Where does Lily Hoa Nguyen, co-founder & executive chef of Vietnamese Foodies dine out? 😋

In this month’s ‘Where Restaurateurs Eat’ column, I asked this super woman, of legendary beef pho fame (pronounced feu please 😜), to share her five go-to, favourite restaurants encompassing:

🔪 Three in the UAE
🔪 One in her home country
🔪 One located elsewhere internationally.

Click second link in bio, and stories to find her top picks 🔗 My newsletter tribe received this post in their inbox last week. Feel free to subscribe, if not already.

🔪As always, would love your nominations for female restaurateurs here leading their businesses🔪 You never know, they might not be on my radar - and could land themselves a feature here 🙏🏼 #WhereRestaurateursEat #UAERestaurantsUnite ...

Dearest Greg,

I am reeling from shock. How could you leave us so early? 💔

💔From the moment we first met when I interviewed you a decade ago in Dubai, your emotions not only poured out of your mouth, but onto the plate with every single dish you knocked up. All you wanted to do was feed people. I will cherish every single memory and bite over the last ten years.

💔You were always quick to participate in my dining experiences. And on one occasion, even putting your hand up for the dessert course. Other than pastry chefs obviously, it’s rare to find chefs keen to challenge themselves with pastry. Thanks to your talent, I fell in love with your desserts and would demolish every morsel.

💔Your art-filled homes were a haven for dinner parties. THAT salmon kibbeh nayyeh was legendary. And who knew you could pair Reblochon with Kalamata olives? You did, of course. On my first visit, I accidentally wandered into your bedroom when looking for the toilet, only to stumble upon glorious copper pots perched on your bed. You lived and breathed cooking.

💔A trip to Lebanon where we bonded over Massaya’s wines and your endless cooking. I spotted a seasonal fruit and vegetable calendar that you insisted on buying for me. It sits forever framed in my kitchen.

💔The grandest of restaurant openings, Cle, where you couldn’t care less about Khloe Kardashian and Paris Hilton. Or the free-flow vintage Dom Perignon. Actually you did care about that one🥂😉 You simply wanted to cook for us.

💔But your cooking was so often misunderstood. Because you were brave to challenge Lebanese cuisine, and with a few expert tweaks, created a whole new cooking style that revolutionised “Middle Eastern” cuisine forever. Not only were you the master of Middle Eastern cuisine, but the master of flavour. You may be gone but your talent lives on with your protégées @trotskie @bethanykehdy and every single chef you have mentored.

💔Greg, I raise a glass to you and your loved ones. Only DP🥂for you. Thank you for being you, my fellow Arian. I will forever miss you. May the angels guard you until we meet again. Gutted I won’t see you next week. Samantha. x @gregmaloufchef #gregmalouf ...

International accolades from Michelin and 50 Best have catapulted Palestinian chef-owner Salam Dakkak’s @bait.maryam in JLT to stardom. Seven years after opening her first baby, her second-born @sufretmaryam in Jumeirah’s Wasl 51 complex pays tribute to the Levant region with a compact, elevated menu of meze plates - in contrast to the cosy charm and mammoth selection at the OG.

A pause here to flag the use of the words ‘Levantine’ and ‘Levant’ and their colonial adoption. Something I had never considered until I saw chef, cookbook author and historian @bethanykehdy ‘s recent video and article. All linked in my newsletter on this new opening, emailed to my tribe yesterday - see second link in bio, and stories 🔗 So will you join me in referencing this cuisine as Shami?

This is NOT a restaurant review. Why? A couple of reasons.

🍉 I broke my rule of visiting new restaurants in their opening month. In line with my editorial policy, I like to give new openings a month or so to settle in and iron out any teething issues. However, I was keen to include Sufret Maryam in a feature that I wrote for an international publication - and paid it a visit a month ago.

🍉 Palestinian-owned restaurants can benefit from as much love and custom (i.e. paying the bill) as we can shower upon them. So whilst I find it hard to turn off my critical eye and palate anywhere I eat, it’s unfair to willingly dish out criticism to restaurants whose owners, families and friends are suffering from a genocide. 🇵🇸 #UAERestaurantsUnite ...

🇵🇭What do you do when you land in Manila during a typhoon?🇵🇭

Eat, shop, eat 😜

We arrive in Manila as a typhoon lashes through the capital. Fortunately, our plane lands right at the start, before Gaemi, as she (or he, or they?) is named, gathers pace, as she certainly does over our three-day stay.

We’re staying in Makati, the business district, which isn’t as affected as other parts of the city, and the rest of the Philippines. But we are forced to skip the sightseeing across town, and remain glued to this bougie neighbourhood, eating and shopping. Not exactly a hardship. And my kind of city break.

I am ashamed to admit that this visit is my first to Manila (and the Philippines), en route to a wellness retreat, @thefarmatsanbenito - less than a two hour drive. Even Filipino friends downplay the capital, claiming the city is far from tourist-friendly, whilst encouraging everyone to prioritise one or two of the gazillion islands. But I am suitably impressed. Chaotic Bangkok meets pristine Singapore.

Here’s a culinary travel guide with everything we soak up. Almost literally too. Sheltered from the rain. Link in bio & stories 🔗

This guide landed in the inbox of my newsletter tribe. Feel free to sign up for future posts, if not already 🙏🏼

Any other restaurant tips for Manila? Pop these here so everyone can benefit 😋

#ManilaRestaurants #Philippines #PhilippinesDiva ...

Where does Natasha Sideris, the CEO & founder of @tashasgroup that owns @avlibytashas @bungalo34 and @flamingoroomae amongst many restaurants dine out? 😋

In this month’s ‘Where Restaurateurs Eat’ column, I asked this super woman for her five go-to, favourite restaurants encompassing:

🔪 Three in the UAE
🔪 One in her home country
🔪 One located elsewhere internationally. She might have shared more!

Click link in bio and stories to find her top picks 🔗 My Substack tribe received this newsletter in their inbox. Feel free to subscribe, if not already.

🔪Would love your nominations for female restaurateurs here leading their businesses🔪 You never know, they might not be on my radar - And could land themselves a feature here 😜 #WhereRestaurateursEat #UAERestaurantsUnite ...

I rarely have a dud meal when travelling. Why? Because I spend weeks researching restaurants and must-try dishes. Often spending more time on trawling local recommendations than the actual travel. But I love this immersion. Top tip: don’t ever saunter out of your hotel in the hope of stumbling upon a charming neighbourhood joint. You’re guaranteed to end up in a tourist trap.

🇦🇿 Baku, the capital of Azerbaijan, a former Soviet Republic has been on my bucket list for a while, so with direct FlyDubai flights in under three hours, and the added bonus of the same time zone as Dubai, we book a three-night Eid break. Overlooking the Caspian sea, this East meets West country is flanked by four nations - Russia, Georgia, Armenia and Iran. The language, to me, sounds like a Turkish-Persian hybrid - reflected in the culinary scene. Baku cleverly manages to juxtapose the old (think UNESCO World Heritage sites) and the new (think Dubai-like skyscrapers) to create an impressive, pristine walking city. The city hosts the F1, and later this year Cop29.

🔗 The culinary travel guide linked in my stories and bio covers tried and tasted recommendations for restaurants with must-try dishes, hotels, sightseeing tips and general housekeeping (visa, weather and the like). I have added all these tips to a Google maps link.

You’ll also find my do’s and don’ts for researching restaurants that may help with any upcoming travel. This post was first shared with my newsletter tribe yesterday 🙏🏼 Feel free to subscribe, if not already.

If you’ve visited Baku, please do share your recommendations here so others can benefit. Any Azeri restaurants here in Dubai? 🇦🇿♥️ #ExperienceAzerbaijan #VisitAzerbaijan #BakuDiva

@burcqala
@qaynana_restaurant
@laquzubaku
@chaykirestaurant
@sahil_baku
@marivannabaku
@bakucaviar
@centralbakuaz
@coffee_gallery_baku
@themerchant_baku
@nergizrestoran
@dolma.restaurant
@shirvanshah
@sumakhrestaurant
@pauls_baku_2003
@etudbaku
@experienceazerbaijan ...

If you don’t know chef @akmalanuarofficial - then you should. He’s the ex-chef patron of 3Fils, a game-changing concept that, arguably, kickstarted the Dubai trend for independent, chef-led unlicensed restaurants. He moved on to open Goldfish and 11 Woodfire, each with different business partners - and now Osteria FunkCoolio @funkcoolio in the riviera-style complex of Dubai’s @port.de.lamer

The dictionary definition of osteria is a ‘simple, in-expensive Italian restaurant’ - and often a wine bar. Well none of these apply to chef Akmal’s latest baby. But I reckon FunkCoolio is a more apt descriptor. For a giggle, try saying the name quickly, and you have an Italian swear word. I knew my private Italian school lessons would eventually pay off. Intentional or not, you gotta love the mystique, wit and irreverence.

The food promises ‘itameshi’ - a fusion cuisine, originally from Japan, that combines traditional elements of Japanese with Italian food. The cooking veers towards Italian dishes with Akmal’s trademark Japanese culinary style using premium, pricey ingredients. Oh…and there’s no🍷 in this unlicensed district.

🔗 Link in stories and bio for a read. Shared first with my newsletter tribe yesterday 🙏🏼

How many of Akmal’s restaurants have you tried? Any favourites? 😋 #UAERestaurantsUnite #foodivareviews ...

We have a new UK prime minister, but in far more groundbreaking news, we have 21 additions to this year’s @michelinguide Dubai, one restaurant that has risen to star level, and three downgrades. I abstained from the big reveal last night at @ooonezaabeel to watch online and pen a special edition newsletter with my analysis and opinion - including feedback from a Michelin inspector on how they as a team decide where to eat in Dubai.

Are the stars aligned? Link in stories and bio 🔗

I’d like to please take a moment to remind everyone for the gazillionth time (chefs, publicists and journalists in particular) that stars are awarded to the restaurants, NOT the chefs. So a chef can leave a restaurant, like Teible for example, and still retain the star. As Michelin itself confirms, the term ‘Michelin chef’ is factually incorrect. Rant over, for now.

Mabrouk to all the awarded restaurants and their teams 👏🏼💫

So please tell me, any restaurant haunts of yours that you feel should have made the cut? You never know, the decision makers might take note for next year 😜 #MichelinStar24 #MichelinGuideDXB #michelinguide #UAERestaurantsUnite ...

Where does @nehaanand - the founder & MD of @threelayerhospitality that owns @junsdubai eat? 😋

In this month’s ‘Where Restaurateurs Eat’ column, I asked this super woman for her five go-to, favourite restaurants encompassing:

🔪 Three in the UAE
🔪 One in her home country
🔪 One located elsewhere internationally

Click link in bio and stories to find her top picks 🔗 My Substack community received this newsletter last week. Feel free to subscribe, if not already.

🔪Would love your nominations for female restaurateurs here leading their businesses🔪 You never know, they might not be on my radar 😜 And could land themselves a feature here. #WhereRestaurateursEat #UAERestaurantsUnite #foodiva ...

Whilst I have been publishing restaurant reviews on my FooDiva website for over 13 years, new reviews are now housed on my Substack newsletter. You can still use my site as your first port of call when searching for restaurants, as I will link into these posts.

A reminder that all my reviews continue to abide by my no-freebies, no-invitations editorial policy. It’s quite simple - I always pay the bill. No receipt means no review and no mention here. These reviews moving forward are dedicated to paid subscribers only. My email community received this newsletter yesterday. If you’ve ever enjoyed my reviews, you may like to upgrade (thanks to those who already have), which also gives you a bunch of additional perks including direct access to me…and my dining wisdom! Your contribution really does help grow my Substack, allowing me to continue discovering new restaurants for you. And to top it all off, you’ll have my forever love 🙏🏼

When I am selecting restaurants to review, aside from my homegrown-only criterion, I tend to run a mile from those inviting all and sundry for freebie meals. But…the menu at a new Dubai restaurant in the @citywalkdubai licensed district has me intrigued. @theraredxb by restaurateur @thesahilanand who opened (and closed) CMP on the Palm is not a typical steakhouse. Whilst eight steaks will battle for your order, it’s the rest of the menu that has me drooling. The influence of consultant chef, New Zealander @eatsbyblake who you may recall from Lowe, is evident with his trademark style of quirky ingredients and unconventional pairings.

So I book a Sunday lunch (under a pseudonym, of course), purposely avoiding dinner - the meal of choice for the invitees, from what I spot online. I manage to sneak in and out completely anon, which makes my job so much easier. The question I ask (and answer) in my review: does Rare “enchant and engage” as its website promises?

🔗 Link in stories and bio for more - and swipe for videos/ pics.

You may have noticed that I refrained from ordering steak - the easiest dish to cook at home 😜 So tell me, do you seek out restaurants to feast on steak? #UAERestaurantsUnite #foodiva ...