Walk down memory lane at this nostalgic Dubai brunch

The thrill of standing next to the bustling traffic with one puri in your mouth, the other in your hand, and eyeing the third that the vendor almost has ready, is unbeatable.

Still, Dubai never holds back in giving us the best, and every once in a while, a culinary experience takes us back to our home towns. Recently, it was visiting Indian restaurant Shamiana, hailing from the famous Taj Mahal Palace in Mumbai, that evoked a strong sense of nostalgia. We tried the ‘Nostalgic Brunch’ — a memorable experience for many reasons.

Located on the fourth floor of Taj Jumeirah Lakes Towers, the lobby preceding the entrance to Shamiana was elegant, as was the contemporary furnishing inside the restaurant paired with jolly Indian music. The venue also boasts of having a terrace overlooking the skyline of Dubai Marina — an Instagammable spot for diners.

The Nostalgic Brunch is a buffet that’s on from 12.30pm to 4pm, every Friday. It offers a variety of pan-Indian starters, mains, desserts, and live stations to satisfy your chaat, tava kebabs, or falooda cravings.

We could not help but begin our nostalgic expedition with our favourite childhood beverages like Kadhi Kairi ka Ras, Thandai, Kokum Sherbet, and of course, the good old glass of fresh sugarcane juice at the live stations. Refreshed, we proceeded towards the chaat corner to enjoy a plate of sev puris (a personal favourite) and were far from disappointed. But, we cannot say the same for the pani puri, another fan favourite snack, that turned out to be rather tasteless and bland.

Next, we had to select from an extensive range of scrumptious starters including Murg Makhmali Tikka, Achari Paneer Tikka, Vegetable Shami Kebab, Ajwaini Jheenga (prawns), and Lamb Gilafi Seekh Kebab. With the right amount of spice, these starters were tasty and quite filling, leaving little space for the mains.

husain@khaleejtimes.com