Bagels in Riyadh

Out by Granada Mall, next door to Centerpoint is a small, clean, tidy eatery that you may not give a second glance as you drive by, nestled as it is amongst the older small business shops around it. But if you love dense, chewy, handmade bagels then stop here you should.

Circles & Circles sells bagels. And coffee. But mostly bagels.  Freshly baked, round and chewy - just how I like them. 

I fell in like with bagels over 20 years ago.  Chewy and dense they were a bread with substance.  I've come across a lot of poor imitations since then.  New Zealand and Australia are fabulous places to live, but they don't really do Bagels.  The mass produced product that big business bakeries churn out should not be allowed to  put the word 'Bagel' on the packet!  Thin, weak and lacking any oomph, they are a total disappointment. 

I actually got to the point where I began to doubt the clarity of my memory with that first bagel experience.  Did I dream that big thick doughy bread!.  Today, at last, I found a bagel that I could say, 'Yes, this is how I remember Bagels'.   

They bagels are baked fresh each day in a little oven out the back.  The young bloke serving assured me that if I turned up around 7a.m. I could take photo's of him mixing the dough.  Much as I like taking photo's of my food, I also like sleep so those pics may be a while in coming.

I ordered a bagel with Halloumi and lots of other goodies as well as a couple of plain circles to take home and munch on later in the day.  To top off my morning, I was allowed to sit and eat in the shop, at the tables.  What a bonus.  I felt like a real person!   And the coffee was pretty good too.  Head out to Circles & Circles and see what you think.

Ka Kite,
Kiwi

Kitchenation has got to be the funkiest looking cafe in Riyadh.  I can't  believe it has taken me so long to find the place given it is in Tahalia Street.  Granted it is tucked away in the new Mira Hotel, between the more outdoorsy eateries of Zaatar wa Zeit and Elevation Burger.  It has also only been open in the last five months and in the past month I have been back twice - once alone, once with a group.

Walking through the reception area to the cafe you almost think 'this is going to be a boring, same old hotel cofffee shop'.  But when you walk around the corner and the color jumps out at you almost making you to stop and go 'Whoa'.   When I stepped over the threshold into the cafe proper for the first time I couldn't help smiling at the eclectic collection of colored chairs and cushions around wooden tables.  On the walls are shelves with a seemingly random display of knick-knackery, some old and historical looking, some used and pre-loved looking.  In their midst is a scroll of brown paper onto which is written philosophical sayings.  It's all quite eye-catching and well, funky.  Funky is not usually a word used to describe anything in Saudi.

On one side of the cafe is a counter with an array of sweets that you have to look at twice, just to make sure you were seeing things properly as each one is displayed on a colorful set of mis-matched trays and bases, with the sweets only identifiable by their hand written names on chunks of wood.  The pavlova dreams are huge.  As are the macaroons sitting in their crafty container that I still can't decide is a snake or hollowed out turtle!

The menu is just as colorful and has an almost childlike quality with quite an extensive selection for a hotel cafe.  Once seated the place mats are an entertaining game that keeps you occupied and engaged in laughter and conversation until your meals arrive.

As hotel food goes, it's pretty good - tasty and  well presented.  The Crispy Shrimp and the Crispy Shrimp Salad were both quite satisfying as Appetizers and perfectly cooked.  The Chicken Strips are good to share with others.  The pizzas are huge and a Doggy bag was required by our group at the end of our meal.  Being on a bit of a diet the day I went with friends I opted for Chicken Caesar and liked having the breast of chicken at the side of my plate, juicily waiting for me to add it to the salad myself.

Not being on my diet the day I went alone, desert was an absolute eye-candy treat.  And wouldn't you know it, that is precisely when my phone ran out of battery, so I didn't get to take a photo of it.  I'd chosen the smaller pavlova dream served with fruit and it came presented on a platter artfully decorated into a chocolate and sauce flower.  I sat looking at it for a few minutes wondering if I should go and recharge the phone to take a photo - and decided perhaps I could come back another day for this desert and make sure I bring my camera!

I've enjoyed not only my meals at Kitchenation, but the environment.  It would be great if the funky surrounds also came with relaxed smiling service.  Not that the service didn't come with a smile.  It did.  But it's just that this is Saudi Arabia and the wait staff in most dining spots always look in fear of losing their jobs if they say something wrong or drop a fork.  A bit of jocularity along with the Kitchenation order taking wouldn't go amiss in one of the more distinctive cafe's I have come across in Riyadh.





Ka Kite,
Kiwi

Lunch at Ketchup

Have you been to Ketchup lately? I know it may have received less than rave reviews from me in the past, but they have done a bit if work on their menu, food quality and even their decor so the saucy red interior isn't quite so saucy. And they have a new set lunch menu that I've been back for more than once.

For a set menu there are three price levels,  from 39 - 59sar, and each level has three meal choices.  The lunch consists of a drink, (choosing from a number of fruit juices or sodas), breads, soup (with two types on offer), a small salad and the mains. 

The more you decide to pay, the more substantial the meal. Today I had the 39SAR with club sandwich and it was more than enough to satisfy my hunger. 

If you are looking for lunch in pleasant enough, often quiet surrounds (as not many people rock up here for lunch) give Ketchup a go.  Let me know what you think. 

Your's in Moblogging Joy

Kiwi