This brand new restaurant occupies the ground floor of the Darwish Tower. It’s only a couple of weeks old so we decide to check it out.
Majlis means to sit on the floor and alfareej translates to a gathering of people. But don’t worry if that’s not for you, as chairs, couches and tables fill up the room. The sandy-hued walls and décor are reminiscent of a palace in the desert. Red and orange furniture add colour.
The friendly waiter escorts us to a table and helps us go through the menu. Deciding to stick to their recommendations, we begin with the green soup pie. Pretty soon, the waiter brings over a bowl sealed with a pastry lid. We dig in to reveal a pea-flavoured thick soup with a few florets of broccoli. The dish is both tasty and nourishing, while the blobs of melted white cheddar are a welcome surprise.
Unlike our fusion-inspired soup, we opt for a more traditional main: fogah semach, or two decent-sized pieces of fried fish served with Emirati-spiced rice and dried lemon. The fish is slightly on the salty side but the rice is fragrant and flavourful. However, our curry-loving taste buds find the dish a bit dry. The waiter comes to check on us and we convey our little quandary to him. Five minutes later, he shows up with a tangy, tomato gravy to drizzle over our mound of rice. It wasn’t requested, but is greatly appreciated. That little extra attention marks high in our books.
We end with a coffee and date cake. A set cream cheese cake sits atop a thin layer of coffee-soaked sponge. Date syrup is lightly drizzled onto it, along with a batheeth crumb. There’s something about the dessert that keeps luring us back in for bite after bite, and within minutes we have polished off the serving. Even though the restaurant is new, it gets frequented by a lot of Emiratis who are clearly enjoying these familiar flavours.
The Bill (for two)
GReen soup pie Dhs22
Fogah semach Dhs58
Coffee date cake Dhs24
Karak tea Dhs20
Total Dhs124
The bottom line
Traditional tastes and very attentive staff.
