Seafood in a Bucket

Oh for the love of seafood!
There's something about dinning on seafood that no matter the catch nor the ambiance, it exudes a sort of elegance about it, though one knows that digging into crabshells is not the most elegant thing to witness.

Last week, Le Hubby and I decided to bring my mother in law to Seafood in a Bucket for Iftar. Located in Karama, it is easier to find when describing it as 2 to 3 buildings beside the Karama Metro Station, directly opposite the Co-operative Society on Mankhool road. It is situated on the ground floor of a building in which numerous small restaurants are abundant, most of which represent the many ethnic cuisines brought to Dubai by its ever growing expat communities.

It wasn't our first time but it was for my mother in law. Honestly, food wise, I did not find anything SPECTACULAR, granted that I myself wasn't too keen on anything seafood except fish. I did, however, find the whole hype about it utterly seductive. I first heard the restaurant from a Fiilipino Blog, or should I say a blog run by a Filipino (which conveniently, I totally forgot who). I was impressed by the rave reviews and the fact that these visitors from Abu Dhabi made the journey all the way to Dubai just for a taste, as well as their frustration at the long queue that greeted them at the door even thought it was barely 12 noon.

I myself found it a very 'funky' place to eat at, in terms of Filipino taste. It was like an upgraded version of a street food culture. The menu was only one page long and not even back to back. The items were a few staples, mostly if not all are fried; 2 to 3 kinds of Fish, Clams, Mussels, Shrimps, Sand Lobster, Lobster and Chicken Wings. There was a selection of 3 kinds of sauces to douse your mains in; Sweet Chilli, Pepper and Garlic Butter. I recommend the Pepper Sauce with its impressive balance of nutty spice and sickly sweet. I used to order the Sweet Chilli before but found that its gets cloyingly too sweet for my taste after a few bites. All this comes in plastic inserted buckets that are super handy for take outs. The rice comes in a plastic bag (so very much Filipino-sidewalk-eatery like) and is unlimited, or as Pinoys say "bottomless". A server with a huge thermos-like jug walks around the  joint offering diners more sticky Asian rice. Their drinks are unlimited as well and comes in huge glass jars, and as one will find out, will seem too much for 2 people to share without ordering a second serving! Unfortunately, I do not remember all their drinks except for the Watermelon that we always opt for and an Iced-Tea looking drink I saw on the table across ours. Strangely, I've never seen anyone order any type of softdrink. The seating arrangement is a whole different story. I abhor it. They come in the form of tables fit for 4 with matching benches meant to seat 2. They feel very flimsy and I  shudder to think how these seats will fare with their much more heavier clientele. Maybe they assumed that they will only be catering to the Filipino crowd and as we know, we Asians almost always come in tiny packages! The restaurant's interiors are not too in your face but definitely meant to be in sync with the cooler crowd, covering its walls in graffiti. I have not made up my mind about the floor to ceiling glass windows that allow passersby to look into the restaurant and accidently glimpse upon a butt crack of an unsuspecting diner whose back is against the glass.

Oh, I forgot to mention you get to eat with your hands, wear plastic gloves and a bib!

One more thing I believe has made Seafood in a Bucket wildly popular is the price tag. Just imagine this, my husband and his friend are lively eaters. Their fastfood runs consist of 2 Big Macs, 1 Big Tasty and 2 Cheeseburgers to share between them; all upsize meals. When they ate at Seafood in a Bucket, their total bill was Dhs. 80!

What: Seafood in a Bucket – (Filipino?) Seafood Restaurant

Where: Beside Karama Metro Station

Why: Because its good. And its cheap. And its not pretentious.

Smiling BKK

Considered Armed and Delicious.

 

How cool is it to be able to get the waiter's attention by pointing a machine gun in the air and letting loose!? IT IS NOT A REAL GUN, mind you, but damn how cool eh?

The first time my husband and I ate at Smiling BKK was on our first Valentine's together circa 2009, when the restaurant's location was snuggly tucked away in between the alleyways of Al Wasl Road and all I remember was a dish named after Snoop Dog and a picture of a really clean plate, attesting to the deliciousness of their dishes.

I'm always on the hunt for the best Pad Thais in town, so usually that is a staple for me at any ASIAN restaurant while my husband ordered a Seafood Platter for 2. My Mother in Law, being the wise woman that she is, new that amount of food would be more than enough for us chose to share with our dishes. For drinks, the norm was ordered, a bottle of water and a strange looking Coke can. I tried to be more adventurous and tried the Tea with Milk on ice (I am sure they called it a much more exciting name) and I loved it!

Overall, the food was good, the names tres interesting, the price easy on the pocket and the ambiance excruciatingly charming. I mean, have you seen that gangsta Mona Lisa? Or the Pirate one??

 

 

What: Similing BKK - Thai Restaurant

Where: Al Wasl Square, beside Safa Park on Al Wasl Road

How Much: Dhs. 250 for 3 people

Why: Because sometimes when the ambiance wins you over, the food starts to taste better. Actually, the food was good not to mention affordable. And who wouldn't want to shoot a gun in the air at a restaurant where it is treated the norm?

 



Lush - Brazened Honey

Due to the holidays that passed, I recently decided to play the part of doting wife and bought a few unconventional treats for my husband in hopes of it secretly benefiting me ;)

I popped into Lush in Mirdif City Center and bought a few things, first of which was the Brazened Honey. It was a facial scrub that when left on the face to dry can act as a mask as well. I always believed that a Scrub should do just what it's name suggests; SCRUB. Therefore I made a specific request to the wonderful ladies at Lush to recommend something whose mixture should be more abrasive and less "soapy" and "bubbly''.

The first few times I used this scrub I was impressed with the results, but the longer I used it the less impressive the results were. It was just as I requested, abrasive enough and made my face feel tingly when left on to dry. I guess the proof that it did work was my face felt more moisturized throughout the day but then again, that meant that my face has become unusually oily whenever I had makeup on, and no amount of retouching with a face powder solved my dilemma.

I would however, still recommend it to those who want a good face scrub that is organically made and PETA approved. I do love knowing that the stuff I put on my face has a clear expiry date.

What: Lush Face Scrub

Where: Deira City Center, Dubai Mall, Mirdif City Center

How Much: around Dhs. 40 -Dhs. 60

Why: Because once in a while we need to clean the gunk outta our pores with products that won't kill our planet but does not cost as much as an average 3rd world country wage.





Eyelashes - Daiso Part 2

A girl can't have too many false lashes, just like shoes!

What with the variety in length, volume and texture, we definitely are spoiled for choice! In my terribly Asian quest to sample most if not all of these varieties, I finally came across one of Daiso's newest additions; The One with the Transparent Band.

I personally liked it because it was more "curled" than the others I've tired before. Hence. it was more visible even against the hooded lids I have. The others were thick and full but refused to stay curled even when clamped and applied with mascara. And of course, given the affordability of these Daiso lashes, they were still a bit too shiny and therefore gave away the level of quality with which they were made.

Nevertheless, I did really like them.

What: Daiso Lashes with transparent band

Where: Mirdiff City Center, Dubai Mall, Barsha Mall

How Much: Dhs. 7

Why: Because it has a beautiful curl and extremely comfortable! Well, and it's cheap!

Eyelashes - Daiso

Full, thick alluring lashes are every girl's dream. Unless you're one of those that are already blessed with such rare commodity then I and my Asian brethren hate you.

I used to be iffy about wearing false lashes, since the act of putting them on and then taking them off at the end of the day amplifies its "fakeness". But then I learned to accept the fact that those who don't have, well....make do with what they do have.

Then came the blessing that is Daiso, the Japanese dollar store. Although I would advice one to be wary of cosmetics you slap onto your face that cost no more than Dhs.9, I am very partial to their fake eyelashes. Admittedly, most of their lashes look downright strange, like spidery tentacles poking out of your eyeballs, some of them look really good and affordable since you could get 5 pairs for Dhs.20.

One thing I've finally realized is that your lashes shouldn't be shiny at all so as to look more natural. These lashes just cost Dhs.7 and are totally worth it 10 times over, I get around 5 to 7 uses out of each pair.

What: Daiso Lashes

Where: Mirdif City Center, Dubai Mall, Al Barsha Mall

How Much: Dhs7 - Dhs.9 for a pair

Why: Because good quality doesn't always have to be super expensive and made in Europe