Bombay Bungalow

Rating: Very good
Meal: Dinner for 5
Price: 376 AED
Payment: Credit cards accepted
Dishes: Buna gosht, veg curry, fancy butter chicken, normal butter chicken, keema rice
English Menu: Yes
Smoking: No

Last night we ate at one of the fancy places along Jumeira Beach here in Dubai.  Even though we'd eaten Indian (ish) for lunch we were still up for some more at Bombay Bungalow.  The decor inside is quite nice and the food was absolutely delicious, though much more expensive than lunch!

Ginger Garlic Restaurant

Rating: OK
Meal:  Lunch for 5
Price:  92.50 AED
Payment: Cash only
Dishes:  2 lassi, 1 fruit cocktail drink, 1 karak tea, 1 veg thali, 2 mutton biryani, 1 chicken fry with tomato curry, 1 paratha chicken wrap
English Menu: Yes
Smoking: Yes

We went to the Gold Souk area yesterday and while wandering around spied a sign for Ginger Garlic Restaurant.  Following the signs into the bowels of the buildings we eventually found a very local spot to eat.  Women might not feel comfortable there as there were none, all Indian and Pakistani men.

Mutton biryani

The food was very cheap, but tasty.  I only rank it at this level because they didn't have all the chicken dishes advertised and I was a bit disappointed by that.  Finding this spot again would be a challenge!

Chicken fry with tomato curry

Veg thali

Chapati

Operation Falafel

Rating: Very good
Meal: Lunch for 5
Price: 200 AED
Payment: Credit cards accepted
Dishes: Falafel, falafel sandwiches, zatar pizza, beef shawarma plate, hommous and bread bowl
English Menu: Yes
Smoking: No

We just arrived in Dubai and ate for lunch near where our Airbnb is in Jumeriah Beach Residence.  We walked around eventually settled on Operation Falafel, a funky modern take on lebanese food.  It was delicious, and we all enjoyed it thoroughly.

Beef shawarma plate

Zatar pizza

Grilled haloumi cheese

Hommous bread bowl

Shawarma

Falafel sandwich

Hanoi

Rating: OK
Meal:  Dinner for 5
Price:  250 AED
Payment: Credit cards accepted
Dishes:  Summer rolls, spring rolls, 2 pho bowls, lemongrass chicken, ginger chicken, tofu curry dish
English Menu: Yes
Smoking: No

Ate last night at the Vietnamese restaurant Hanoi next door to where my dad lives in Abu Dhabi at the Shams Boutik mall.  The food was just ok.  I thought our place in Japan has better pho broth (more aromatic) and all the chicken was white meat and kind of tough and rubbery.

Greens

Summer rolls

Lemongrass chicken

Pho

Tofu curry

Ginger chicken

India Palace

Rating: Excellent
Meal: Lunch for 3
Price: 292 AED
Payment: Credit cards accepted
Dishes: Salty and saffron lassi, paneer tikka, lamb curry, chicken curry, lamb biryani, bread basket
English Menu: Yes
Smoking: No

We decided to head off on our own via taxi to the Mangrove Hotel which sits next to a large mangrove national park to do some research into tour options.  Afterwards we headed to a nearby mall called Mushrif to do some shopping for various items.  We walked the mall and scoped out all the restaurants, and when lunch arrived decided to try the grand looking India Palace, a local chain with around 13 branches.

It was beautiful inside, with lots of wood paneling and very high quality dishes.  The menu was quite extensive and the bread section alone had us swooning.  We were told the meal would take 15 to 20 minutes to prepare, and it was a while before everything arrived (all at once).  My son and I ordered different lassis, for me a salty lassi, and for him a saffron sweet.  We couldn't possibly decide on which bread, so we ordered a basket which came with naan, roti, and chapati.  All of them were made of whole wheat and were absolutely delicious.  Even my son conceded their superiority.  I got a plate of paneer tikka (white cheese roasted in the tandoor) for all of us, and of course I got a lamb curry dish.  My wife got a chicken curry in a creamy sauce, while my son went for the lamb biryani.  My dish was a bit salty, but still so flavorful, and the chicken dish was probably the best, heavy on the cardamom.  My son's biryani was also excellent, with that super complex spice mix that wafts up from the rice.

All of us were in heaven and agreed it was the best Indian we'd had in a very long time.

Bread basket

Paneer tikka

Chicken curry

Lamb curry

Lamb biryani (with a bread seal)

First Clique Marina Square

Rating: OK
Meal: Dinner for 2
Price: 345 AED
Payment: Credit cards accepted
Dishes: 2 shishas, tea, soup, fries, mixed grill
English Menu: Yes
Smoking: Yes

Last night my dad and I tried to go to the newly opened First Clique which is just 5 minutes walk from where they live in Al Reem island, but it was having it's grand opening and wasn't actually ready for business having delayed opening by one hour.  So we hopped in the car and drove 10 minutes to the Marina Square mall where there is another First Clique branch.

Lentil soup

The main purpose of the visit was to smoke shisha, which we did, but eventually we got hungry and ordered some food.  It was all very delicious of course.  It was, however, quite expensive, so that drops it down to an Ok sadly.

Mixed grill