CHIC Eats

The Saffron Arancini is an encounter between East and West. The rare Eastern spice gives another dimension to this simple dish, adding a subtle earthy-sweet profile with a tinge of bitterness on the tongue to the famous Italian fried delicacy made with creamy rice. The fried disk is placed on a bed of chicken carbonara sauce made with porcini mushroom, parmesan, gruyere and hazelnut balsamic dressing, decorated with petals of confit tomato. One bite is enough to linger on your palate for a while – a dish now engraved in my food memory.

I love pasta, and the Truffle Pappardelle was scrumptious. One of the secrets of this dish is that cheese and truffle extract are added to the dough, expanding its flavours when bathed in a sauce of mushroom ragout, truffle cream and pecorino and parmesan cheese. A synchronised dance happened in my mouth, and I felt that this comforting dish had just hugged me.

If you like seafood, you must try one of Chef Konstantinos’ signature dishes: Grilled Calamari. As you probably noticed, nothing at My Cafe is as simple as it sounds. All creations come with a certain level of complexity, whether in their execution or expertise in knowing which ingredients work well together. The calamari is sun-dried and then quickly grilled, then the mountain of thin rings sits on top of a pool of miso butter sauce, raisins, pickled fennel and crispy and pureed parsley. The combination of different textures and levels of sweetness and savoury elements gives the dish its brilliance.

For meat lovers, the Short Rib Orzo was cooked to perfection – falling from the bone and melting in the mouth, accompanied by tasty orzo, a short-cut pasta shaped like a large grain of rice. The meat is braised for eight hours and seasoned with thyme, chives and beef jus, reaffirming the commitment and excellence offered. The other meat dish we tried and were very impressed by was the Afghani Lamb (a family recipe full of childhood memories), a beautiful piece of meat on a large bed of rice pilaf with roasted nuts, crispy onion and caramelised carrots. After a splendid spread of savoury morsels, we had to try some of the restaurant’s most loved desserts. The Russian Honey Cake had the perfect ratio of sponge and filling with a very light aftertaste. The San Sebastian Cheesecake was creamy and crustless, with a beautifully caramelised top; the rustic flavour and texture were spot on! But my favourite sweet was the ‘My’ Sticky Toffee Pudding, maybe because I have a thing for pudding, but this one was just incredible. The gooey cake was topped with frosted pecan, caramelised pistachios and vanilla ice cream for the perfect mouthful to end this marvellous culinary experience.

After this dining journey, I felt that there was a skilful team behind every single dish and that they deeply respected the ingredients they worked with – big applause to the whole team.

No matter if you are looking for breakfast, lunch, snack or dinner, My Cafe has it all – and more, as it will expand your food knowledge and give you an unparalleled taste adventure.

For more information or to make a reservation, please call My Cafe at 7734 4443 (Riffa) or 7734 4444 (Adliya). @mycafebh