The taste of love and butter

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The taste of love and butter

Our quest for good breakfast places in Dubai might just have found its end-of-the-tunnel light at Clinton St. Baking Company & Restaurant

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Published: Thu 3 Dec 2015, 11:00 PM

Last updated: Fri 11 Dec 2015, 9:09 AM

The Burj Views in Downtown GF01 is probably not the place to stick arguably one of the best brekkie places in Dubai. Then again, we're just glad Clinton St. Baking Company and Restaurant is here - one of just four in the world, the others being in their home base of NYC, Singapore and Tokyo. It's a welcome respite from the garish and noisy brunches that have become a sort of national pastime here and an anomaly in the way franchises work here. And that Fried Chicken and Waffle! You're probably thinking, "who in their right minds.", and I'mma let you finish, but Clinton St.'s chicken and waffles is unbeatable. But we'll get to that soon enough.
In NYC, this humble little bakery (located on 4 Clinton St.) started as the dream of husband and wife Neil and DeDe, serving fresh baked parcels of love and butter (because butter makes everything better) to their few loyal customers. Before long, they were swarmed by the city's residents, lining the streets for hours to get a table and a bite of their famous pancakes - twice voted best in the city! There are no lines in Dubai, however - patience is not quite a virtue here, yet - but what we like is that this franchise is operated by folks who truly care about the quality that the founders abide by, making this a near exact replica of the original. Sadly, the same cannot be said of the hundreds of other brand imports to the city.

The décor is minimalistic and functional. Nothing's ostentatious and there's no fancy mood lighting. The staff is incredibly good - some of the best servers in Dubai - and know the menu, so if you're ever struggling to make up your mind, just ask. Everything is made to order and from ingredients that are physiologically different to the stuff you get pretty much anywhere else in the city - meaning, it tastes like it's real. We started off with the famed Pancakes with Warm Maple Butter and the Eggs Benedict Florentine, with a couple of lattes on the side. The missus wasn't feeling the chocolate chunks, so the pancakes were laced with bananas and walnuts, instead. That maple butter is stuff of legends, and that mellow sweetness from the maple syrup mixed with the natural saltiness of good quality butter makes it the perfect pancake accompaniment. The pancakes were light and fluffy - and huge! More than enough for one person.

The eggs Benedict was also spot on - FYI, and I think I've mentioned this before, a breakfast place should always be judged by how it can cook its eggs; in this case, medium and cooked through, but runny enough to sop up with delicious buttermilk biscuits. They're a tad sweeter than the more traditional English muffin, but the texture you get from buttermilk is much more delicate. The missus ordered herself the Clinton St. Omelette with spinach and goat cheese, which was again, perfectly cooked and not a horrible mess to eat like some of the other stuffed omelettes in town just heaving with so much filling that it turns into a goopy mess. Meanwhile, I ordered the talk-of-the-town Fried Chicken and Waffle. What is it? It's a crispy Belgian waffle - again, made from a buttermilk batter - and a buttermilk and honey Tabasco marinated crisp-fried butterflied chicken breast, served with more of that delicious warm maple butter. I think I saw happy stars from my first bite, and even the suspicious looks from the missus across the table as to the ludicrous combination, turned to expressions of approval once she had a taste.
The only caveat with all of this is the price. If we're all supposed to be embracing eating healthy and organic (pretty much everything on the menu is organic and sourced locally as much as possible), this food shouldn't be more expensive than much cheaper alternatives that are bad for you. Clinton St., in effect, can influence the way we eat - at least breakfast - by offering their style of tasty, clean food at much more affordable prices, and drive a mini-food revolution. But as it stands, it's rather overpriced, which is counterproductive to the whole eating healthy movement.
What we liked: The outstanding quality of the food and the service
What we didn't like: The prices are a tad extortionist - Dh60 for a stack of pancakes is a bit much
Cost for two: Dh300
Contact: Clinton Street Baking Company and Restaurant, GF01, Burj Views, Downtown Dubai, Dubai. Ph: 04 5509114
rohit@khaleejtimes.com 


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