2:48AM - Entertaining Kuwait since 2003

Honest Grocer is a new local grocery store that sells only healthy food products. That’s not really new in Kuwait but what sets Honest Grocer apart from the competition is the fact that their selection of products is curated using their stringent nutritional and ethical guidelines. These guidelines include:

• No artificial additives
• No preservatives and emulsifiers
• No fillers
• Non-GMO
• No Soy Lecithin
• Free from or the lowest possible levels of sugar alcohol and refined sugar
• Organic (the majority of which are certified)

Navigating their different products is really simple on their website since their interface is very basic. So for example, if you’re looking for keto products or products that are sugar-free, you can get access to them easily from the main page with just a click. They’re also located on Deliveroo which makes ordering from them easy although their products are only categorized by brand on that platform.

The only downside like everything healthy is the price. Because you’re getting the best quality ingredients you’re going to have to pay for it and that can mean 5KD for a chocolate spread or 600fils for a bag of chips. They sent over goodies to my office and the first thing we did was replace all the unhealthy snacks we had in our pantry with their products. Now I just need to convince the accountant why he needs to increase our pantry budget so we can continue to stock up on these healthier but more expensive snacks.

If you can afford it, then definitely check out Honest Grocer either on Deliveroo or their website myhonestgrocer.com

The Environment Public Authority opened the Jahra Nature Reserve for the new season a few days ago. The reserve is considered to be the first eco-tourism project in Kuwait with the aim of increasing environmental awareness and appreciating the landscape.

This year there is a new observation outpost bringing the total of outposts to three. You can reserve the outpost you want to visit from their website and then visit it during your trip which is limited to an hour and a half.

The cost of visiting the reserve is KD10 for a group of up to 5 people and increases the larger your group is. Because it’s a reserve, the visit will be guided and so you won’t be able to wander off on your own and are limited to visiting just selected areas.

If you want to reserve your visit, here is the link.

The November schedule for JACC’s Cinema Hall is out and this month they have 5 indie films playing:

90 Days – Saudi Arabia
Farha – Jordan/Palestine
Beirut Hold’em – Lebanon
Frère et Soeur – France
Official Competition – Spain

There is only one showing per movie so if there is one you’ve been meaning to watch don’t miss it. You can book your tickets on Jacc-kw.com

Maryool is a new contemporary Lebanese eatery that opened up last week in Kuwait City. It’s not a local brand, it’s a Lebanese one created by the same guys behind some other popular spots in Lebanon like Meat the Fish, By Skirt and The Backburner. The Backburner is actually open in Kuwait and Maryool just opened up next door to it so I’d assume they would eventually open up their other brands in Kuwait as well.

My two favorite Lebanese spots recently have been Babel and Em Sherif Cafe at The Avenues. Both are your classical Lebanese restaurants while Maryool tries to give a new twist to classic dishes. Nothing crazy or weird like dark chocolate hummus, but for example, their shawarmas are all tacos (including a vegan portobello shawarma) while their tabbouleh had lentils. They’re minor tweaks that give dishes you’ve tried a million times a new flavor profile or a new look.

I was invited to their opening event and so got to try a lot of dishes. Everything tasted really good with maybe just one dish that I felt was a bit bland which was their arayess. There were no prices on the menu so I’m not sure what the average check per person would be but I will update this post in the future once I go back again and actually pay for my meal.

If you’re interested in checking the place out they’re located in Khaleejia Tower, the same building as Vigonovo. It’s a cute place and the whole storefront opens up so a great place to go to now since the weather is great. They’re open from 12PM to 12AM and they’re on Instagram @maryoolkuwait

Picture on top by @inspirededibles

The Palestinian Culture Center has been operating in Kuwait since the early 1970s. Every year they hold an exhibition with the aim to keep this vibrant culture alive and support underprivileged women and children in the camps. Starting today till Thursday, the center will be holding its 55th heritage exhibition at the Kuwait Graduates Society.

The exhibit 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.

If you’re interested in passing by, here is the info:

Place: Kuwait Graduates Society (Google Maps)
Date: Monday 7th to Thursday November 10th
Time: 10:00 AM to 8:00 PM

For more information visit them on Instagram @palestiniancc

Every time I post about Khyber, I get comments about other places with supposedly better tikka, the two most popular ones being White Rose and Paratha King. So, I decided it was time to give them a ranking:

First Place: Paratha King ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Second Place: Khyber ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Third Place: White Rose ⭐️⭐️⭐️

Paratha King

Khyber

White Rose

It’s really close between Khyber and Paratha King but based on the overall experience, I think I’d lean towards Paratha King more. Paratha King has a better-tasting tikka but Khyber’s location is a nicer experience. The seasoning and marination of both tikkas are very different with Paratha King having a more thicker coating while Khyber doesn’t which is why some people might think Khyber’s tikka is drier (it isn’t).

With White Rose, I think it’s just overhyped. Under every tikka post I usually get a few comments saying I should try White Rose and that White Rose has the best tikka. I don’t think it does. Of the three places listed here, I find the White Rose tikka the least flavorful. Their location is also not great so the dining experience isn’t very appealing either.

Pricewise, Khyber and Paratha King are similar and White Rose is the cheapest.

Paratha King: 1.000 KD per piece
Khyber: 1.000 KD per piece
White Rose: 0.900 KD per piece

If you want to check the places out, here are their locations on Google Maps:

Khyber Location
Paratha King Location
White Rose Location

There is one more place I need to try (I think) and that’s White House. If there is any other place that has good tikka let me know in the comments, if there are enough places I might have a part 2 battle.

Update: After visiting Paratha King for a second time I decided to update the review and ranking and give Paratha first place.

After taking a break for a couple of years because of covid, the Kuwait International Book Fair is going to take place again this month.

The 45th book fair will be taking place at the Kuwait International Fairground from November 16th to the 26th in halls 5, 6, 7 and 7B. Link

Lots of interesting things happening this weekend, let me know if I missed anything:

Thursday, Nov 3
Perfume & Cosmetics Exhibitions
Improv Comedy Night
Concert: Music is Where Cultures Meet
Art Therapy: Healing Circle
Space Month at Scientific Center
Book Exchange
Kuwait Track Challenge

Friday, Nov 4
Perfume & Cosmetics Exhibitions
Flare Fitness Crossfit Games
Sailing: Friday Morning Cruising
Space Month at Scientific Center
19th Kuwait Rapid Chess Championship
Touch Rugby
Kuwait Track Challenge

Saturday, Nov 5
Perfume & Cosmetics Exhibitions
Hindrance Race – Flare Fitness Festival 2022
Uncovering: NBK Tower Walking Tour
Space Month at Scientific Center
Workshop: Host Florally
Story Time at Amricani: The Gruffalo
Kuwait Track Challenge

Exhibitions
Sara Shamma “Age”
Warhol of Arabia by Raed Yassin

Activities
Ascend Rock Climbing
Cable Park
Ice Skating at the Winter Games Club
Indoor Karting
Little Jungle
Murouj Farm
Movement Classes at Omni Studio
Roller Blade at Roller Hub
Try Windsurfing
Yoga at Darātma

Museums to Visit
Abdullah Salem Cultural Center (ASCC)
Amricani Cultural Center Museum
Bait Al Othman Museum
Tareq Rajab Museum

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

New This Weekend:
Nocebo (6.6)
One Way (3.9)

Other Movies Showing:
Barbie: Mermaid Power (6.5)
Big Trip 2: Special Delivery (N/A)
Black Adam (7.5)
DC League of Super-Pets (7.9)
Detective Knight: Rogue (3.5)
Halloween Ends (5.0)
Lyle, Lyle, Crocodile (6.5)
Prey for the Devil (5.0)
Smile (6.6)
The System (N/A)
The Woman King (6.3)
Ticket to Paradise (6.3)

The classic films below are currently showing at the 1954 Film House:

Classic Movies Showing:
Good Will Hunting (8.3)

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

Last December, @classic_rides_q8 started posting pictures of his 1994 Landcruiser FZJ with Kuwaiti plates but all the photos were in Arizona. I’ve never met the guy but we’ve been in contact for a few years now through Instagram and it was because of his account I was able to find my first Datsun. So I sent him a message asking how he got the car to the States and he told me it was was a simple process using a RORO service and it cost him only $3,500 including taxes.

I think his plan was to use the car while he was there and then sell it before coming back to Kuwait. That plan changed when the car was accepted at the Barrett Jackson auction, the worlds great car collector auction. The car went on the chopping block and quickly sold for $38,500. You can watch the whole thing unfold in the video above which was originally posted on his Instagram account. It’s a pretty good-looking Landcruiser.

Back in March, I posted about a local shop called Onebase that sold weighted blankets. Not a lot of people managed to grab one before they sold out but I noticed last night that they were back in stock.

Weighted blankets are considered to be therapeutic and can benefit people with anxiety, autism, and insomnia. Some people find sleeping with a weighted blanket very calming like they’re being hugged.

If you want to check out the weighted blankets at Onebase, click here.

Last week Cari, the new food delivery app soft launched in Kuwait. It was more of a beta launch than a soft launch since the app was constantly crashing at first, there were barely any restaurants and there was no sign of one of their most aggressive features which was 30 minutes delivery. Since then there have been at least two software updates sorting out the bugs so I decided to finally try them out.

Inside the app there are two main categories, one for all the restaurants and then another one just for restaurants that offer 30 minutes delivery. I decided to try out their 30 minutes delivery by ordering lunch from BBT. It wasn’t the most scientific experiment since my office is only a couple of blocks from BBT in the city, but I also wasn’t trying to make Cari fail the test or anything. Here is how the timeline looked like:

12:06 PM – Order placed
12:14 PM – BBT started preparing my order
12:29 PM – Driver arrives
12:31 PM – Order delivered

My order took 25 minutes to deliver from the moment I placed the order which is pretty cool and fast.

Right now they’re also not charging a delivery fee which is great for us. Not sure how long this is gonna last but it gives us a good reason to use Cari for now at least. There aren’t that many restaurants on the app that offer 30 mins delivery, in the city, there were like 10 only and they were either burger or coffee places.

As of this post, Cari still hasn’t officially launched so if you want you to try it out you need to click the download link on their Instagram page @getcari and follow the instructions.

Update: I’ve been told that the official launch of Cari will be happening today

Update2: They’ve officially launched, here is the direct link to the app on the Google Store and Apple Store.

The CAP Bookshop which carries books by publishers Assouline, Phaidon, Taschen, and Thames & Hudson has moved locations for the third time. Back in 2021, they moved to a larger location next to the CAP gallery in Shuwaikh and now they’ve moved once again, this time to the ground floor next to the main entrance.

I think their new location is the best one so far since it looks great but also feels cozier than the last one. If you’ve never been to the bookshop before, they mostly carry books related to architecture, art, design, fashion, photography, culture, and travel. They also have really great kids’ books mostly by the publisher Phaidon

If you want to pass by and check the bookshop out, here is the location.

I like how the GCC is starting to open up to each other. After Saudi opened its borders to GCC residents a few weeks ago, now Oman announced that any GCC resident could enter Oman without even needing a visa (source).

I have to embarrassingly confess I’ve never been to Oman but it is on my to-do list. I’ve actually been thinking of just driving there since it’s definitely a place I’d want to have a car and go driving around for a couple of weeks. From the pictures, it seems like such a beautiful and chill place, and it’s so close to Kuwait.

It doesn’t look like there are any conditions for entering Oman other than the fact that your Kuwaiti residency should be valid for a minimum of three months. I’m sure this is great news for a lot of people.

Every time we get heavy rainfall and Kuwait floods I tell myself I should get rainboots. For the past few years, I’ve been wearing my Yeezy 950’s during floods but they aren’t really that waterproof. Plus I just checked to see how much they sell on StockX and I definitely shouldn’t be using them as rainboots anymore. A couple of weeks ago while out exploring in Jahra I got into a situation that involved mud and had to turn back because I was wearing sneakers. So I decided I’d buy a pair of rain boots and just keep them in the back of my Hilux for when I need them.

I wanted to get a pair of dark green Hunter wellington boots but couldn’t find any place locally selling them and so started looking online. I was hoping to find a shop online that offered free returns in case the size wasn’t the correct one and after looking at a bunch of places, I found out Selfridges did free returns. So I ordered the boots from there. Turns out there are actually a bunch of good reasons to shop on Selfridges online which is why I’m posting about it.

Free Returns
So firstly the point I just mentioned is they have free returns. This is great because you could order stuff, try them on, and if anything doesn’t fit the way it should you can return them.

Tax-Free
The second good reason is that shopping is tax-free. Because you’re shipping from Selfridges straight to Kuwait, they remove the VAT from the price which is an instant 17% discount.

Cheap and Unlimited Shipping
Their shipping rates are really really cheap. The boots I ordered are fairly heavy, came in the biggest box I’ve ever seen and it cost me only £25 (KD9) for shipping. And it’s not like they shipped it with regular mail, they shipped using Aramex. To top it off it didn’t matter what I added to my cart, or how many items I added, the shipping price stayed fixed at £25. What’s even crazier is the fact they have unlimited deliveries for £40 (KD14.5) a year which is like wtf, how do they even make money? I’m seriously contemplating just signing up for their unlimited delivery plan and just doing all my shopping there. And just to be clear, this is unlimited shipping to Kuwait.

The boots ended up fitting me fine so I’m keeping them but I was kinda curious to try out their return policy. I should also mention they were selling the boots for pretty cheap as well compared to other places. After removing the VAT I paid 37KD for them without shipping. So great prices, cheap shipping and free returns, basically everything you want when shopping online. selfridges.com