Our Opera Mall Wishlist

Somehow we missed the news that the new Opera Mall will feature a Bice restaurant. This is good news. Although they are a chain, Bice restaurants are renowned for there good quality, upscale Italian cooking. If they get things right here in Muscat, they should be able to compete with the likes of Tuscany and Capri Court.It is to be hoped, of course, that this restaurant is going to be licensed.

Now that the Opera Mall is apparently beginning to shape up, it is a fun exercise to think up a short wish list of venues that we would love to see in this mall.

1. Carluccio's
A chain of restaurants and foodshops, initiated by the Italian-British cook Antonio Carluccio. Simple, but well made Italian food, in a relaxed setting. There are already three Carluccio restaurants in Dubai, where they are a success. Next to the food, we are also looking forward to the foodshop, where you can find a fine selection of products, from olive oils to pasta, and from vongoles to pesto. Definitely something that is still missed in Muscat.

2. Jones the Grocer
More or less the same setup as Carluccio's, but with a bonus: an incredible cheese selection. This Australian concept has expanded to Abu Dhabi, and will soon see its first outlet in Dubai. We've been to the original Abu Dhabi outlet, and it has a great, lively atmosphere. Great for lunch, or just a quick cup of coffee. The food store offers a wide selection of products, including coffee (and coffee machines), jams, and much more. The seperate cheese room is a great experience. You'll be able to buy a variety of high quality cheese, unlike anything else available here in Oman. If Jones would decide to expand to Muscat, we will be regulars.

3. Bistro Vue
If Shannon Bennett still doesn't want to end his Omani adventure after the closure of Vue, we can very much recommend him to re-launch the Vue brand in a bistro setting. He has one already in Australia. Classic French dishes, served with the Bennett flair, but without the pretence (and price tag) of the Vue restaurant, as it was in the Al Bustan Hotel.

4. Oscar's Vine Society
Although we had a fair bit of criticism during our visit to this Dubai wine bar some two years ago, we would still like to see it (or something like it) here in Oman. Basicly, it is just a relaxed place, with a decent selection of wines by the glass and per bottle. Something we don't have here in Oman, and that we would love to see. A possibility for a liqour license is quite obviously a must, but the same goes for Bice as far as we are concerned.

It is probably too good to be true to have any of these here, but we can all dream, can't we?

Les Saveurs d'Ici et d'Ailleurs

We told you about the Saveurs du Terroir evenings in the InterContinental Hotel before. If you are a true lover of food, you will surely have visited one of these evenings.

There was a temporary hold on these evenings after the former Resident Manager, Marc Lambert, left last year. But Didier Gourmaud, his successor, made the wise decision to continue, albeit with a slight change in theme. Under the title Les Saveurs d'Ici et d'Ailleurs Gourmaud will not only serve classic French dishes, but also explore other regions and flavours.

The first evening is planned on March 15th. Contact the InterContinental Hotel for more details and to be added to the mailing list.

Oman Food Festival

A festival dedicated to Omani food, wow. As part of the yearly Muscat Festival, the first Oman Food Festival is held in the Qurum Natural Park from Frebruary 5th. In co-operaration with the Oman Tourism College, the festival will be a showcase of traditional Omani Cuisine. Next to that, a number of the four and five star hotels will present dishes from their international restaurants. The website of Muscat Festival gives precious little information on this event, but you can read a bit more in these articles in the Oman Observer and The Week.

We will, of course, pay a visit to the festival and see if it is as good as it seems. More to follow.

The Muscat dining scene, what to do to fight boredom?

It's a bit limited, wouldn't you agree? The Muscat dining scene we mean. There is probably around a handful of high end restaurants, the odd interesting mid-priced place, but mostly unenventful grill houses, chain restaurants and burger joints. Granted, it's easy to find a real good Indian meal for next to nothing, but we would like a bit more variety. More liveliness. It would be good to see more interesting restaurants opening. La Brasserie in Muttrah looked like a very welcome addition, but failed to impress us so far (a review will follow after a next visit). Ubhar (in Bareeq al Shatti) has an interesting concept, but is extremely lonely in its sort.

So why isn't more happening? In our opinion there are a number of reasons. In no particular order, and without having done any scientific study on the subject:

1. Hotel chains
Most fine dining restaurants are located in the four and five star hotels, since they are the proud owners of a liquor license. A logical situation, but also one that prevents adventurous culinary things from happening. Although there is certainly enough talent among the hotel chefs, the restaurant concepts of the hotels do not always allow it to show. Tuscany and Capri Court, to give just two random examples, are good restaurants, but we can't help but think they would be much better if their chefs had to fight for their reputation as independent restaurateurs, instead of working within the safe hotel environment. The InterContinental, to give another example, has a highly talented and motivated crew, but lacks the restaurant to give them a podium.

2. Lack of culinary culture
We know what we're talking about here. Our home country doesn't exactly have the French or Italian gastronomical heritage to fall back on. Just 25 years ago, there wasn't much to do in the restaurants of our cities. Yet, that has rapidly changed. Increased standard of living, education of chefs and more demanding guests are just a number of reasons for the giant leap in quality. The current situation in Oman is very much comparable to that of Northern Europe some 25-30 years ago. So it may just be a question of time. It is good to see that the hospitality academies are trying to educate young Omani chefs, but it will take time before they reach a high level. Meanwhile, the average Omani doesn't seem to have a huge interest in gastronomy, least of all in their own Arabic cuisine. Countries like Syria and Lebanon have a bustling dining scene, where traditional dishes are held in high regard. Either modernised or traditional, the level of cooking is much higher than can be seen here. We are afraid it is lack of interest, and the average Omani would rather eat a Big Mac. A saddening thought.

3. The difficulties of setting up a business
We have a huge respect for anyone who makes the effort to start a new business. Starting something new is always incredibly difficult. And we realise it is nearly impossible to start your own fine dining restaurant in Oman, outside of a hotel, and with liquor license. There is a clear reason why licensed restaurants outside hotels are mostly owned by big companies. Otherwise they couldn't exist. And serving your scallops without a glass of Chablis is just a lot less attractive for your guests. So what do you do if you want to start your restaurant business in Oman? Right, you get hold of a franchise license of a chain that has well proven itself and you go for the easy money. Or you take the well paved road of offering pasta, burgers, kebabs and steaks. Can't go wrong with that one!

Taken these factors into account, our best hope for new and exciting restaurants are new hotel openings. That looks rather bleak at the moment, thanks to the economic downturn. The hotels in The Wave are delayed until around 2013, and the Four Seasons and other Jebel Sifah hotels will open from 2012 on. We don't know what the current status is on the ambitious plans for the InterContinental hotel, and the Bausher Fort Hotel (see the Omran webpage for this), but we fear those are long term projects as well. Maybe the Royal Opera House and its surrounding area will bring us something new. Let's hope so.

Two serious foodie events coming up

We were pretty pleased with the Taste of Dubai festival last year, so we're more than happy to recommend this year's edition to you. It will be held from 17 to 20 March 2010 at Dubai Media City. The lay out will be pretty much the same as last year: local restaurants have the opportunity to present small dishes, and there are a number of special events, such as wine tastings and cooking master classes by renowned chefs. For more information and booking of tickets: look here.

Another promising event takes place in Abu Dhabi. From 5 to 19 February the city is the scene of Gourmet Abu Dhabi; two weeks full of culinary delight. The organisers of Gourmet Abu Dhabi did a great job in putting together a tantalising programme. Several michelin-starred chefs are flown in, with 3-starred Alain Passard and Régis Marcon as showstoppers. You can choose to follow masterclasses by the chefs or attend one of the dinners. Some of those are accompanied by wine tastings of prestigious domains, such as Egon Müller, Pio Cesare and Paul Jaboulet Ainé. Their winemakers will be there as well. If you ever needed an excuse to visit Abu Dhabi, this is it. More information can be found here.

Oman to become member of "Chaîne des Rôtisseurs"

We were on holiday when this news came out, so many thanks to Friend R. for bringing this to our attention.

The Sultanate of Oman is about to be inaugurated as a member of the worldwide gastronomic association Chaîne des Rôtisseurs. The Chaîne is an "international gastronomic society dedicated to bringing together both professional and non-professional members worldwide, who appreciate and share a mutual interest in cuisine, wine and fine dining."

See this article in The Week of August 25:

The sultanate is soon to become a member of the world famous Chaine des Rôtisseurs, an international gastronomic society with over 25,000 members worldwide.

The inauguration of the Chaine des Rôtisseurs society in Oman will be on November 14. It is dedicated to bringing together professional and non-professional members from around the world who appreciate cuisine and fine dining. “It is an elite society for people involved in gastronomy,” says Dana Sarhan, one of the founding members of the chapter.

Joachim Caula, a master chocolatier and confectionery chef, will be the president of the society in Oman, or the 'Charge de Missions, Bailliage of Oman'. The purpose of bringing the society to Oman is “to spread fine cuisine,” says Caula.

The society holds a number of events including food competitions for young chefs under the age of 27, which can help upcoming chefs with their careers.

It is hoped that the society will highlight the talent of the sultanate's chefs. “Chefs don't really appreciate their work here. Middle Eastern chefs don't have a big domain, but it can change. We can give them a better image”, says Caula.

It is a members-only club and membership is by invitation only.

This may be an important step in bringing the level of gastronomy in the Sultanate to a higher level, something that is very necessary if the country wishes to compete in the international high-end tourism market.

We truly hope the founding of the Omani branch of the society brings a positive impulse towards a more lively gastronomic scene in the country. We will definitely keep a keen and critical eye on the developments. And, of course, we would be honoured to be invited as members.