The first thing you need to remember before you sit down to a meal at Gad, is that they don’t want you sitting down. Well, that’s not exactly true, but the restaurant is designed to cater to people who walk in off the street and want to quickly pick up a sandwich.
Having said that, Gad isn’t the worst you can do for cheap eats. If you’re anything like us, the first thing you’ll do is poke at the table: no, it isn’t a picture, it’s an actual layer of pebbles forever frozen in a slab of fibreglass. The menu is slightly confusing – especially when it comes to figuring out what counts as a dessert – and some of the items have rather strange names. And before you ask: no, the Viagra sandwich isn’t crushed pills wrapped in Arabic bread, but rather, a mix of seafood, which everyone knows is good for the, umm, soul.
The restaurant has a solid line-up of Egyptian and Lebanese mezze, and most meals start with complimentary tahiniyya and a mildly minty yogurt (with a strange mixed pickles plate that they ought to freshen up, or drop altogether) alongside some fairly successful freshly baked signature bread, and a few starters we did order including a good houmous, and a parsley-overdose of tabbouleh. We also ordered a few stuffed goodies including herby vine leaves, cabbage rolls and courgettes that were slightly too sweet but still quite tasty. The obligatory mixed grills hit the table shortly afterwards, and those we found mediocre: well cooked and spiced, but the meat itself was leaning towards the tough, even in the case of the fatty ribs (which should all but melt in your mouth.) A word of warning: avoid the chips. We’re sure they can get away with them in sandwiches, but as a dish these were abysmal: reheated, soggy and tasting suspiciously like paper.
Do indulge in some desserts though, especially the rice pudding. Egyptian rice pudding leaves whole grains in the mix, something that adds an interesting texture to an incredibly tasty dish; Gad’s version is as good as the best of them. But, after all is said, this is a place where you can eat like a horse for under Dhs50, so really, what’s not to like?
The bill (for two)
Tabbouleh Dhs10
Mixed grill platter Dhs35
Houmous with meat Dhs27
Mixed stuffed vegetables Dhs10
Total (excluding service) Dhs82
