2:48AM - Entertaining Kuwait since 2003

If you guys remember around 3 years back I posted about Smoke House who at one point I thought had the best burger in Kuwait (that’s pre-OFK, Elevation, Fatburger and Shake Shack days). Well things went from perfect to a mess, they had consistency issues, they changed their burgers and some people ran into issues with their management.

But it seems things have finally been sorted out. They posted a very honest and fun to read update today on their website where they talk about some of the problems they had and how they’ve gone ahead and changed or improved things. After reading their post I actually have a much better impression about them and I’m now interested in going back and trying them out again. Why can’t more businesses be this down to earth and honest with their customers? Check out their post [Here]

This Friday (May 4th) a photographic walk will be taking place from the Scientific Center to the Kuwait Towers in which over 50 amateur and professional photographers are expected to participate. Photography lovers from all skill levels are invited to take part in this walk which will also include classes and demonstrations by experts.

The walk starts off at 5AM which is early but necessary to capture the sunrise and the magic hour. The group will be making a bunch of stops along the way to take photos including a 7AM stop at the Hard Rock Cafe to photograph a motorcycle club and a stop at around 11AM at the Green Island to photograph some models.

It sounds like a lot of fun so if you’re interested or want more details check out their Facebook page [Here]

I heard that BoConcept the trendy furniture store that recently closed down might be reopening again in Avenues Phase III (possibly under new ownership). I was kind of surprised when they originally announced they were closing down but the fact they’re planning reopen in Avenues Phase III (if the rumor is true) might explain why they shut down their small Marina Mall location.

The brand should do a lot better in Phase III specially since there should be a lot more foot traffic. Also previously they were located inside THE One which is a completely different brand with a different pricing structure and I’m sure it wasn’t helping BoConcept’s brand. If they do indeed open in Phase III it would be their third store location in Kuwait since for a short period they were also open in Tilal Complex but that location must have not done so well because it didn’t take long to close it down.

I was visiting one of the soon to open stores at the Al Hamra Tower Mall and decided to snap some pictures of the interior. The mall looks amazing, it’s a lot bigger than I expected (5 floors) and it’s also bright because of the natural daylight that comes in from the skylight. It looks very elegant, I really think it looks great. The mall is officially opening after tomorrow (Tuesday, May 1st) so just two more days left. Here are some pictures:

Update: I just found out the official name which is Al Hamra Luxury Center.

While I was at the Violet Concept Store checking out the Wolf Designs watch winders (check previous post) I got to see something else that was very very cool. The Violet Concept Store have an “OriginTimes’ Big Block Winder” on display! The Big Block Winder was featured in Robb Report’s “21 Ultimate Gifts” back in 2010 and while the Wolf Designs watch winders are on the affordable side, this watch winder lies in the other end of the spectrum.

The Big Block Winder is a large watch winder that’s made from an actual Bugatti Veyron engine block. The watch winding mechanism are located in each of the 16 cylinder locations and the whole thing is controlled with a futuristic looking control panel. This thing is a beast! The price? KD35,000. Expensive I know but this wasn’t built for us. If you have 16 decent automatic watches which cost on average say KD7,000 and up then you probably already have an actual Veyron in your garage and this watch winder is just pocket change. It’s for the person who has everything. You can check out some more cool pictures below or on the Robb Report website [Here]

I’m a fan of Wolf Designs products mainly because they’re a family owned business that dates back nearly 200 years and also because their products are pretty affordable and well made. I purchased a Wolf Designs watch box from Amazon awhile back and then a few months ago I emailed them to find out if there were any stores in London that carried their brand (there wasn’t) which is why I was pretty surprised when I found out a local place called Violet Concept Store carried them.

I passed by the store yesterday honestly not really expecting much since I figured they’d have a couple of items and that they’d be overpriced but I turned out to be wrong. They had a pretty large collection of Wolf Designs watch boxes and winders and they were very reasonably priced compared to Amazon. To give you a rough idea about their prices, the watch box I bought from Amazon cost around KD30 and another KD30 to ship it with Aramex while they’re selling the exact same box for just KD35. It was a Homer Simpson “Doh!” moment but they only recently opened while I bought my box over a year ago so I didn’t feel too bad.

So if you’re interested, they’re located in Sanabil Tower (near Amiri Hospital in Kuwait City) and they’re open only on weekdays from 2pm to 8pm. They also carry a small collection of Wolf Designs jewelery boxes and drawer inserts if that interests you. Here is a link to their website [Link]

I have no idea when the new Gulf Road Fuddruckers branch is going to open but it looks huge so I can’t wait.

I downloaded the Kuwait Times iPhone App last night and so far I think it’s pretty cool. Visually the app doesn’t look that great or appealing but I am finding it pretty practical to use. My favorite feature in the app is the ability to easily move over to the next article once you’re done reading it without having to go back to the main list. Sounds like a trivial thing but I’ve seen news apps that don’t have this feature for some odd reasons.

The app is free and you can download it from the App Store by either searching for Kuwait Times or by clicking [Here]

I spotted this while I was in Lebanon. It looks like a custom Bentley crossover of a sort but I don’t think it originally started off as a Bentley. Any guesses to what it was?

Note: I don’t know the answer but I took a peek at the dashboard when he drove by so I should be able to confirm if your guess is right or wrong.

A reader emailed me this old Video Club membership card he found dating back to the mid 80’s. Back then you’d pay to be able to rent a certain amount of videos and every time you rented a video they’d punch a hole in the card. That was back when The Video Club was one of the coolest video rental places in Kuwait.

Thanks Kyle

Persons who barbecue at unallowed public locations will be fined KD 1,000, the Director-General of Kuwait Municipality warned yesterday. Ahmad Al-Sebeeh, in a statement to KUNA, indicated that the authority, after realizing that some citizens and residents do not abide by public cleanliness laws because of soft penalties, decided to increase the fine for such a violation from KD 100 to KD 1,000.

There are specific locations for barbecuing in 144 public parks, he said, stressing that grilling is restricted to these places. Municipal teams will monitor such violations, he re-stressed, urging the nationals and expatriates to abstain from inflicting damage on public properties, such as the seaside green spots, with such random barbecuing, dumping of ashes on plants and littering. Beautification of the public spots costs the State millions of dinars for entertainment and well-being of the people, thus these properties must not be target of such harmful acts and conducts. [Source]

How come the fine for BBQing is KD1,000 but running a red light is just KD300?

SOLEdxb, the largest sneaker event in the Middle East is taking place after tomorrow in Dubai. If you’re attending the event pass by the Nike space since they contacted different sneaker collectors in the region and I have around 8 photos of my collection that will be on display at their exhibit (including the one above).

I’m not going to the event since I’m currently in Beirut but for more information on SOLEdxb check out their Facebook page [Here]

According to the Environmental Performance Index done by Yale University, Kuwait was one of the weakest performers and came in 126 out of 132 countries. What’s confusing is that Lebanon came in 94th place but the pollution there is so bad that we recently had an incident where one river turned red while another turned white!

So other than the recent tire issue, the desert pollution and the Mishrif sewage problem, what else is really so bad that we rank this low? I’m not surprised we rank low just surprised it’s at the very bottom of the list. [Link]

Thanks Erik

Based on a comment left by a reader it seems like the British chain ShakeAway will be opening in Kuwait. I’ve never tried them bu according to their website they’re the largest milkshake bar company in the world and they’re already open in Dubai. No idea on when and where they will be opening.

Update: According to a reader their first branch will be at Discovery Mall and they will be opening in 12 weeks time.

Diplomatic protection officers came across the Arabic man as they patrolled outside Mr Blair’s £4.3 million townhouse in Connaught Square, Belgravia, central London in the early hours.

When they asked the man, who appeared to be drunk, to stop urinating he allegedly refused to cooperate and a scuffle broke out.

Officers eventually discharged the 50,000 volt taser in order to place the suspect, who spoke little English, under arrest.

However the man collapsed and had to be taken to hospital, where it emerged he was a Kuwaiti government official, Ayedh Alrashidi.

Such a strange incident. [Link]

Thanks Uzair