The food, water and other consumables!

One thing that is great about going to live somewhere new is the change in cuisine you can expect to come across. I must admit that laplap in Vanuatu never really did it for me, though I was constantly reassured that there were certain types of laplap that were really nice….Ron did get to be quite fond of simboro and nems, and tuluk was an occasional treat. So it is time now to start to explore the food of this new country…….and maybe my ‘fussy’ food taste will be better served here in the Middle East!

Emerati cuisine is traditionally very plain because in times gone by there was very little capacity, even on the coast, for growing fresh fruits and vegetables. The population was largely nomadic and relied on fish, goat, camel, lizard and rice dishes enhanced with spices that are grown locally and also imported from around the region. Unleavened bread cooked over a fire, dates and wheat were the traditional foods of the original emeratis. Most people existed at a subsistence level prior to the affluence introduced by the exploitation of oil reserves. So I guess it won’t be any different for me here – camel and lizard are not appealing to me and I’ve never really liked rice unless it is drowned in a sauce.

Things have changed quite a lot since those times and Abu Dhabi has all the modern takeaway restaurants such as KFC, Maccas, Pizza Hut and etc. However the real food treats are found in the cafes that specialise in Middle Eastern cuisine that has moved on from traditional Emerati dishes. Most of these meals have come courtesy of the surrounding countries where it is easier to grow fresh fruit and veges and where there are farming communities and access to water. Lebanese and Egyptian gourmet influence is very strong in the UAE and this means gorgeous spicy salads, stews and meat dishes flavoured with lemon and other exotic herbs and spices.

We have sampled a few dishes that have been great and we are working through the menu at the ‘Automatic’ Café, our local middle eastern hang out! We have tried shawarma. falafel, tabbouleh, fatoush, labneh (laced with lashings of garlic) and a whole lot of others whose names I will never remember without the menu in front of me. We can’t help but notice the freshness and the quality of the food and the lovely spicy, lemony zing to almost everything. The prices are very reasonable and we have been able to do a café meal for $25 for both of us. Of course no alcohol is served but the meal is eaten with the most delicious fruit drinks blended from fresh fruit. Our favorite is lemon and mint and we did try some pomegranate juice, which was just lovely.

We are told the tap water is OK to drink and it certainly tastes alright. The hotel has supplied us with fresh bottled water each day so we have been using that. Not sure yet of the situation in Al Ain and we will look into that when we get there. We may end up with a water dispenser and the big 20 litre bottles. Purified water appears to be a big industry here with lots of brands and plenty available.

Alcohol is served in all the up market hotels and bars and is about the same price as at a resort bar in Aus. We have found an outlet and purchased a bottle of Aussie red and Aussie white at close to the same price (maybe a bit more) than at a bottlo at home. We were pleased to find this out – as you all know we love our wine!!

We have spent some time exploring the supermarkets and have been really happy to find that fresh fruit and veges are abundantly available, just as at home in Aus. Whilst the market in Port Vila was very cheap the offerings were in fact quite limited due to seasonal availability. I think the population here and the economic development is perhaps best illustrated in this arena. The population is large and wealthy and they demand that they have good quality fresh food with a range of choice and low prices. It will be nice to have all our old favourites available and affordable – yes even cheese!
Oh well that’s it on food – better go and get dinner! As we are still in the hotel that means another trip to a café or restaurant and no cleaning up after – I’m loving it!