need to try this)
Robin’s – A European style cafe & bistro located in Massaleh Towers

If you want to share any new places, please do so in the comments.

Since the weather is getting cooler the Kuwait Offshore Sailing Association (KOSA) is kicking off its new season this weekend. No sailing experience is needed, neither is a boat since the club has various ones which you get assigned to depending on your experience.

If you’re a non-member the cost to sail is KD20. They have three different outings this weekend with limited spots so if you’re interested, go to kosakwt.com

Also follow KOSA on instagram to stay posted on upcoming outings @kosakwt

This is the latest footage shared by the Ministry of Public Works showing the progress on the construction of the new Kuwait Airport terminal (T2). It looks like there is still a lot of work to do but, construction of the new terminal is currently on track to be completed by next summer, August 2022.

MajorSamm is a YouTube account where they make anti-war music videos with the intention of introducing both music fans and history fans to lesser-known conflicts or aspects of conflicts by giving a glimpse into their look and feel. His latest video is a mashup of “Simon & Garfunkel – The Sound of Silence” with footage of the burning oil wells that were set on fire by the retreating Iraqi army during Desert Storm in 1991.

Thanks @syedfraz