Thirsty? New Dubai spot serves 'gourmet water' in 30 varieties

First, it was the banana-randomberry-wheat grass smoothies. Then the cold brew, triple-shot, something-milk lattes.

Now, a new bar in Dubai, the Middle Eastern hub of all things cutting-edge, is serving “gourmet water.” Thirty varieties of it.

The Aqua Water Bar by Luqel harvests its water the old-fashioned way — from the faucet. The government says tap water is safe to drink and meets international standards.

Then, they use a micro-dosing system designed by the German water filtration company Luqel to inject minerals. They offer to match the mineralisation of high-end water brands, catering to all types of water fans, Alpine or Arctic-sourced.

“Our water sommeliers have designed the drinks to suit your needs and mood,” says Roia Jabari, the managing director. “We can give you the perfectly mineralised recipe.”

“Runners Heaven,” which is high in sodium and potassium, is designed for joggers recovering from the scorching desert heat. “Vegan’s Choice” offers minerals that could be lacking in a strictly herbivorous diet. Customers can fill up their bottles with any of the mineral blends for around 50 cents per 500 millilitres (16 fluid ounces) or pay more for mocktails.

It’s not an entirely new concept.

Bottlers have long marketed water extracted from natural springs or remote mountains. Coke and Pepsi got in on the action years ago, adding sweeteners and fizz as they competed with Evian and Perrier, blurring the lines between water and soda.

Such products have grown popular as consumers embrace healthier lifestyles.

Bottled water is the most widely consumed beverage in the United States, with the average American drinking 46.5 gallons a year, compared to 36 gallons of soft drinks, according to the Beverage Marketing Corporation, a consulting group. But it’s rare to find a bar that specialises in water, rather than offering it free of charge to patrons.

A water bar serving what it said was heavily filtered New York City tap water opened in the city's East Village in 2012, prompting a torrent of criticism. Another briefly opened in Washington, DC in 2019, to less than rave reviews. Neither appears to have stayed open for very long.

Best place for the trend?

But Dubai, an ultra-modern metropolis built on desert sands, could be fertile ground for the trend.

Jabari insists that the water bar, although frequented by suited businessmen who work in the surrounding Dubai Media City, is not only for wealthy patrons, saying the water, costing Dh2 or 54 U.S. cents per 500ml (or around 16.9 fl oz), isn’t too expensive.

In a nod to sustainability, customers can either fill their bottles or purchase reusable ones starting at around Dh9. “One of the things that are like scraping a chalkboard for me is seeing people walking around with plastic bottles,” said Jabari.

• Dubai Can reduces use of over 10 million plastic water bottles