Demoiselle by Galvin – Dubai

Where better to have breakfast than at the Michelin-starred Galvin brothers’ Demoiselle. Situated among many restaurants, in one of the famous areas in Dubai called City Walk, it was a great place to stop for a hearty meal with great service. First of all, one has to comment about the interior; it was so beautiful and dainty. It was a successful attempt at bringing the outdoors inside. When you first enter Demoiselle by Galvin, you are greeted by an array of freshly baked goods on display —that alone arouses your appetite. It all started with a Kouign-amann (a crusty Breton cake) and a couple of their Financiers. Needless to say that they were as good as they looked. However, the coconut financier was a tad oily in comparison to the one with the almond. For drinks we ordered the Hot chocolate and the Pour over V60 brew in the hot coffee section. Then, our Soy milk soaked muesli and Galvin cure smoked salmon & cream cheese croissant arrived. I loved the graceful presentation of the croissant platter. The croissant itself was sublime; it was flaky and light (well, as light as a croissant can be). The cured smoked salmon was amazing; its saltiness complemented the cream cheese perfectly. The cream cheese was also delicious by the way. Just so you know how much I liked the salmon, let me tell you this: I had ordered the Oeuf Florentine (with Spinach) but changed my order to the Oeuf Royale (with Salmon) to be able to eat more of that Galvin cure smoked salmon. I know I have just mentioned how good the croissant with salmon was, but something else blew my mind away even more. The next part of our breakfast consisted of the Flatbread, merguez sausage, scrambled eggs & ful medames and my beloved Oeuf Royale. That Oeuf Royale…WOW. It was really perfect; maybe the best I have ever eaten. First of all, the poached egg was fabulous; it couldn’t have been made any better —every bit of the yolk was runny and every bit of the white was firm. The salty cured smoked salmon balanced the golden goodness in a lovely way, and the Hollandaise sauce was not heavy. They all sat delicately and proudly on the wonderfully Toasted English muffin (you can have Sourdough instead if you would like). When I was done, I was so full that I could not have another bite, and so unfortunately could not taste any more of their goodies. When I travel to Dubai again, I will make sure to return and taste more of what they have to offer (even if I have to take some with me to nibble on later). Although it would be hard not to order those delicacies with the cured smoked salmon I had this time again, I would like to also try their From The Bistrot and Tea Time menus. I would also probably visit Galvin Dubai, which is the other restaurant by the Galvin brothers located nearby.

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Nicolas Audi at La Maison d’IXSIR – Batroun

We were looking for a serene place to relax in, away from the mundane daily routine, so we decided to go have lunch at Nicolas Audi at La Maison d’IXSIR. Located in the Ixsir winery and Nicolas Audi being a prominent chef in Lebanon, we thought that it was a restaurant that should be visited. When we arrived, we scouted the area, and then we were lucky enough to join the tour of the winery, where we were led underground down a spiral staircase. The tour guide seemed well-trained and after being fed with information about the whole wine-making process, from grapes to barrel to bottle, we savored the end product in glasses on our table. Sitting under the shade of the tree, we enjoyed our Grande Reserve red and white wines, awaiting the opening of the buffet.

 

I rushed to take photographs of the untouched food, in order to capture their presentation before they were destroyed by the hungry people. Success, for the most part. There were a variety of salads and appetizers, of which the hummus was really good. I also really liked the salad with peppers in it because their flavor stood out. Moreover, the mashed potato tasted great with embedded onion bits within it. The fattoush, vine leaves dish, and beans salads were fine, but not exceptional.

 

Moving to the mains, I think I am adamant on melting my phone by taking pictures next to fire, but the skewers of meat being licked by the flames made me feel like a moth (if you know what I mean). The doneness of the grilled meat and chicken was great; they were juicy and tender. Another great item was the rice and creamy sauce, it was a tad spicy but delicious. The pizza squares and chicken nouille lacked flavor, and the kibbe and fish were okay. Let’s just say if I had not been leaving some space for dessert, I would have filled up on the grilled meat and chicken, as well as the rice and creamy sauce. There is something that I should note though; when you change your plate, you keep the same knife and fork. That is not great, but maybe acceptable when you have a placemat to put them on. However, we had no placemat so you had to put your dirty cutlery right on the table which is not hygienic for you nor the table.

 

So, here comes the dessert which was mostly a mixture of oriental sweets and French pastry. The ice cream was good, but not memorable. The baba au rhum was delectable; it was my favorite dessert hands down. I can’t get over their heavenly whipped cream (if you have read my Nicolas Audi patisserie post, then you know I am a fan). Another intense dessert was the chocolate cake which was as chocolatey as it could get, and my advice is to eat it slowly to be able to appreciate each bite. That was the taste I left Ixsir with.