Let me start off by saying that this brunch is the best family brunch that we have been to! There is an incredible variety of quality food, it’s so kid-friendly, and the setting is beautiful. If there is one brunch that you have go to with your whole family, this is definitely it! We made our way to Moevenpick Ibn Battuta, which is always a delight to go to because its absolutely beautiful.
The Al Bahou brunch is held in one wing of the large lobby area. We went up to the brunch’s reception and gave them my name, they handed us welcome drinks and we walked over to our table. The waitress showed us around the brunch buffet, which is actually a lot more than what I had initially expected.
The whole hall had various carts placed around it, and each cart was specific to a cuisine. Along with these carts, there was also an entire room just for dessert! Yes, you read it right. And if that’s not reason enough to go, theres even a whole other room just for cheese! There is another separated room for Italian cuisine, with a woodfire oven for any type of pizza you want. In the middle of the hall there was a live band, and a huge area meant as a kids play place.
After showing us all of the different kinds of foods, she showed us the kid’s play area, which is in plain sight, so it’s really convenient for parents. I would highly suggest that you book a seat near there if you’ve got kids. The kid’s play area has a full-on bouncy house as well as a more toddler friendly padded play area quipped with little rocking horses and a couple of play houses and toys. And if that’s not enough to keep your little ones busy, there’s even a whole other room filled with a kid’s buffet (which was not just your typical chicken nuggets and fries– they had really good looking mini sliders which I would have happily eaten), and a theater! The best part is, all of the kids areas are fully staffed with adult supervision so if your kids are big enough to walk and talk, you can give yourself enjoy yourself without having to chase after them too much.
We took our seats, away from the kids area and closer to the entrance of the restaurant since my baby Khalifa was fast asleep during brunch, which is a treat for me and my husband because that rarely happens, but I wish he would have been awake since there was so much for him to enjoy. After ordering our drinks of watermelon juice, we went around to grab our food. A lot of 5-star hotel brunches may look like they have a vast variety of food, but the quality doesn’t always match up to what you see. This was not the case at this brunch. Every single dish had so much love in it. The flavors were absolutely spot on. I should really give credit to the chefs at Moevenpick Ibn Battuta’s restaurants because they definitely brought their A-game to showcase their flavors at this brunch. If you want to try all of the different cuisines (and more) that are available at this hotel, without having to individually go to each restaurant, then this is the time and place!
Each cart has its own selection of starters and mains, and its not just one or two things– its a really good variety! Although there is a whole cart just for starters and salads, as well as a separate cart just for breads, I didn’t want to fill up on them so I started off at the very first cart, which was the Indian cart. I’ve been to the hotel’s Indian restaurant, Chor Bazaar , so I knew how great the food is there, and definitely had to sample it again. There was a make-your-own puri bar station, incredibly juicy chicken tikka and even vegetarian curries.
After that, I went around a few of the other carts that had seafood, sushi, tartar, and several unique amuse-bouche type starters. Everything from these carts were packed with flavor!
Then I headed towards the other cuisines; the Arabic one was filled with traditional Arabic starters like mouttabel and sambousek, and there were also traditional Emirati rice dishes, and several other meaty mains. Along with that, there was even a shawarma station!
Next to that, there was an Asian station, which had things like wasabi mango shrimp, roasted duck, tempura-battered veggies and so many more delicious Asian treats.
There was also a whole other cart meant for Western mains, including Yorkshire pudding, many different kinds of gravy, a baked turkey, beef wellington, mashed potatoes and anything else you could imagine that would be fit for a Sunday Roast.
After filling myself up on all of these oh-so-scrumptious dishes, I ordered a cup of green tea before heading over to the room of desserts. This is when I spotted the cheese room, which is a haven for cheese lovers. There are so many different kinds and I haven’t seen any other brunch that displays this much of a variety of cheeses.
Now for the desserts– just looking at this room can make you diabetic, there are so many desserts all over the room. You know what, I would come back to this brunch just for these desserts! There were specially made rich chocolates, a huge variety of cupcakes, every kind of mousse you can imagine, all different kinds of cakes and cheesecakes, different kinds of eclairs, puddings, tarts, several different kinds of Arabic desserts like Umm Ali and muhallabia, and even candies for the little ones! Luckily there’s also a pastry chef standing there, who can explain what the different desserts are made of and help you make your choices.
After dessert, my husband had to head out to Abu Dhabi for a quick meeting, so I stayed back with Khalifa and waited for Sleeping Beauty to wake up so he could play in the play area. Too bad he woke up only half an hour before the brunch was over, and he’s a little bit of a crank when he first wakes up, so he didn’t really get to make the most of the kids buffet or the play area, but we will definitely be back here, so he can enjoy it.
Its a shame we came at 2pm thinking that it was just another brunch– I highly suggest you take advantage of this brunch from the moment it opens until it finishes. This is one of those brunches that you come to as soon as it starts and then leave when they’re wrapping up. Like I said, its the best family brunch in Dubai. Hands down. Go!
The Friday brunch at Al Bahou, Moevenpick Ibn Battuta is from 12.30pm until 4pm. It costs 295 Dhs without alcohol, 395 Dhs with wine and 495 Dhs with champagne.
Ratings (0-5):
Staff/Service: 5
Ambience: 5
Food: 5
Presentation: 5
Cleanliness: 5
Value for money: 5
Overall Rating: 5
Worth Trying?: If there is a brunch in Dubai that’s worth it– its this one. I very, very rarely dish out an overall rating of ‘5’, so yes, it’s worth trying.
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