Top Table

Heady excitement today, a brand spanking new restaurant is opening...IN MY BUILDING!  The last apartment had a plethora of shops within the complex: Spinney's, Caribou Coffeee, Krispy Kreme Donuts (lethal), a hairdressers and spa, and a bank.  All v useful.  The new place promises all of these treats, with empty retail units below, but after six months, there'd been no sign of life: until now.  In true Dubai style it's taken little over a month for a completely empty shell of a space to be transformed into a fully functioning restaurant.  Having been a little starved (excuse the pun) of such treats, we've all been watching its progress with much anticipation.

Arz Lebanon, is, according to my Leb chums, a fabulous restaurant.  As a huge fan of fatoush, shish taouk and hoummous, I'm extremely excited that this is but a short elevator ride from my front door.  I'm also sure that they'll deliver - which may sound extremely lazy, but when it's 50 degrees outside and you're struggling with a huge hangover, this is a good option to have on speed dial.

This morning the final touches were being added, a vast spread of beautiful outdoor furniture, and enough foliage and flowers to fill a small garden centre.  As I trotted past on my way to work it struck me that in Manchester, this would have been stolen, torched, or defecated on in the time it takes to say "don't you think we should put all this furntiure inside until we open?".  God bless Dubai.

The Lofts residents are now eagerly awaiting the actual opening, with the promise of many happy evenings sat outside watching the boulevard traffic roar by, with the world's tallest building as a backdrop.  If only they had a licence!