Layali Baghdad, Iraqi Cuisine Experience
“There is no sincerer love than the love of good food.” -George Bernard Shaw
It was the start of the New Year and we were feeling relaxed after the luxury of the 4 days of holidays that we in UAE were lucky to have. We decided that for the New Year we try something new and we jumped at the opportunity to try Iraqi Cuisine.
Layali Baghdad, a restaurant serving high quality Iraqi Cusine was our choice and what a fabulous experience it was.
Located in Khalifa City, somewhere near Al Forsan, we were received with warm and smiling faces and as we not very sure about what to order, the friendly staff helped us to place our order.
While we waited for our order to be ready, we went to check out the traditional Iraqi "Simach Masgouf", which was cooking outside around a fire pit. The fish, which we were told was 'Brown River Fish, was neatly cleaned and split down the middle and splayed on stakes around the fire. The fish formed a sort of a wall around the fire, not touching the flames at all, and is slow cooked with the heat of the fire. Marinated with only lemon, salt, pepper and a bit of tamarind, this was our "hero" dish of the day.
We were first served a traditional lentil soup, which was the perfect start for all the comforting food we were about to demolish. The lentil soup was thick and creamy and accompanied by assorted pickles of Stuffed Turshi, Amba Turshi, and Turshi with Vinegar. Then came a big tumbler of Laban Arbil, which came in a tall steel tumbler and which was something similar to our Indian version of "Lassi", but a more runnier version. This is 'very good for you' said our waiter, and I hoped he meant that this is good for you to lose some weight, which was one resolution that I had just made earlier in the morning of the New Year.
The salads followed, which were beetroots spiced and cubed, sauteed in olive oil and garnished with parsley. The Brinjal salad was absolutely delicious and is their signature dish and called "Layali Baghdad", consisting of yummy fried brinjal cubes, pine nuts, lemon, pomegranate, tomato, parsley and special spices. We really loved this dish and could not tear ourselves from it till it was fully devoured. Freshly baked bread straight from their brick oven was served and it was fluffy and airy and was perfect to scoop up generous amounts of the saucy brinjal salad and pop it into your mouth.
The Starters came next and our absolute favorite in starters were the 'Kubba Mosul, Kubba Halab and Kubba Potato Chap, they were some Mezzas made with rice flour, some potatoes and the arabic samosa. We could not stop ranting about the 'Meat Boureg' and the 'Cheese Boureg', which was a sort of 'Arrayes' but I think it was made with semolina dough. We were eating with gay abandon and the waiter warned us that the main course was next on the Menu and to keep some place for that too.
Soon came main course. the SIMACH MASGOUF, which looked intriguing to say the least,and it came piping hot and straight from the outdoor grill. Priced at Dhs.70/- per Kg., this one looked really tempting and had everyone grabbing their forks again. The waiter helped us to carve the fish and in one swift motion had the entire large fish-bone scooped up in one crafty maneuver and picked up big chunks of white fish fillets onto our plates. He recommended that we have it with the curry of white beans that was served alongside the fish and the 'Amba Chutney', which was a sauce made with raw mangoes just beginning to ripen. This was the highlight of our meal and we were really too stuffed with soup, salad and the starters to finish off the full fish. To our delight, the waiter said not to worry and he would pack the remaining Masgouf for us to take home. Also on the main course was the Iraqi Biryani, which was a fusion of fried meat, noodles, nuts, rice and egg.
We were advised to try their special Iraqi Tea, "Chai Nomi Basra" which was said to aid in digestion and we really relished the tea much.
On the Menu were also Layali Baghdad Mixed Grill, Iraqi Kebabs, Timmen Bagilla and Tashreeb Bagilla, and which caught our eye, but we were done for the day and said we would come again to try other jewels on their Menu.
Dessert anyone? We groaned as we were ready to burst at the seams, but can you keep your spoons away from the scrumptious to the last bite Iraqi Zarda? Not possible at all. So we had it. Also impossible to resist was the Halawat Tahin, which was smooth, silky, nutty, indulgent and simply divine. A Bowl scraping good dessert.
LAYALI BAGHDAD fits in well with the unique Iraqi architecture and surely offers quality food at a great value. Since visiting Iraq cannot be on our itinerary at least for the next decade, we would highly recommend this unique eating place to all and sundry and have plans up our sleeve to celebrate one of our forthcoming event here at this lovely little place.
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