Food for thought
Food for thought,
CN Traveller December 2024
Photography & Art Direction: Edvinas Bruzas
Photo assistant: Yu-Sian Li
Location: Duba, United Arab Emirates
Commissioned by Karin Mueller for CN Traveller December 2024
“Further inland, among the unassuming maze of Jumeirah Lakes Towers, or JLT, a stack of skyscrapers rising from a series of artificial lakes, a panoply of global cuisines can now be found, including the Peruvian hole-in-the-wall Fusión Ceviche and the Greek taverna Mythos Kouzina & Grill. This is also where, in 2017, Palestinian chef Salam Daqqaq opened her casual Levantine restaurant Bait Maryam, which is Arabic for “the home of her mama, Maryam.” International accolades from the Michelin Guide and the World's 50 Best Restaurants prompted her to expand next door. This past summer she opened the more upmarket restaurant Sufret Maryam across town in the plush Jumeirah complex of Wasl 51. Its centerpiece is a sufretna—a communal dining table—that seats 20. The star of the menu is habra niyeh, a dish of minced raw beef mixed with spices with a silky pâté-like texture that is perfect for spreading on freshly baked saj flatbread. These are the kinds of places—rather than swanky hotel restaurants—that many of us Dubai locals began seeking out during the pandemic. They don't all have liquor licenses like the big-ticket spots do, but they're sure to have a heap of soul..”