Amirah's Grill @ Arab Street

Date: 060310
Address: 142 Arab Street

After a leg-breaking cake-finding attempt for a 4 persons' birthday one of whom I specially got a cake from Food for Thought (he didn't quite appreciate all that effort though, a lesson learnt.) It is time for lunch at Amirah's Grill. Take note it is Amirah's Grill, not Halal Amirah or Amirahli's Grill.

SERVICE
The waitresses and manager were very friendly and polite, they had reserved a nice corner for the 20+ of us on the second floor of their Arab Street outlet next to Golden Landmark Tower. They prepared the place nicely with the cutlery. They took the initiative to clear the plates etc although I hope they took the initiatve to re-fill the water and offer water when the guests arrived earlier but the staff were busy with the growing crowd. Nonetheless, the staff attitude is quite positive.


To find the Grill, In the waitress' words. "Go to the Golden Landmark's Taxi Stand and look for the Grill and you will find it."

AMBIENCE
The area we got is a nice cosy corner with air conditioned environment. The floor is covered with intricately weaved Middle Eastern carpets. Curtains donned the pillars which you could loosen it to give yourself some privacy. The walls were decorated with paintings depicting Mediterranean and Middle Eastern scenes such as the Holy Kabaa in Mecca. There is even a DVD player with flat-screen TV which you could use without any surcharge.

FOOD
Each of us got the $25 Special Meal Set which covers everything on the menu except for certain dessert items and one main course item which is the King Butter Prawns. Along with it are soup (2 choices : Chicken or Mushroom), Pita and Garlic Bread, Dips (2 kinds, Lebanese Hummus and Moutabel), choice of Main Course, Dessert ( Ice Cream, Basbousa and French Caramel Pudding) and a drink of your choice.

Generally, most of us felt that the food were rather okay, average to slightly above average. Portions wise, it scored high points among all of us. The appetizers alone were very filling.

My choices:
I had the Hibiscus Juice, this sweet beverage has abit of rosy and blackcurrant taste. At the first sip, you might mistaken it for Ribena juice but further sips revealed that it is slightly different. However, I found the drink too. I was unable to finish drinking it. Nonetheless, the drink is quite refreshing due to the mint leaves added into it.

The Soup I chosed was the Mushroom Soup. Despite its inconsistent texture, the taste was rather okay and it the mushroom bits were rather big. If I would to give a score, 3/5.

The Pita Bread, hmmmmm I can't help savouring this bread especially when its warm. It has abit of crunch and it is very fragrant. The bits of herbs on it adds a little bit of lemony, herbal taste to this bread. Together with the Lebanese Hummus (bottom left), it is a savoury dish altogether. The Moutabel (beneath mushroom soup) gives a slightly sour taste. Both of the dips are rather interesting, I enjoyed the Lebanese Hummus more, which is more refreshing.

My choice of main course was the Turkish Mixed Tenderloin Kebab (19.90, underneath hummus) with Fragrant Rice. I found the rice rather average, nothing special about it. The meats are quite well-marinated although the chicken could afford to be more flavourful. I enjoyed the grilled kofta or minced lamb roll, the soft, and smooth texture of the lamb roll with a nice blend of herbs and spices. The beef is quite okay. I did not have a teeth-beef struggle, that means its just nice.

Just as most of us were overwhelmed by the amount of food we had already consumed(a few are going into slumber due to the comfort provided by the cushions around the seats), we just remembered that there is desserts. I had a scoop of Vanilla Ice Cream, something nice for a hot weather and a spice-intensive meal. Together with the French Caramel Pudding, it is rather nice too.

What Others Had:
YewAnn had the Mixed Grilled Seafood. The portions surprised him in a positive way.

Jia Yao had the Fish and Chips. He described it in this MSN conversation:

JY : let me think of words to describe it . average would be best actually . not brillant fluffy fish not too hard. batter was about just right, not too buttery nor heavy (masking the taste of the fish). bt somehow, there isnt a craving to continue eating. after the first slice, the second seems okay, the third slice is a bit of chore
Me : lol generous portion to put it nicely
JY: no no, as in, say for australian fish&chips, though the portions are huge, you'd almost want to finish it cause it tastes bloody good you dig what im saying? craving per say.


I tried the signature Morrocan Mint Tea (Iced) - Very refreshing drink but like the Hibiscus drink, it is too sweet, to the point that I can't taste the tea.

The French Caramel Pudding is not the light, jelly like ones you had outside. It has more of a Nonya Kueh texture and richness. goes very well with vanilla ice cream though. I think maybe it is an Egyptian rendition of the caramel pudding rather than the actual French Caramel Pudding, afterall Amirah Grill is an Egyptian restaurant. What's with the link between French and Egyptian? Suez Canal was designed by a French engineer, Ferdinand de Lesseps, that is one link for you.

I think the $25 set is really great for its value and the management did not give us a service charge for the sets, surcharge for the reservation. This deserves a big thumbs up for the value. The portions are generous too.

OVERALL
While Amirah's Grill might not serve the best of food, it has great value to offer for sure and the ambience on the 2nd floor is great, I enjoyed the warm cosy atmosphere the place has to offer. It is also good place to stop by and enjoy a drink or snack with a few friends. This is also good place to organize a gathering of about 15-20 people because the food is Halal and the ambience is great. I must emphasize that it is halal because having organized a few gatherings with Muslim friends, I realized not alot of places offer Halal food, take International Buffets etc, there seemed to be only two hotels that offer Halal Buffets, Carousel and Tiffany Cafe, both of which are rather expensive.

Xin Li felt Good after the Meal. (although his leg still hurts badly.)