Breakfast at Shakespeare and Co., Dubai

Expat haunt Shakespeare and Co., along with Limetree, is one of the unwritten, iconic places-to-go in Dubai. Weekends here are best avoided as the place turns into a hive of activity; attracting extended families, gossiping groups of Jumeriah Janes, solo newspaper readers, and fitness freaks. 

Without this in mind, we visited Shakespeare and Co.'s Marina Mall branch on Friday morning for a late breakfast. Unsurprisingly  it seemed that every other person in Dubai had the same thought about how to start their weekend. The place was packed, especially outdoors where people sitting elbow-to-elbow were making the most of the spectacular panoramic marina view and the warm April weather.

Not a bad view!

Despite how busy the cafe was, we were seated within 10 minutes and service after that was very fast. I ordered the Eggs Benedict (around 30dhs) which came with hollandaise sauce and roast potatoes. 

Yet, unfortunately, the Shakespeare experience did not live up to expectations. The sauce was cold and a film had gathered over the top of it, where it had obviously been left standing too long. The potatoes were barely roasted and the portion was measly - see pictured. The English muffin tasted a little stale, but the eggs Benedict were quite tasty. That said, I'm not sure if this was just because I was a) starving and b) had never tried eggs Benedict before.

The eggs Benedict

Regardless of a disappointing meal, I would be willing to try Shakespeare's again. The sheer popularity of the place and the glorious decor makes me hope that maybe I visited on a bad day. Keep tuned for more reviews!

Tony Romas, Dubai - Review

Tony Romas, in Ibn Battuta, claims to specialise in ribs, seafood and steak. With a reasonable price tag and a fairly empty restaurant, we decided to give it a go.

Playing around with the camera and taking pictures of absolutely pointless objects like a chewing gum wrapper.

Tony Romas in Ibn Battuta is set in the heart of China Court's plethora of restaurants (see blog post dedicated to Ibn Battuta here). We were seated quickly and given a cone of nachos with spicy salsa dip to munch on after placing our orders. Tony Romas is normally packed with hungry families and couples, but because it's the summer, and most sane people had left to cooler countries, the service was speedy.

Cone of nachos and hot salsa dip - a bit too hot for me!

Despite Tony Romas claiming to specialise in steak, ribs and seafood, we opted for orders of chicken and beef. After a 15 minute wait our food arrived in all its enormous Dubai-sized portion glory. 

Tony's Grilled Chicken Caesar Salad - 29 dhs (regular. Large is 39 dhs although the regular portion was more than enough): the crisp bread crumbs of the chicken against the salad was a good combination, and the dressing was flavoursome, complementing the dish. Otherwise the salad was fairly standard: neither offensive nor exceptional.

The Roasted Garlic and Rosemary Chicken - 50 dhs: chef's recommendation. The chicken was tender and tasted incredible with the gorgeous garlic and rosemary sauce. The mixed vegetables were crisp and the rice was cooked to perfection; none of the soggy, overcooked stuff that is all too common in my student digs. My only criticism of this dish is that the menu stated two chicken breasts, whereas I only received one. Given I struggled to finish the one-chicken-breast portion size, I wasn't going to complain.

The Roma Burger - 38 dhs: dubbed as their 'classical beef burger' heaped with cheddar, lettuce, tomato, onion and pickle. The chips were quite bland but the burger was deliciously juicy and impossible to eat without smothering grease all over your face - just how burgers should be.

Overall, Tony Romas offered good service and large portions of food that, although not exceptional, hit the spot. The food isn't exceptionally healthy, particularly the burger dish which was loaded with salt and fat, but considering the restaurant isn't extortionately expensive and you'll be in and out within half an hour, Tony Romas certainly does its job.

Baker & More, Dubai

Cake

My Achilles heel.

We visited Baker&More in Ibn Battuta because it was my birthday and I felt I deserved cake for reaching the ripe old age of 20.

The waitress recommended the blueberry cheesecake to us, so in a highly unoriginal fashion I plumped for that, while my brother opted for carrot cake. We had 3 macarons to complement the huge slices of cake because neither my brother or mum had tried them before. This was, in my opinion, outrageous and needed to be corrected.

Macrons in pistachio, chocolate and passion fruit flavours.

For 28dhs a slice, the cakes weren't cheap so I expected something that would blow me away. Something so utterly sensationally zesty and creamy and cheesecake-y that I would find myself addicted to Baker&More within seconds, and unable to function without my daily cake from there. A future of obesity was in the horizon.

But, as it happened, I needn't have worried. Despite the waitress' overzealous recommendations, the cheesecake was bland and rubbery. The macarons were far too sweet and tasted artifical (rather than faking natural tastes) and my macaron, which claimed to be passion fruit, was more like a purple, generic fruit thing.

So, the verdict on Baker&More? If you're after a decidedly average, extremely large piece of overpriced cake then look no further.