Eating Dubai 1: Puffy pitas at Wafi Gourmet

Nadine Kam photos
A colorful array of vegetable and meat kebabs on display at Wafi Gourmet in Dubai Mall, which specializes in Lebanese cuisine.

DUBAI, U.A.E. — While in Dubai, I thought we would certainly be eating at Saudi or Emirati restaurants, but somehow, we always ended up eating Lebanese or Indian cuisine, at malls and hotels, no less.

What gives? I put the question to one of the Dubai chefs and he said it's because the Saudis have no real cuisine, and it's only been in the last year that three Emirati restaurants have opened, in a city of 2.5 million people.

Well that was a shocking statement. In my food-centric world, every culture has a cuisine that speaks to its soul and is a point of pride to its people, such that you can't talk stink about anyone's food.

Before reaching the tables at Wafi Gourmet, we were tempted with all kinds of marketplace treats, such as a variety of olives, sweets, pastries, and below, pistachios, dried fruit and almonds.

But, it made sense. People of Saudi Arabia were descended from nomadic sheep- and goat-herding tribes, who could only eat what they could carry, such as dates, nuts, figs, flat bread called fatir, and spices that flavored meat grilled in the desert.

Dubai, on the Persian Gulf and Arabian Sea, started as a fishing village, making grilled fish a simple, satisfying meal.

Also, the nation's Islamic laws include restrictions against eating pork and drinking alcohol, and it's only in places where visitors congregate—malls and hotels—that alcohol is allowed.

I've never come across fresh pita like this in Hawaii. Sadly, the ones we get are already stale. They're light and puffy when fresh, and deflate when left sitting.

I wasn't complaining. Though the names of dishes are different, food in the region is similar from country to country, and Middle Eastern cuisine has always been one of my favorites, though it's sad to say, coming from Hawaii, I never knew what it was like to enjoy a warm, pillowy fresh pita. More times than not, you have to go to straight to the source.

The hummus, or hommos in their spelling, at Wafi Gourmet had a whipped, light texture and tasted less like chickpeas than we have here. Instead the chickpeas sit inside the bowl of hummus. The cost was $33 dirhams, roughly $10 USD.

Happy Trails: Exploring California's Cheese Trail

Nadine Kam photos
Bohemian Creamery’s offerings include Boho Belle, a semi-soft Italian-style cheese made with organic Jersey cow milk, and aged 6 to 8 weeks for development of the geotrichum mold that enhances its vanilla flavors.

BY NADINE KAM

CALIFORNIA — One doesn’t have to be an oenophile to appreciate the charms of California Wine Country and the surrounding area encompassing Napa and Sonoma counties, including the towns of Healdsburg, Petaluma and Sebastopol, also part of California’s Cheese Trail.

The cheese trail encompasses 23 creameries and/or dairies open to the public. There are 14 more in operation that are not open to the public. You can visit cheesetrail.org for a full list of the operations and details for visits. Some are open during set hours; others by appointment.

One of the providers of the milk that goes into Bohemian Creamery’s Capriago, Caproncino, BoDacious and HolyMoly cheeses.

If you’re interested in simply sampling and buying cheeses, Cowgirl Creamery at 80 Fourth St., Point Reyes Station, is a popular stop. It’s open 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Wednesdays through Sundays as of this writing, with 11:30 a.m. Friday tours by appointment months in advance.

You could also stop by Marin French Cheese Co., at 7500 Red Hill Road, Petaluma. It’s open 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. daily.

At Loleta Cheese Factory, you can witness the cheese making process through a window, and taste some of the 30 different types of cheese made there. It’s at 252 Loleta Drive, Loleta, open 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. daily.

The exterior of Bohemian Creamery’s tasting room and shop.

I appreciate going to the source so had to visit a site with goats. Dropping in at Bohemian Creamery in Sebastopol, Sonoma County, I found a Hawaii connection with owner Lisa Gottreich, an avid surfer who visits our islands frequently.

When she’s not in the water, she makes a variety of Italian-style cheeses, and such novel creations as “Cowabunga,” a soft Holstein cow’s milk cheese filled with a sweet cajeta (goat milk caramel), and “Surf n’ Turf,” an organic cow’s milk ripened to a soft thickness with a thin layer of Sonoma coast harvested toasted dulce seaweed through its center.

If you want to visit, you’ll find Gottreich at 7380 Occidental Road, 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. Fridays through Sundays, with tours by appointment.

It was all enough to make me want to go out and raise some goats.

From left, Bohemian Creamery’s Capriago, Caproncino and Bovoncino cheeses.

On the rooftop.
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Nadine Kam is Style Editor and staff restaurant critic at the Honolulu Star-Advertiser; her coverage is in print on Wednesdays and Thursdays. Contact her via email at nkam@staradvertiser.com and follow her on Twitter, Instagram and Rebel Mouse.