reading my sis syida's entry on munchin with forrest gump made me purple with jealousy because i had wanted to go too even before i flew to dubai! incidently it reminded me of the two incredibly cool places i ate at while in dubai. this was before i had kahfi so pardon my extra fat. it was the baby bump, ok!
also with me under pantang and lots of forbidden food - one's mind tend to wander, you see...
the one with central perk uptown mirdiff
james michael tyler, who plays gunther actually came to dubai to officiate the opening. and its the first time he agreed to appear in a central perk branch after countless of offers. yes, the central perk where chandler, phoebe, joey, rachel, ross and monica hang out at - we have it right here in dubai.
in gulf news, it describes the place - "..the service counter, the neon signage, the bricks and the big orange and green couches are just like those at central perk -" enough said.
even when i was still in msia, mr. khairul kept telling me about this 'special makan place' that he wanted to surprise me with. until that day when we went to uptown mirdiff, i didn't know what that place was. he just took me around the mall and said, "look around and tell me if you spot anything interesting.."
and there it was! so green, so familiar and so warm to the heart. it was so surreal to be standing there in front of the cafe so close to our heart (fans of f.r.i.e.n.d.s). my sisters and i are total freaks when it comes to f.r.i.e.n.d.s especially syida. real freakazoid to the core.
the exactness of the whole place just got to me. we even waited outside for the place to clear so that we could take up a seat next to the window with the signage. it's reported in some reviews (probably in other branches) that there are tv screens showing f.r.i.e.n.d.s episodes. however there weren't any here - and i did wonder wouldn't it be nice if there were. looking at some pak arab here made me question whether they are fans or just happened to choose this nice place to hang out at.
the food is basically sandwiches and such - something you could also find in dome or similar cafes. we ordered turkey and cub sanwiches - verdict - the filling is hot from the oven, the vege fresh and the bread crackly yet soft. yummy.
i even took my best buddy niraku there when she came in during a short transit from london to malaysia. it's just the perfect place to hang out with good friends...
the one with shakespeare & co @ dubai mall
it was opening day of the biggest shopping mall in the world - dubai mall. not many retail outlets and restaurants were open just yet - but one really caught my eye.
with its monica-like mismatched victorian furniture and cozy granny sofas with velvet throw cushions, it immediately got me drawn. at a closer look, i discovered its name: 'shakespeare & co'. i was so excited, it's like going to borders and finding out every book is at 80% discount!
just look at the interior! if you're like mr. khairul who prefers 'manhattan' style in decor than you'd probably say, 'so?' - but if you're a hopeless romantic like me - this might be your cup of tea - with little frames of different sizes hanging on the wall - it surely gave me some ideas for our new apartment.
famous lines from well-known shakespeare plays adorned the walls - it's especially goose-bump inducing if you're familiar with them. if not, you could just bask in the beauty of the words penned by the most brilliant playwrighter of all time, the bard. and it's not just printed nicely on the wall - it's hand-written in cursive to give it the classic feel.
we ate this banana-choc-almond-filing crepe thingy which looks yummy as well as it is presented. (yes, syida your choco-o-rama whatever does look nicer!) to be honest the food assemble in the menu is nothing to shout about - nothing unique - and quite pricey for such a simple dish. but i guess there's always a first time for everything just to get a taste. what more if you're a shakespearean scholar. the place itself is just oozing with english charm.
visit http://www.shakespeareandco.ae/ to find out more!
sigh. bile pantang nak habis ni...
No comments:
Post a Comment