Zest, The Breakfast Edition, One & Only The Palm, Dubai
Breakfast at Zest was included in our room rates at One & Only The Palm.
Apart from a mixed bag buffet of predominantly green vegetables that was punctuated by the standard breakfast grills, there was a small selection of ala carte eggs. These may have been segregated by the type of cuisine, namely, western, asian or Middle Eastern, but notwithstanding the segregation, were still heavily influenced by a Middle Eastern flair.
The buffet at Zest wasn't the best I've had, but it was one of the more memorable, in no small part due to the proliferation of Middle Eastern-styled breakfast options. Not everything was a slamdunk, but there were enough hits to make me look forward to the rising sun every dawn.
Although touted as Western fare, the Eggs Sunny Side-Up were studded with purple olives, diced tomatoes and fresh herbs.
The Eggs Benedict with Smoked Salmon was draped in a cumin-spiked hollandaise sauce and accented with paprika for a subtle heat.
Amongst the Asian fare, we really liked the Poached Eggs in Tom Yum Soup. It wasn't spicy one iota, but the sour tang of the broth was delightful. We found ourselves ordering this repeatedly.
The Sushi Omelette Rolls with wakame, shoyu and wasabi, was more like a mini egg crepe stuffed with rice and cucumbers. Not the most memorable dish, but crisp and clear.
The distinctively Middle Eastern fare were the best of the lot, like the Omelette laced with zaatar, tomato confit and lebanese honey. This was unexpectedly sweet, but not jarringly unwelcome; the bright herby overtones of the zaatar spice mix helped soften the honeyed undertones.
The Shashouka Scrambled Eggs flavoured with the traditional spice blend of ras el hanout may have appeared a royal mess, but this, specked with ham, peppers, corn, and mushrooms, was finessed perfectly.
standard hot breakfast fare - sauteed potatoes and hashbrowns
beef sausage and tomato provencal; arghhhh why do they love to tar everything with parsley?!?!?!?!!?!!!
veal sausage and turkey bacon: for cured meats that were pork-free, these were fantastic! I didn't feel like I was missing out at all
stewed beans done the English or Egyptian way, with tomato-sauced baked beans and ful medames, fava beans simmered with cumin, garlic, onions, chilli peppers and parsley
a lite, fibre-rich option, with cooked buckwheat and steamed mixed vegetables
there was a small-ish array of Asian foods, like the Thai soup, a very watered down but grimacingly sour version of a clear tom yum broth, choc-a-bloc with vegetables.
skip the shrimp and chicken wantons, unless you like your dumplings big and clunky.
fried rice and black pepper asparagus - surprisingly good, loved the bold flavours in both. we got seconds
ditto for the chicken mee, and prawn noodles; nice rounded flavours.
stir-fried vegetables and edamame - lovely crunch for the former and addictive as a snack for the latter
Moving on to the cold stuff: we had the mezze of hummus, labneh, zaatar labneh, sundried tomato, olives, cottage cheese, mozzerella, all pretty fair.
salads of the waldorf, tabbouleh, red cabbage and cucumber-tomato variants
par-boiled vegetables served chilled: eggplant, zucchini, marrow, bell pepper, snow peas, asparagus, french beans, avocado, and kale - I loved mixing and matching them
charcuterie such as chicken mortatella, beef bresola, smoked turkey; cheeses of the feta, emmental, brie, comte, and tomme noire types; egg mimosa; smoked salmon; and organic fare like hard boiled eggs, corn, carrots, cauliflower, broccoli, and beetroot
the gorgeous bread table - decent, especially the pastries
whole baguettes and sliced bread
ciabatta, mini baguettes and herbed foccacia
sugared mini croissants
savoury breads: tomato turnovers, spinach-mushroom quiche, and pretzels and almond crossiants
pineapple and chocolate chip danishes
muffins, madelines, top: chocolate crossiant, banana cake, lemon cake
chocolate donut, raspberry donut, chocolate crossiant, banana cake, lemon cake,
plain croissant, chocolate croissant
cereals: weetabix, corn flakes, rice krispies, chocopops, Crunchy-X with raisins, Crunchy-X with berries, Crunchy-X with chocolate
cooked apple sweetened with vanilla
apricot pudding
jams of the fig, orange and berry types, mango-passionfruit and prune-tea compotes, and up to 3 types of honey
fresh cut fruits - I loved the pomegranate, which I used to sweeten by personalised salad mixes
fruit juices and milks
There were a couple of specialised stations to cater to special diets, like the Kids Corner, cereal, yoghurt and milk, mini croissants, sugar brioche, and icing sugar-ed cookies
and the Gluten-Free Corner, with cereal bread, cheese balls, madelines, brioche, palin bread, and assortment of nuts and dried fruits
and dates, candied fruits, arabic sweets
The expansive breakfast spread
Our favourite table
Zest
One & Only The Palm
Dubai
Website
Apart from a mixed bag buffet of predominantly green vegetables that was punctuated by the standard breakfast grills, there was a small selection of ala carte eggs. These may have been segregated by the type of cuisine, namely, western, asian or Middle Eastern, but notwithstanding the segregation, were still heavily influenced by a Middle Eastern flair.
The buffet at Zest wasn't the best I've had, but it was one of the more memorable, in no small part due to the proliferation of Middle Eastern-styled breakfast options. Not everything was a slamdunk, but there were enough hits to make me look forward to the rising sun every dawn.
Although touted as Western fare, the Eggs Sunny Side-Up were studded with purple olives, diced tomatoes and fresh herbs.
The Eggs Benedict with Smoked Salmon was draped in a cumin-spiked hollandaise sauce and accented with paprika for a subtle heat.
Amongst the Asian fare, we really liked the Poached Eggs in Tom Yum Soup. It wasn't spicy one iota, but the sour tang of the broth was delightful. We found ourselves ordering this repeatedly.
The Sushi Omelette Rolls with wakame, shoyu and wasabi, was more like a mini egg crepe stuffed with rice and cucumbers. Not the most memorable dish, but crisp and clear.
The distinctively Middle Eastern fare were the best of the lot, like the Omelette laced with zaatar, tomato confit and lebanese honey. This was unexpectedly sweet, but not jarringly unwelcome; the bright herby overtones of the zaatar spice mix helped soften the honeyed undertones.
The Shashouka Scrambled Eggs flavoured with the traditional spice blend of ras el hanout may have appeared a royal mess, but this, specked with ham, peppers, corn, and mushrooms, was finessed perfectly.
standard hot breakfast fare - sauteed potatoes and hashbrowns
beef sausage and tomato provencal; arghhhh why do they love to tar everything with parsley?!?!?!?!!?!!!
veal sausage and turkey bacon: for cured meats that were pork-free, these were fantastic! I didn't feel like I was missing out at all
stewed beans done the English or Egyptian way, with tomato-sauced baked beans and ful medames, fava beans simmered with cumin, garlic, onions, chilli peppers and parsley
a lite, fibre-rich option, with cooked buckwheat and steamed mixed vegetables
there was a small-ish array of Asian foods, like the Thai soup, a very watered down but grimacingly sour version of a clear tom yum broth, choc-a-bloc with vegetables.
skip the shrimp and chicken wantons, unless you like your dumplings big and clunky.
fried rice and black pepper asparagus - surprisingly good, loved the bold flavours in both. we got seconds
ditto for the chicken mee, and prawn noodles; nice rounded flavours.
stir-fried vegetables and edamame - lovely crunch for the former and addictive as a snack for the latter
Moving on to the cold stuff: we had the mezze of hummus, labneh, zaatar labneh, sundried tomato, olives, cottage cheese, mozzerella, all pretty fair.
salads of the waldorf, tabbouleh, red cabbage and cucumber-tomato variants
par-boiled vegetables served chilled: eggplant, zucchini, marrow, bell pepper, snow peas, asparagus, french beans, avocado, and kale - I loved mixing and matching them
charcuterie such as chicken mortatella, beef bresola, smoked turkey; cheeses of the feta, emmental, brie, comte, and tomme noire types; egg mimosa; smoked salmon; and organic fare like hard boiled eggs, corn, carrots, cauliflower, broccoli, and beetroot
the gorgeous bread table - decent, especially the pastries
whole baguettes and sliced bread
ciabatta, mini baguettes and herbed foccacia
sugared mini croissants
savoury breads: tomato turnovers, spinach-mushroom quiche, and pretzels and almond crossiants
pineapple and chocolate chip danishes
muffins, madelines, top: chocolate crossiant, banana cake, lemon cake
chocolate donut, raspberry donut, chocolate crossiant, banana cake, lemon cake,
plain croissant, chocolate croissant
cereals: weetabix, corn flakes, rice krispies, chocopops, Crunchy-X with raisins, Crunchy-X with berries, Crunchy-X with chocolate
cooked apple sweetened with vanilla
apricot pudding
jams of the fig, orange and berry types, mango-passionfruit and prune-tea compotes, and up to 3 types of honey
fresh cut fruits - I loved the pomegranate, which I used to sweeten by personalised salad mixes
fruit juices and milks
There were a couple of specialised stations to cater to special diets, like the Kids Corner, cereal, yoghurt and milk, mini croissants, sugar brioche, and icing sugar-ed cookies
and the Gluten-Free Corner, with cereal bread, cheese balls, madelines, brioche, palin bread, and assortment of nuts and dried fruits
and dates, candied fruits, arabic sweets
The expansive breakfast spread
Our favourite table
Zest
One & Only The Palm
Dubai
Website
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