Who’s FooDiva?
Who’s FooDiva? A British-Greek-Cypriot foodie resident of Dubai for 25 years, she ditched the corporate hospitality PR world in 2011 to set up her own business – this impartial restaurant review website, FooDiva, which has collected a steady stream of awards:
- Power 50 by Caterer Middle East 2020; 2019; and 2017
- Top 100 Dubai websites to follow – the highest ranked food website
- Ahlan Hot 100 influencer 2016 and 2015
- Best Food Blogger in the BBC Good Food Awards 2015
- ProChef Middle East Food Ambassador 2014
- Expat Star Awards 2013
- Gold in Expat Blog Awards UAE 2013 and 2012
- Runner-up Best Blog in Dubai, Ahlan 2011
FooDiva has featured prolifically in local and international broadcast, print and online media including guest segments on CNN Culinary Journeys, CNN Go’s Dubai travel programme, France 5’s travel show on Dubai, Dubai One TV and a regular radio spot on Dubai Eye 103.8FM.
With a gap in the market for a website and newsletter dedicated to impartial restaurant reviews with a no-freebies, no-invitation policy, FooDiva brings you her very own critique on where to dine and what to eat. Aside from restaurant reviews, you’ll find food features, drink stories and culinary travel.
More here on FooDiva’s editorial policy. You can subscribe for free here to the Substack newsletter or just type what you’re looking for in the search function, and the relevant reviews will pop up. FooDiva also offers a restaurant recommendation and foodie itinerary service, explained here.
At the start of the pandemic, she launched a pro bono social media campaign, #UAERestaurantsUnite to support the F&B industry, which has since morphed into a long-term strategy championing the country’s homegrown dining scene.
FooDiva curates ticketed and bespoke chef-led #ThreeChefsDinner and #DineAroundDubai experiences, whilst also organising events and B2B fam trips for industry trade, chefs and media.
She is a freelance food/ travel writer (click here for her portfolio of feature articles), a Board Advisor to the UAE Restaurants Group, a member of the global writers association The Guild of Food Writers, and holds a WSET Level 2 wine and spirits qualification. She is a regular speaker and panellist on her favourite subjects – food, restaurants and communications – as well as an industry awards judge. With her other hat, she provides opinion-driven strategic consultancy to F&B and hospitality businesses.
If you’d like to get in touch directly or through social media, you can find FooDiva here. She would love to hear from you 🙂
A bientôt.
FooDiva. x
Sam!
Love your site. You know I hate stuff like this normally but having seen your site I am now hooked! Really great and I look forward to more updates.
Only one small complaint – thought you would have covered the dinner party in Garhoud but obviously it did not make the cut.
🙁
Still love you though!
Bx
Thanks for loving FooDiva!
I was off duty that night…but yes I should have. The food and the chef certainly deserved a posting. Invite me back and I will review it!
x
This is a great initiative and it will not be long before your following reaches 4 figures and then the sky is the limit.
Thanks for following FooDiva. I so hope so too! x
Petit chat x
Thanks for keeping me entertained.
I always do chuckle when I follow u!
x
I love that you love FooDiva! Feel free to subscribe too. x
I can’t wait to share the culinary discoveries we’ll be making in a few weeks!!
Quite! The prospect of all that fresh meat is already making me drool. Lots to share on FooDiva. x
Can’t wait for more reviews…..
Another one coming shortly…x
Love the blog – interesting, informative and not preachy – tough to achieve but you do it perfectly. Will be checking in regularly xx
Coming from such a discerning journalist, I am truly very flattered – thank you! x
Congratulations on a great site. Have fun in Kenya and looking forward to catching up in 2011.
Festive wishes FooDiva friends! Thank you for all your positive feedback. I’ll be sure to keep you entertained.
x
Sam
Congratulations to your new website. Brilliant idea. We love it and will be regular guests. Merry x-mas and a happy New Year
all very good and its very nice idea and i wishing all
best
Sam
If you run across a decent US Prime Rib of Beef in your culinary adventures in either DXB or any other gastro scene worldwide please look over the Chef’s shoulder for a sneak view of the recipe and let us know by return. It‘s literally unknown and not available in our part of the world … even the Mövenpick’s appear to ignore it ……or do a modest job only when trying to go US once in a while. Thks
Gutenmorgen Mr Angstman!
Most steakhouses here in Dubai serve US prime rib of beef. It’s a permanent fixture on both Gary Rhodes’ Twenty10 and also West 14th’s menus which I recently reviewed. I’ll be in touch with a recipe.
x
Hi FooDiva! Just stumbled across your blog and noticed you were at Suzanne’s book launch at Bloomingdale’s —so was I!!! I bought two copies. In case you were wondering, she has a facebook page here:
http://www.facebook.com/suzannehusseini
All the best my dear 🙂
Nadia
Hi Nadia,
It’s a small foodie world indeed!
Best wishes,
x
Enjoyed meeting you at Kichwa Tembo! Your website is wonderful and I look forward to perusing it regularly.
Happy new year David. Many thanks for the compliment and thanks for subscribing.
The safari seems so long ago…must get a copy of your rhino photos!
Great site, easy on the eye, whoever did your design did a professional job! I think u’ll do well and if you have a big following maybe lots of free dinners! x
Thank you! Believe it or not, it’s pretty much self-designed with some help from a web design team. FooDiva is looking forward to your visit, and our nights out! x
This website is impressive. So many interesting articles and useful tips. The collaboration with Round Menu is a great idea. FooDiva is truly making a mark on the Dubai scene.
Thank you! Great feedback helps spur me on. Plenty more to come. X
Hi there Samantha!
My name is Steve Walters and I recently started blogging at http://www.eatingbangkok.com, which is currently being updated with recipes, but in the next few months will be my vehicle for covering the food and restaurant scene in Bangkok Thailand.
I am now in the process of meeting as many food bloggers as I can and I found your site http://foodiva.net recently and was pretty impressed. I’ve added your site to my Foodie Blogs list here: http://www.eatingbangkok.com/foodie-blogs/ and would also like to add you to my blogroll.
If you could add my site to your blogroll and write back to let me know it has been added I will add you to mine as well and the exchange would be greatly appreciated!
As you might imagine I am very excited to get moved to Bangkok and get started on covering the food scene there as I feel it is an area that isn’t well covered by English speaking bloggers. I plan on adding loads of great reviews, pictures and even video and will be holding contests as well. It should be fun, entertaining and informative for everyone that visits.
Thank you so much in advance for adding me to your blogroll and I look forward to reading your posts (I’ve subscribed!) and maybe even featuring some of your own posts as I do plan on a weekly roundup of Thai themed recipes and posts from other food bloggers.
Warm regards,
Steve
P.S. If you are on Twitter I would love to have you as a follower and I follow back:
http://www.twitter.com/eatingbangkok
Hello Steve,
Am so glad you reached out to me. I too am making contact with food bloggers here in Dubai and around the world.
Bangkok is one of my favourite cities in the world, with such a fabulous food scene, lucky you!
Thanks for adding FooDiva to your listing, I have reciprocated as well. We’ll follow each other on Twitter too (@foodivaworld).
I don’t see your email in my subscriber database, did you get a confirmation? Feel free to email me direct on srcwood@emirates.net.ae
Here’s to lots of foodie adventures!
Best,
Samantha
Would love to have your email 🙂
we have an event coming up and i’d like to know if you’ll be interested to be part of that.
Regrads,
Rana
Dear Foodiva, I just heard that the Benkay Restaurant and Lounge has finally opened at the 49th floor atop the JAL Tower on SZR. Three levels of (hopefully) Japanese authenticity. Can’t wait to read your review, when you will be able to fit it in!
Ooh how lovely – let’s add it to the list, along with the new Greek kebab joint in Jumeirah!
Great site. Promoting the truth. No global franchise managing your content. Anyone who speaks the truth about what’s out there has to be good. The bottled water was interesting to me … of course. Nice that someone else is starting to point out where these bottled water companies get their water from. One of the great 21st century scams.
Neil
Thanks Neil. On your water comment, have you come across Elete Electrolyte Add-In? http://www.eletewater.ae Would welcome your thoughts.
Hi Samantha,
Love your site – we do the PR for some restaurants in the UAE and would love to invite you for some dinner. Where can I contact you?
Many Thanks,
Katie
Hi Sam
I must be the last person on earth to check out your site. It is fab though!
Just wished i lived in Dubai.
Looking forward to seeing and of course eating with you.
May your success carry on forever.
love
Vipasha
Thanks Vipasha. Can’t wait to see you next week – let me know what cuisine you’d prefer, or I can probably guess (Italian?) and FooDiva shall organise 🙂
Hi Samantha, I am running an Expat community website Casual Expat and will be happy to see your website in our Blog directory!
Please feel free to add it to http://casualexpat.com/uae/dubai/blogs. It’s free and easy.
Done Ilya! Thanks 🙂
Hi Anahid. Sorry your name doesn’t ring a bell, but my memory is awful anyway 🙁 I do vaguely remember Mr Floyd…
Congratulations for winning the 2nd place in the Best Blog in Dubai! As promised I tried digging your archives regarding your Nepal posts – couldn’t find an Archive. I would love to read on them. And thanks for leaving such a warm comment – it’s really motivating, specially for passionate bloggers like me. I do have lot of things buzzing in my head – lots of food ideas inspired by our travels and the people we have come across while travelling. My blog is still evolving and hope to touch many more nostalgia and emotions. The links to your Nepal posts please…
Thanks Ishita :). If you click search by category in the top right hand corner it takes you to a search page where you can just input Nepal. For easy reference here are the links to my four posts:
http://foodiva.net/2010/11/a-nepalese-namaste/
http://foodiva.net/2010/11/a-foodiva-peak/
http://foodiva.net/2010/11/an-indian-in-nepal/
http://foodiva.net/2010/11/foodivas-last-supper-in-nepal/
Note these are very early posts before I officially launched FooDiva so I was still finding my voice.
Thanks for dropping by. x
No worries FooDiva – we all go through our phases to find our own voices. I am always thinking of updating my earlier posts – not the write-ups but definitely the photographs. Went through all of them – seemed like I’m still on my Nepal travelogue – a bit of brushing up before I do a few more posts on Nepal before the sign-off!
Do drop in with comments and feedbacks – would love to hear from you:)
Hello?
This is AeHa who is international sales manager in angel juicer company Korea.
we are one of the best juicr in the world,
we are having exhibition in Abu Dhabi 21th~23th May 2012.
please come and hope you see our juicers.
Looking forward to seeing you in Abu Dhabi.
thanks.
please visit our website http://www.angel-juicer.co.kr.
Yay, another Cypriot in Dubai – there aren’t many of us! Absolutely love your site. Keep up the great work!
Oh wow Andrea – so true. Many Greeks here, but sadly not many Cypriots! Thanks for loving FooDiva. Efharisto. x
Hello ms Samantha,,, i happened to read the article where the ‘rude’ chef replied to your comments about the food, prices, wine at the newly opened restaurant in Dubai. I think he was out of line and extremely unprofessional. Not everyone has to like his food for whatever reason. With his vulgar response he has shown to us how crude he is. Hats off to you for handling this with grace, you are in my books a terrific ‘lady’. God bless you from Houston, TX
Thank you so much Rita – really appreciate you dropping by with this very kind comment. It’s not easy to take the higher ground, but I will not stoop to his behaviour. Sadly he sets a bad example for his industry when many of the chefs that I know both locally and internationally are charming individuals always on the look out for constructive feedback. The irony of this particular review was that the food actually impressed – perhaps it just got lost in translation 😉 x
Hi Lola. I am quite busy that week but perhaps we can have a chat. Feel free to call me when you’re here 050-4585139. Thanks.
Hi Foodiva,
First of all – I love your website! Just wanted to drop you an email saying hi – I’m the public relations executive at The Change Initiative. Not sure if you’re familiar with us. We’re a one stop shop for sustainable solutions. We also sell a lot of food and food products. We have a cafe called ‘The Taste Initiative’ as well. We’re located on Shaikh Zayed Road just a little further from MOE. Would love to invite you for our upcoming events.
Do send me your contact details so we can connect with you. Thanks!
Nikhita
050 3785915
Thanks Nikhita for connecting and loving FooDiva 🙂 I did review The Taste Initiative http://foodiva.net/2012/11/can-the-taste-initiative-champion-change-in-dubai/ – my email is samantha@foodiva.net Thanks.
Dear FooDiva,
Just been reading all your reviews and blogs about various eateries around Dubai. Have to admit the diversity of your taste and the accurate review about each.
Just wanted to let you know about our restaurant Donner Express.
I would like to invite you to our restaurant Donner Express to try the famous British style Donner kebabs, BBQ Grills and British Indian Curries. We are new and want people to know about us. We are located at Shop G83, Bay Avenue Mall, Executive Towers, Business Bay.
Looking forward for your visit…
Hi,
I hope you’re doing well. I came across your blog ‘FooDiva’ It looks quite interesting. My name is Roksar Kamal and I am from a PR agency. I’ve contacted you regarding a book launch and press conference thats taking place this week sometime soon. I would like to invite you to the book launch.
The event is related to food therefore the coverage will be great for your blog! Its for a high-end lifestyle book so would appreciate it if you could attend it. We are giving giveaways for bloggers as well. If youre interested in attending the event, you can mail me on roksarkamal_99@hotmail.com.
Thank you
Hi Food Diva,
Please provide me with a contact’s name to set up a meeting for possible business collaboration.
Regards,
Jalal George
You can find my email here. http://www.foodiva.net/find-foodiva/ Thanks.
Hi Samantha, I want to deliver something to you from 1762 Gourmet Deli. Would it be possible to send me your mobile number and delivery location please?
Thanks
Fiona Falconer
Dear foodiva,
My name is Joyce and I work for ExpatFinder.com.
ExpatFinder.com is a free one stop website for people preparing to move or working and living overseas. We provide a myriad of services for expatriates and we have over 2,000 articles to help and support the people moving around the world and we are now creating an interview section to help the expats with real life experiences!
We quite enjoy your blog about living in Dubai, it is very interesting and informative. Would it be possible to interview you to further share some of your tips and feature some of your first hand experience as an Expat and your interview will be published on our Expat Interview section as a guide for our expat readers. The questions are mainly about the day to day lifestyle of an expat. If it would be possible, could you also send some photographs that we can use?
Of course, if you accept, we can add a link to your blog or some of your website.
The questions are enclosed, feel free to respond freely. You can return the doc with your answers if you accept this invitation.
Thanks in advance and do let me know if you prefer other means to conduct this interview and we would be happy to accommodate your terms.
Best regards,
Joyce
Loved your site.
Also, we are hosting a business brunch with the CEO of Fatburger on April 20.
Really want you to be there.
Where can I send the formal invite.
Cheers!
Dear Foodiva,
We are looking for a well established blogger for our travel site: http://www.dubai.com
The blogger would be the main contributor and be responsible for growing subscribers/readers/advertising revenue on our blog.
The main objective of the blog would be to provide our readership with up-to date reviews/news of all the latest activities, entertainment and nightlife Dubai has to offer!
Think Time Out Dubai and you get the idea…
We are looking for someone who is good with people, photography and writing.
They will be working remotely, communicating with our Europe office to make sure we have the best coverage of events in Dubai.
Let me know if the above is of interest, and we can arrange a phone call to discuss further.
Look forward to hear from you.
Kind regards,
Jacques
Media Manager
TravelAgents.com Dubai.com Prague.com RioDeJaneiro.com Malaga.com
+44-207-193-3767 (T)
+44-798-675-6423 (M)
jacques@travelagents.com
http://www.travelagents.com
Hi Foodiva,
I got to know about you through my friend. I felt very impressive about your page. I like very much the theme color and design. I have a restaurant in RAK which you posted in your page upcoming restaurant in RAK. Name is Marina Muse. Plz come to my restaurant someday if you have any plan to come to RAK. I want to show you that in RAK we also have quality food and drinks. Have a nice day.