2:48AM - Entertaining Kuwait since 2003
Kuwait Airways recently launched three weekly non-stop flights to Barcelona. I just checked the ticket prices and they start at 99KD. The flight time is 7 hours going, and 6 hours coming back.
Barcelona is one of my favorite places since the food is great, the city is not too expensive, and there is so much to see and do. If you’ve never been I highly recommend it. Here is a link to my Barcelona Guide.
The Palestinian Culture Center has been operating in Kuwait since the early 1970s. Every year they hold an exhibition with the aim to keep the vibrant Palestinian culture alive, and support underprivileged women and children in the camps.
This will be the 58th exhibition held by the Palestinian Culture Center and all net proceeds from it will be dedicated to humanitarian aid for Gaza.
The exhibition starts tomorrow and will have hand-stitched dresses, shawls, and cushions for sale, as well as handmade ceramics, books, and food aimed to preserve the Palestinian national identity and showcase how it adapts to modern times.
Place: Women’s Cultural & Social Society in Khaldiya
Date: Tuesday Nov 7th – Friday Nov 10th
Time: 10AM – 8PM
For more information or photos, visit @palestiniancc
Photo on top by @prettygreenbullet
Starting tomorrow Sunday, November 5th, the American International University Film Festival 2023 will take place for the second consecutive year.
There are various activities you can participate in during the film festival, including film screenings, lectures, workshops, and discussion panels. Best of all, they’re all free to attend and participate in! Whether you simply want to watch movies or you’re an aspiring filmmaker looking to attend a workshop or watch a lecture, this is an event you definitely shouldn’t miss.
The film festival will be held at the AIU campus from November 5 to 11, 2023. Cinescape is their strategic partner, and as a result, film screenings will take place both on the AIU campus and at selected Cinescape theaters. There is also no registration requirement for any of the Cinescape venues.
There are 12 speakers, 7 lectures, 4 workshops, and over 40 film screenings all scheduled for next week. The director of the Kuwaiti film “How I Got There”, Dr. Zeyad Alhusaini is also going to be one of the lecturers at the festival. His movie got significant international attention making this a great opportunity to pick his brain.
So one more time just to be clear, ALL events during the film festival are open to the public, are free, and do not require prior registration.
For more information visit aiu.edu.kw/film-festival or head over to @aiu_kw
Strategic partner:
@cinescapekuwait
Sponsors:
@debenhamsmiddleeast
@weyaybank
@alialghanimandsons
Below are some events taking place this weekend, as usual, let me know if I missed anything:
Thursday, November 2
The IMPROVengers Comedy Night
The Perfume Expo
Kuwait Outdoor Expo
AlSadu Museum Guided Tour
Friday, November 3
The Perfume Expo
Kuwait Outdoor Expo
AlSadu Museum Guided Tour
Alboyahra Farm Reopens
Eco Warriors Beach Clean Up
Saturday, November 4
The Perfume Expo
Kuwait Outdoor Expo
AlSadu Museum Guided Tour
Alboyahra Farm Reopens
Art N Dine: Weave of Cultures
Exhibitions
Arabia Felix and Rome
Palestine Art Stands
The Eye of The Sky Drone Photography Exhibition
Sacred I by Yasmine El Hazek
SIF, An Introduction by Mohammad Kassem
I haven’t watched anything new this week, but this month is going to be exciting because there are some very cool new shows being released, as well as new seasons of great shows coming back.
Here are some of the ones I’m looking forward to:
Fargo
For All Mankind
Julia
Monarch: Legacy of Monsters
The Crown
Yellowstone
Did I miss anything? Let me know.
Movies at the Cinemas
The movies below are now showing at the local cinemas:
New This Weekend:
Corner Office (6.0)
Deep Fear (5.5)
King of Killers (4.2)
The Quest for Tom Sawyer’s Gold (5.2)
What Happens Later (7.8)
Other Movies Showing:
57 Seconds (5.3)
Five Nights at Freddy’s (6.2)
Freelance (5.3)
How to Save the Immortal (5.2)
Killers of the Flower Moon (8.6)
PAW Patrol: The Mighty Movie (6.1)
Saw X (7.2)
The Exorcist: Believer (5.1)
The Nun II (6.3)
The classic films below are currently showing at the 1954 Film House:
The Hunchback of Notre Dame (7.0)
The numbers in brackets refer to the IMDB rating at the time of publishing.
I’m a huge Tamiya fan even though I haven’t put together a Tamiya model in years. But, I recently found out that we have an online Tamiya store here in Kuwait which I’m tempted to impulse buy from.
They don’t have a huge collection of cars, but it’s a fairly decent one especially if you aren’t looking for anything specific. Prices are also higher than prices online but similar if you include shipping. They also have a large selection of paints and tools as well to help you with the build.
I don’t think I’m going to order anything even though I want to, this would have been perfect during the covid lockdowns but I don’t think I have the time or patience for it anymore. If you’re interested though their website is q8tamiya.com
Earlier this year, I discovered the Sahara Golf Club driving range, and it turned into a fun outdoor activity that I enjoyed a couple of times with friends.
The driving range is located inside the golf course and you are driven to it on their golf carts. You don’t need to know how to play golf to be able to enjoy the driving range, it’s just an open area where you hit balls as far as you can. It’s a popular activity in the States and can be something you do alone or with a group of friends.
The cost for using the driving range is surprisingly affordable considering it’s at the Sahara Golf Club. For non-members, it’s 10KD for 2 hours and that includes 150 balls. If you don’t have a golf club, you can rent one for 3KD while an additional 150 balls are also 3KD.
The Sahara Golf Club is open daily from 5:30 AM, and the last check-in time for the driving range is 8 PM. To use the driving range just head to their golf shop or book ahead by calling them up on 22203410/11.
There is a basic dress code which I’ve shared above. They also offer lessons if you’re interested. At just 13KD, I think this is one of the most affordable and fun outdoor activities in Kuwait. Here is the link to their website.
Photo on top from @itsgee98
13 years ago I posted about a person called Sa’ad, a pizza fanatic who had submitted his pizza ingredients to Serious Eats and ended up getting featured there. The Serious Eats article is no longer up on their website but you can still access it through Web Archive by clicking here.
Fast forward to today and Sa’ad has finally opened up his own pizza place called What?izza. I haven’t tried it yet but it’s on my to do list since based on the photos on his instagram account, the pizzas look really appetizing and they sound like they have a very nice crisp to them. It’s a pretty cool story and he’s obviously still a pizza fanatic so check him out @whatpizza.kw
Turtle Park is a small artificial island on the Gulf Road located right behind Johnny Carino’s. It’s called Turtle Park on Google Maps because it has turtle sculptures scattered on it.
Unlike Duck Park which I posted about a couple of weeks ago and has real ducks, there are no real turtles in Turtle Park. It’s still really cute though.
Last month IKEA launched the cheapest falafel sandwich in Kuwait priced at just 50 fils. Initially, the post was going to be about that, but I just realized, this might actually be the cheapest sandwich in Kuwait. I can’t imagine any sandwich costing less than 50 fils and I think the cheapest I’ve ever come across is 100 fils.
If you know of a sandwich cheaper than 50 fils, let me know. Also, what other sandwich can I get in Kuwait for just 50 fils if any?
You might have noticed that Elevation Burger recently went through a major rebrand. The Elevation identity was given a much needed facelift by Farelo Studio, a design studio based in Portugal. The new look is not only cleaner visually, but also environmentally.
Pedro Farelo, the creative director of Farelo Studio, explains that the central idea was to take the Elevation Burger motto “ingredients matter” and expand it to “everything matters” encompassing health, the environment, and the community. This is because being a market leader comes with a responsibility of setting high standards for everyone else, which is why the new Elevation Burger packaging uses recycled paper, while the new minimalistic design helps reduce ink usage by up to 95%.
Farelo Studio aren’t strangers when it comes to Kuwait based projects, their first client in Kuwait was back in 2015 and since then have helped create several other local brands. If you’re looking for a talented and creative design studio with local experience, reach out to Farelo by sending them an email to [email protected] or check out their website farelo.com
This week I basically spent it binge watching the TV series 1923. It’s the prequel to Yellowstone and the sequel to the series 1883. It’s starring Harrison Ford and it’s really really good, like I think it’s my favorite of the three Yellowstone shows.
Other than that I rewatched the movie Se7en for the first time since the 90s. I originally watched it on VHS so rewatching it like 30 years later in HD was fun, and the movie has held up really well. A lot of now really famous people starred in the movie back then including Morgan Freeman, Brad Pitt, Kevin Spacey, and Gwyneth Paltrow. It was also started the career of David Fincher who’s behind movies such as Fight Club, The Social Network, The Girl and the Dragon Tattoo and the series Mindhunter. I highly recommend watching it if you haven’t, it was pretty shocking when it came out in 1995 and still pretty dark today.
Let me know if you’ve watching anything new and interesting.
Movies at the Cinemas
The movies below are now showing at the local cinemas:
New This Weekend:
Butcher’s Crossing (6.1)
Five Nights at Freddy’s (6.2)
Freelance (5.3)
Headspace (5.4)
How to Save the Immortal (5.2)
Other Movies Showing:
57 Seconds (5.3)
Elevator Game (4.2)
Killers of the Flower Moon (8.6)
PAW Patrol: The Mighty Movie (6.1)
Saw X (7.2)
The Canterville Ghost (7.6)
The Creator (7.3)
The Equalizer 3 (6.9)
The Exorcist: Believer (5.1)
The Island (4.3)
The Nun II (6.3)
The classic films below are currently showing at the 1954 Film House:
Coraline (7.7)
The Addams Family (6.9)
The numbers in brackets refer to the IMDB rating at the time of publishing.
I’m a fan of restaurants that are very focused with a small simple menu, and Chopsters is one of those places.
Chopsters is a locally created concept that is committed to making premium steak affordable without compromising on quality. They’re your everyday casual steak shop and they’re all about keeping things simple.
Their menu is composed of a handful of dishes so they can ensure excellent consistency and flavor every single time. Their most popular dish is their chopped steak served with their secret sauce, signature salad, home-baked bread and hand-cut fries. But, they also offer chicken, salmon and a very juicy beef brisket cheeseburger, so there’s something for everyone.
Another cool thing is that they’re located in Al Andalus, one of my favorite outdoor spaces especially with this cooler weather. You have a cinema there, a VR experience, a kids gym, and a bunch of retail shops, so they’re the perfect place to grab a bite before or after whatever activity you end up choosing.
No need for reservations, and no fancy dress codes, just come as you are. They’re open from 1PM to 11PM daily and you can check their instagram @chopsters.kw and here is their location on Google Maps.
Dubai’s beach-born concept SALT is coming to Kuwait next month and they’ll be popping up at the new Blajaat project in Salmiya.
Although SALT is mostly known for their iconic Airstream trailer, over the past few years their pop-ups have turned into beautiful and elaborate setups, so should be interesting what they’re planning for Kuwait.
The exact date hasn’t been finalized but they should be popping up the last week of November.
A few weeks ago I got a call asking me if I’d be interested in getting a sneak peek of a new Italian restaurant opening called Piatti. I was hesitant to check it out at first but the person over the phone told me it was a fine dining restaurant and was confident I’d be impressed with the space. Since it’s not everyday we get a fine dining concept opening in Kuwait, I was intrigued. Just a month ago, a video went viral of a Saudi personality stating that unlike Riyadh, Kuwait didn’t have fine dining or an even a fine dining culture. I guess that’s going to change now.
As soon as I walked into the space I realized it was going to be something special. I think it took the walk from the reception area to the waiting area for me to fall in love with the interior, so pretty much instantly. There were so many different layers of materials, textures and colors all somehow working together cohesively to create this visual eye candy. Wherever you looked you’d spot an interesting design detail or beautiful craftsmanship, even the wallpapers were hand painted for Piatti. It had a lot of classical elements, but yet still felt contemporary.
They had wanted me to take some sneak peek photos, but after seeing the place I told them I didn’t want to do that. I didn’t feel I’d be able to do the interior justice, so instead, I connected them with my favorite architectural photographer @mashkanani who was able to take these beautiful photos in this post.
I haven’t tasted or even seen the food yet and I’m already excited about the place. The average paycheck per person isn’t going to be over the top crazy, from what I understood it’s going to be similar to Cipriani, probably a bit less, so fairly reasonable in the scheme of things.
The restaurant location is interesting as well. It’s located across from Seef Palace, right above Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf (Google Maps) and has a beautiful view of the sea and the palace. There will also be an outdoor terrace but it wasn’t ready when I passed by.
They’re starting private dinners tonight and then opening to the public on November 1st. If you’re interested in booking you can do so through their website piattiofficial.com starting October 31st. Their instagram is @piatti.official