Our favourite coffees

Time Out Dubai gives some welcome attention to Raw Coffee Company. Of course, we already knew they were very good, but it is difficult to get hold of their coffee in Muscat, unless you are willing to order by mail. So here is a top 5 of our favourite alternatives (all are espresso blends):

1. Caffé Vergnano - As far as we know, this is only available at the counter of the Caffé Vergnano Coffeeshop in Al Khuwair. It's worth the drive to get a couple of tins though. Lovely dense flavour, strong and dark, but with a smooth edge. We love it. (3.300 OMR for 250gr.)
2. Marks & Spencer's Fairtrade - We wrote about this coffee before. It doesn't quite match the flavour intensity of Caffé Vergnano, but still a very good cup of coffee, and being fairtrade is a big plus as well. (2.200 OMR for 225gr.)
3. Waitrose Italian Espresso - Fairly new in Al Fair's range, this coffee is a welcome addition to the scene. It may not reach the heights of our top 2, but being available in more than one outlet counts for something as well. (2.650 OMR for 250gr.)
4. Illy - It may well be the best coffee of this bunch. Incredibly concentrated, strong, with flavours of dark chocolate and a bitter yet balanced finish. It doesn't make our top 3 for two reasons: 1, it's only available Illy Coffeeshops (we only know one in MSQ) and 2, it's very expensive. (4.500 OMR for 250gr.)
5. Lavazza - Frankly, we don't like this coffee as much as the others. It is ground quite coarse, what causes it to drip too fast in our machine. The result is a watered down taste. Still decent though, and the fact that it is usually available when we can't find any of the others, is a plus. (Available in different stores, various prices but usually around 2.000 OMR for 250gr.)
   

Restaurant Review - Come Prima

It's been years since we had last been to Come Prima, the Italian-styled restaurant of Muscat's Crowne Plaza Hotel. We didn't even live in Oman yet, but were guests in the hotel. We remembered the food being decent, but nothing special. The atmosphere wasn't anything special either. It resembled a dressed-up classroom. At best.

What a surprise when we walked through the doors of the restaurant this week. Come Prima is completely revamped and now boasts a modern, sleek look. Very nice. The friendly staff serves a plate with a tasty variety of breads, accompanied by tapenade and olive oil.

It is impossible not to compare this restaurant with Tomato, the terrace restaurant of the InterContinental Hotel. Both are Italian-styled, and both are (more or less) in the same price range. So let's compare: Tomato is very nicely situated, but Come Prima has outside seating with a beautiful view (both are closed during the hot summer months), Come Prima serves better bread, and has an attractive wine list, something Tomato lacks. And most important: the food at Come Prima is much better.

We start with a carpaccio of bresaola, which is served with rocket salad, and parmesan cheese. It's seasoning is perfect in its simplicity: some good olive oil, lemon juice and fresh pepper. A dish that is true to Italian heritage. Pure and simple food, that gets its flavour from good ingredients. No unnecessary stuff on your plate. Where Tomato's carpaccio is spoiled by a big pile of mushrooms, this only gives you what you need. And that's more than enough. Mrs. R enjoys a dish of seared scallops with porcini and red wine reduction. A nice set of flavours, but a little high on salt. This is probably due to the fact that the scallops were salted before they went into the pan. Not only concentrates this the salty flavour, it also withdraws the juice from the scallops, making them drier than they should be. Still, it is a fine dish.

Mr. R tests one of the pasta dishes (open ravioli, with scampis, squid and tomatoes, served with bisque), and Mrs. R tries the loin of lamb with a crust of basil and pine nuts, served with green asparagus. The ravioli is divine. Lovely, ultrathin sheets of pasta, with a good dose of seafood. The star of the dish is the bisque. Strong, concentrated and packed with flavour. It could easily be too much to handle if there weren't a couple of tomatoes and some leaves of basil to add freshness. Mrs. R's lamb is seared to perfection, and the dish would have been a winner if the asparagus weren't overcooked and if the jus would have had a bit more character.

Although we were pretty stuffed at this point, we couldn't leave without dessert. The Tiramisu is another winner, and bodes better than the Crème Brûlée, which suffers from an overly thick sugar crust. But thenagain, who would actually want to order a French dessert in an Italian restaurant?

Coffee is on the house. A very nice gesture, but even without this, we were already won over by the Italian charm of Come Prima.

From the well-sorted wine list, we drank a Muscadet Sèvre et Maine 2006, from Chéreau Carré. A fresh and affordable white from the French Loire Valley (18.000 OMR on the wine list). There are many mediocre, acidic wines from this region, but this is a good example. The wine shows some pretty fresh citrus fruit, and is slightly silty and spicy.

It is clear. Come Prima wins hand down from Tomato. And we will be sure to come back in the cooler months. A dinner on the balcony looks very tempting. A good glass of wine, a great view and a true taste of Italy. We can't wait.

Restaurant Review - Musandam Café (Provencal Week)

Anyone who has ever been to the Provence will remember the beautiful fields, filled with lavender, the aromas of fresh herbs and lovely, old villages, where you can have eat wonderful regional dishes accompanied by vast amounts of cheap, enjoyable wine. A good idea, therefore, to bring a bit of Provencal spirit to Muscat.

This week, the French Embassy and the Muscat InterContinental Hotel organised a Provencal Week, including a Provencal Theme Menu in Musandam Café. Michelin-starred, and Provence-based chef Daniel Hebet was asked to compose a five-course menu (14.000 OMR per person, including one bottle of wine per couple).

It is impossible to feel anything close to a Provencal spirit if you walk into Musandam Café, InterContinental's buffet restaurant. At best, it has the atmosphere of the coffee room of an elderly home. The (complimentary) wine didn't help to get in the mood either. A bottle each of lukewarm white and rosé awaited us. The white, although simple and too old (it was from 2005), was quaffable, but the rosé was a disgrace. It was from 2004, which is about three to four years too old for almost any rosé, and certainly for a simple Vin de Pays d'Oc. Brown in colour, and tasting of rust, this was undrinkable. When asking for a red alternative, we were presented with a J.P. Chenet. Now, we wouldn't expect anything other than simple wine as a complimentary bottle with a menu of this price. And there's nothing wrong with that. But J.P. Chenet!? Surely, they could have done better than that?

It was clear that this evening wouldn't be remembered for its wine, so let's move on to the food. The starter of chickpea soup, infused with lemon oil was a nice surprise. Creamy, yet fresh and light, thanks to the lemon. The second dish, terrine of rabbit with green olive tapenade, pesto and anchovy paste, showed a nice combination. Sadly, it was served too cold, which muted the flavours, and the rabbit could have been more tender. Still, quite nice, and certainly better than the main course: grilled tuna steak, sauteed onions, olive oil mashed potatoes and a light tomato cream. It's not that there's anything plain wrong with the dish, it's just a bit tasteless. The tuna had hardly seen a pan, which we liked, but not all members of our group agreed. Worse, it was short on taste, and therefore easily overpowered by the onions. The fact that Mrs. R found a chunk of the dark, bitter part of the tuna steak on her plate, didn't do any good either. The tomato cream was possibly the best part of the dish. Nice an pure, and a good match with the fish. Cheese consisted of a tasty piece of chevre, accompanied by some sprigs of thyme (rosemary according to the menu) and caramelized garlic. Just like the rabbit, this was served too cold, but very nice otherwise.

Dessert had the best surprise in store: a tasty strawberry, coated with candied sugar, tasted both delicate and lucious. It came together with a well-made crème brûlée.

So, was it a success? Yes and No. InterContinental deserves praise for organising these kinds of events. They bring liveliness to the culinary scene, and that's desperately needed in Muscat. But at the same time, it could be so much better. With just a little bit more care for detail, the overall level of the experience could be much higher. Keep up the good work, but keep improving!

Provencal food in Muscat InterContinental

From the 17th to the 24th of June the Muscat InterContinental Hotel hosts a Provencal and Côte d'Azur theme week. Next to a painting exhibition, there will be a Provence Culinary Week in the Musandam Café, supervised by the French Michelin-starred chef Daniel Hebet. Hopefully his dishes will make us forget about the hardly uplifiting surroundings of the Musandam Café. We will, of course, pay a visit and report back.

The wines of Musar - a special treat

We promised you here to give a bit of extra attention to the wines of Château Musar. So here we go.

Château Musar is the best known wine estate from Lebanon, and belongs to the top worldwide. The story of Musar is closely related to both ancient as recent history. Although the estate was founded in the 1930's, Lebanese winemaking goes back much further; there are even references to be found in the old testament of the Bible. The country's wine region is the Bekaa Valley, an area that had much to suffer during the days of the civil war, and where the current situation is quite unstable as well. However difficult the situation, the Hochar family, who owns Château Musar, never stopped producing wine. A miracle in itself. Click here for a very interesting article about the history of Musar and its wines.

The estate's top wine is simply called Château Musar. A red, white and rosé is made. We tested the red and white. These wines are very different from others in the sense that they are typically not fruit-driven, but very structured and built for the long haul. Both are usually only released 7 or 8 years after the harvest, and are capable of ageing much longer.

The Château Musar Blanc 1999 we drank recently (OUA - 12.300 OMR) was very a-typical, golden in colour, with tones of dried citrus, butter, nuts, cookie dough and spices (star aniseed, cloves, bay leave). It will never be a crowd-pleaser, but if you are interested in thinking out of the box, you will certainly find it interesting. Do drink with food though.

The current vintage of Château Musar Rouge is also 1999 (OUA - 18.500 OMR). It is a medium-bodied red, with an earthy, spicy profile, filled with dark fruit and oriental spices. Although, supple, it is by no means easy, and will be able to age graciously. Some time ago we also tasted the 1995 Rouge (not available in stores here) and it was a completely different beast: a very thick, almost agressive nose, with lots of acidic red fruit and prunes. To taste it was a bit nervous, with lots of acidity, redcurrant, and tobacco notes. A difficult wine. Of the two, the 1999 will be easier to win the hearts of people.

Musar also produces a more affordable wine, designated as Cuvée. We tried the Cuvée Rouge 2004. None of Musar's reds are deeply coloured, and neither is this. Although this wine is made from Cabarnet Sauvignon, Carignan and Cinsault (all grapes that are able of producing very concentrated wines), it is more akin to a Pinot Noir in both colour and scent. It has a beautiful nose of red- and blackcurrant and forest floor. It is light-bodied, buth full of flavour. There is plenty of ripe fruit, nice acidity and a peppery tannic finish. At 5.200 OMR (OUA) this is great value.

Knowing that much of the Lebanese culture is about food, it will come as no surprise that all of these wines perform best at the dinner table. But the Cuvée Rouge will also do fine on its own. You might want to try it slightly chilled, to ensure optimal freshness.

The wines of Château Musar are relatively widely available here, both in stores and restaurants. A good excuse to give them a try sometime soon. They deserve your attention.

Balsamic with a twist

Dates are undoubtly Oman's greatest gastronomic gift. The minute we arrived in Oman, several people made it very clear to us that dates are important to the Omani and that Omani dates are the best. And don't try to start an argument about that. We know now that they were right. Omani dates are lovely, and at this time of year we'll start to see the fresh dates again. They are a treat.

Dates can be found almost anywhere, and there even is a true Date Gourmet Shop in the Oasis at the Sea mall in Shatti, called Bateel. Granted, it is not Omani of origin, but they sell nice stuff nevertheless. They sell dates, of course, but also a range of date-inspired products. One of those is a Date Balsamic Vinegar. There are two versions, a 6-year old and a 10-year old. Both are fine vinegars. Syrupy and sweet, with singing acidity. The 10-year old version is a bit thicker and more complex, but the difference isn't enormous. These are not vinegars that you will use any day of the week. For one, they are simply to thick to use on your average salad. But try a drop with some Parmesan (the real one!) It's a great combination. You can also use it to complete a fine dish. The 6-year old costs 5.000 OMR per bottle (100ml). Not exactly cheap, but good balsamic always comes at a price.

Restaurant Review - The Beach Restaurant

It is quite possibly Muscat's most beautiful hotel: The Chedi. Understated, luxurious, with an overwhelming sense of serenity and exclusivity. And while it lacks the dramatic setting of the Barr al Jissah Resort and Al Bustan Hotel, the location of The Beach Restaurant -smack on the beach- isn't too fussy either.

This isn't our first visit to The Beach Restaurant, we've been before and liked it better than The Restaurant, the flagship restaurant of the hotel, where we found the level of cooking to be very variable. Our previous visit to The Beach was in January. It was a little disappointing to see that the menu hadn't changed since.

The amuse, a delicate small bisque of scampi, was full of flavour and well-made. A good start. Mrs. R chose a starter of grilled cuttlefish, fresh citrus fruit and coriander, a dish that looked and tasted like it came straight out of a Jamie Oliver book. Nothing wrong with that, but you'd expect a bit more from a restaurant at this level. Mr. R's lobster risotto, with slices of vacuum cooked lobster tail was very nice. The risotto could have done with slightly less cream, but other than that it was a treat. As mains we chose steamed turbot and lobster ravioli, served with preserved lemon and fresh tomatoes and line caught seabass with seared foie gras. The seabass was slightly overcooked, which made it just a tad dry. A pity, because in its essence it was a fine dish. Beautiful, flavourful fish, accompanied by the slightly bitter foie gras and a creamy, fresh sauce that added a touch of acidity. Mrs. R's turbot could also have done with a minute less in the pan. Again a very nice combination. Fresh, with the lobster adding some body to the dish.

Our choice of wine was a bottle of Chateau Musar White Wine 1999 from the Bekaa Valley in Lebanon (38.000 OMR from the wine list). A very a-typical white wine, golden in colour, with tones of dried citrus, butter, nuts, cookie dough and spices (star aniseed, cloves, bay leave). We'll pay some more attention to the wines of Musar in a seperate topic, as they surely deserve that.

Nothing from the dessert list made our mouths water, so we decided to skip that.

Pricing is somewhat more friendly than Barr al Jissah's Sultanah. You could do three courses with a glass of house wine for about 35.000 OMR. In terms of quality we felt it wasn't that much below Sultanah. Well made dishes that won't be competing for a Michelin star, but will give you a good deal of pleasure. And an after dinner walk through the Chedi garden is absolutely priceless.

Wine Review - Leeuwin Estate Prelude Vineyards Chardonnay 2006

Unlike most white wines, some actually can handle a bit of bottle age. The wines of the Australian producer Leeuwin Estate are a good example of this. They made Australian wine history with their Art Series, stunning wines that receive high marks year after year.

The Prelude Vineyards Chardonnay is a somewhat more affordable alternative (11.900 OMR at African & Eastern). Although still a serious sum of money for a bottle of wine, this is definitely worth it. The growing season of 2006 was cool for Australian standards, and this resulted in a very exciting mix of fresh citrus fruit, combined with the lush character of the Chardonnay grape, moderately aged on wood. Tropical fruits, Asian spices (notably cinnamon and aniseed) and a touch of vanilla make this a perfect wine at the dinner table. We combined it with a dish of pan-seared mackarel, served with baked potatoes and a roasted bell-pepper mousse. The wine is serious and rich, and could handle the strong flavours of the dish with ease.

Don't hesitate to buy this wine if you find it. All you need is a good ocassion to open a bottle. The good thing is, it can still do with a bit of time in bottle, so there is no rush whatsoever.

Gourmet in Dubai

An interesting article in Time Out Dubai this week, featuring a list of gourmet delis in the city. The newly opened Gourmet Station in the Oasis Centre is a definite must to check out. This food market offers a variety of fresh food and fine products, such as balsamic vinegars, and the famous Spanish olive oils of Núñez de Prado. It appears they don't do any mail orders or home delivery outside of Dubai, so we just have to plan another Dubai visit...

And seeing that this is a project of the Landmark group (who also own Centrepoint, E-Max and others), it might just show up in Muscat in due time. We can always hope, can't we?

The Olive Oil Problem

It seems so simple. You grow olives, press them, and there you have it: olive oil. Utterly delicious in its simplicity.

But there are some complicating factors. First of all: not all olive oil is equal. There is cold pressed oil, warm pressed oil or refined oil, there's extra virgin or regular, and don't forget all kinds of fantasy names, such as 'mild', 'light', 'wok' etc. On the one hand, olive oil is an honest, agricultural product, but on the other hand it is big business, led by multinationals who do their best to market their products as 'authentic' and 'rural'.

The consequences are confusing. Do you really believe your Italian olive oil is made from olives that were grown in Italy? Think again. They are most likely from Spain. Well, then Spanish olive oil must definitely be made from Spanish olives, right? Wrong. Tunesia or Algeria probably. It's all about marketing and commercial interest. And all this is only mildly bad if you consider that there's massive fraud going on with the quality labels.

The key in the production of olive oil is managing the acidity level. The lower the better. Oils with an acidity level below 0,8% are allowed to be called extra virgin. These oils are made from the first, cold pressing of the olive oil, which gives the highest quality. After this pressing, it is possible to get more oil out of the olive by heating the pulp. This gives oil in various quality levels, varying from decent cooking oil, to oil so acidic it is not fit for human consumption.

There are many honest producers, who make very good extra virgin oils, and sell them as such. But there are also plenty companies who aim to make a bit more money, and they have a tendency of blending regular olive oil with extra virgin, in order to have a larger volume with an acidity level (just) under 0,8%. And there are even companies who refine the poorest qualities and sell them as regular olive oil (either blended or on its own). And the difficulty is that it is almost impossible for you, as consumer, to know whether you buy an authentic product or a fake.

There are some helpful guidelines though:

• Look for a seal of origin (such as the Italian DOP label). If the oil has such a label, you can be sure that the product is tested and approved by the local authorities, and is from the region is says to be.
• See if you can find the acidity level on the label. For instance, if an olive oil has 0,2-0,4% acidity you can be sure it's authentic
• Avoid the 'big boys', such as Pons, Bertolli and all buyers' own brands (BOB) unless they have a very clear seal of origin.
• Taste the difference. Once you've found an authentic, good quality extra virgin oil, compare it to one of the big brand fakes. You'll taste the difference immediately, and it won't be difficult to understand why we're making such a fuss out of this.
  

It must be said that the choice of extra virgin olive oils isn't big in Oman, but you can find a couple if you try. Here are some recommendations:

• Al Fair used to carry a Waitrose BOB called A drizzle of Umbria that was of decent quality. Nice and grassy, although slightly bland. The price was a huge drawback though, as it was around 11 OMR for a small bottle. They recently replaced this brand with a new Waitrose BOB, which is slightly cheaper. We haven't tried it yet.
• Organic House sells a Tuscan extra virgin oil, made by Lucini. It is organic (of course) and costs 8.800 OMR for 500ml. We weren't really enthusiastic about the taste, as it was mainly bitter and hot, but this could have something to do with the fact that it was a 2007 bottling. A fresher bottle may be better.
• Not available in Oman (as far as we know), but by far the best olive oils we found in the area, are those of Goccia di Sole, a co-operative from Puglia (Italy) that produces a very good range of extra virgin oils, both organic and non-organic. Although the organic oil is very good as well, our favourite is the non-organic Goccia di Sole DOP Terra di Bari. A truly classy olive oil, grassy and nutty, with a refreshing, slightly bitter bite. We bought this in Dubai, where the producer has a stand close to the entrance of Ikea. Or have a look at the website of the distributor, they may do mail orders. If we're not mistaken, the price was around 6 OMR for a 500ml bottle (but that could just as well been a 750ml bottle).

If you buy any of these, remember: olive oil quickly goes bad due to heat or light. So always store unopened bottles in a dark and cool place.