Eating Sugarfree in the UAE

Now.. this place is not new to me. I just love everything about what ICONS Coffee Couture has to offer and I love seeing the cafe expand across the UAE. This chic cafe offers only sugarfree, naturally sweetened items with the smoothest organic coffee you will taste.

ATMOSHERE: Such a peaceful place to relax with family and friends. The decor is very modern, luxurious and cosy, giving you that warm welcoming feel.


HEALTHY OPTIONS TO ORDER:

The top picks are the salads of course.
For something light and nutritiousness I would recommend the spinach, walnut, pumpkin and feta salad OR the chicken cous cous salad. The cous cous salad serving is quite generous which can easily be shared between two people.

For some a little more filling I suggest the 3 bean wrap.

Drinks selection:

Lemon mint morrocon tea was my favourite! Made from real brewed icons tea sweetened with agave.

I would also suggest trying the mango smooth made with real fruit sorbet. 

Desserts:
Firstly... Just WOW.
For sugarfree everything is just so delicious. Trust me when I say it's as tasty as it looks!
You MUST try the newly launched froyo ice creams; Banana, Acai or Pomegranate.. I just had to eat all.
Also their hot chocolate sugarfree cake. Now this is still high calorie however sugarfree adds to guilt free. One needs to spoil themselves time to time!

And of course an organic coffee is a must!

SERVICE: Very attentive and fast service. Exactly what you want from a boutique cafe.

I am such a massive fan of this place, super excited with this cafe expanding in more branches across the UAE. Highly recommend to visit, I will no doubt be back...

Sugarfree regards,


Fit N Curvy

Taste the sprit of a true rider

Just WOW! Stepping into this garage inspired bike shop you find yourself lost in intricate detail. From the detailing on the wall to the tool set cutlery. Located at Box Park on Wasl Rd, this restaurant is a must visit.

ATMOSPHERE: Creative fun environment! So many little quirky details on the walls and seating's. Not only is this place a restaurant but also a biker's shopping paradise.

HEALTHY OPTIONS TO ORDER:

This place has a mixed variety of international cuisine.

Drinks

Freshly homemade lemonade with a squeeze of grapefruit was quite the refreshing start. Be sure to ask for no sugar syrup.

Main course

I'm used to always ordering chicken and steak but was delighted to see turkey as an option! This freshly sliced sweet and smokey turkey breast dish was delicious!

I requested a side of vegetables and the Biker's salad.

Another great option to have was the grilled salmon and sweet potato fries. Portion sizing is decent and cooked perfectly.

If you're after something a little more 'off track', the buffalo chicken wings and Harley Davidson burger is a popular choice.

Desserts

For that sweet finish, the Jarred Snicker Cheesecake is the way to go.

SERVICE: The team was so welcoming as we entered and what I found really lovely, was that the manager Allessandro came and sat with us talking about the concept of the restaurant. I have been to so many restaurants and only a select few managers and chefs actually took the time to sit with me.
I love seeing a passionate team behind the scenes.

Look forward to visiting this restaurant again!

Fit N Curvy

x

A Spanish, French and Moroccan Experience

If you're ever confused where to eat, Bertin Bistro and Restaurant is the sure place to go filled with so many options! This two storey building with a French patisserie on the ground floor and Spanish Moroccan infused culinary on the first floor. Two very different yet attractive and ambient floors.

ATMOSPHERE: Buzzing lively environment! Upstairs is a more darker intimate space also serving shisha and downstairs is much more quiet and modern spaced seating area.

HEALTHY OPTIONS TO ORDER:

You can get quite lost in this menu, even in the juices section as there is such a great variety of fresh juices to chose from.


Drinks selection

- Detox selection: Acai Berry Cleanse and Clean Energy. The sweetness of the organic beetroot and dash of ginger tasted more delicious than I would have thought.


Salads

I always go for salad that are rich in ingredients. My favourite was Bertin's Goat Cheese Salad, such a delicious salad with pumpkin, walnuts and green apple!

The Avocado salad is also a good choice. Great combo of grapefruit and pomegranate.

Main course

Opt in for anything high in protein. You can't go wrong with chicken or steak!

The Saffron Chicken comes with rice however I ordered with green vegetables and sauce on the side. Don't be afraid to alter the order to your liking, it's your body and you have the right to feed it what you want.

The Steak Au Poivre is also a good choice. Once again I asked for vegetables on the side instead of the potato mousseline,

Desserts

Ok, this dessert page is dangerous!

Oreo Triple decker, Pistachio Fondant, Pain Perdu!! And then to my lovely surprise I saw GLUTEN and SUGAR FREE Coconut Cake. I did not expect that at all and yup, clearly I ordered this.
Covered in pineapple, this moist cake was divine.. I was very close to ordering seconds.

SERVICE: The team was super friendly and attentive to the orders (given the alterations) and the wait wasn't too long.


To be honest, I had to hold myself back from eating so much! Surprised I was well behaved however when I return (which I will no doubt) I will dive into their tapas selection and take a trip downstairs to the French Patisserie... Not so healthy but will be oh so happy! And that's all that matters right?


Healthy regards,


Fit N Curvy

The Perfect Lazy Day Dubai Brunch

Dubai Bruches. Loud. Rowdy. Drunks right?
Well not at the Hyatt Regency in Dubai Creek Heights!

If you're looking for a quiet, leisurely place to take your family and friends to brunch, Sufra Sunny Saturdays is the place to go.

                          

ATMOSPHERE: Nice and quiet! Since the venue is at the outer skirts of Dubai it's quite the relaxing escape.

I went during Halloween and it was great to see that they had such a creative display running throughout the venue.

   

HEALTHY OPTIONS TO ORDER:

Now we all know that brunches can be difficult to eat 100% healthy, so I usually allow myself a few treats when attending these.


- The best thing about this venue is that they cook all the meats fresh for you. Great high protein lean meat options.

- They also cook all the egg dishes in front you so you can choose whatever you like! Here we have Eggs Benedict, on a bed of smoked salmon, accompanied by their signature 'detox drink' with coconut water.

- Their range of nuts and cheeses is amazing. I TRY not to have too much of these as cheese and nuts are quite calorie dense!

OTHER options:
You can choose between the Alcoholic and Non-Alcoholic package.

Dessert station:
Obviously a must! Just be prepared for seconds...

SERVICE: Super friendly staff and very attentive as they continually fill your drinks and clear your table of empty plates.


WELLNESS Facility:

If you ever do decide to stay at this hotel, be assured that the extra calories you consume can be put to good use at their newly launched fitness and spa centre.

Healthy regards,

Fit N Curvy

x

Dubai's Top Culturally Infused Sushi Experience

Wandering the streets of Al Barsha, we came across a small sushi outlet that was nice and bright called Moshi. Looking in you see a busy kitchen and tables full of diverse customers.

But this is not your typical Sushi restaurant, the minute you walk in you are greeted with the most warmest welcome.

Browsing through the menu, I was amazed at how culturally infused the items were. Falafel sushi? Omani chip sushi? Green thai sushi?? What was this place all about...

On arrival I was completely spoilt with my own lemon mint mason jar personalised with my Instagram name! 

ATMOSPHERE: Nice and cosy! Great little lunch spot where you can sit and dine or order take-away. The plates are colour co-ordinated according to vegetarian or non-vegetarian dishes, which is a nice touch.

HEALTHY OPTIONS TO ORDER:

- Sashimi (a given at any sushi outlet)

- Momo

Chicken & Spinach, Veggie mix

- Veg

Mushroom and Asparagus, Cucumber and Avocado

Vege noodles (these are hand made in store, I am not a noodle fan but my gosh these tasted amazing! I just asked for the sauce on the side.

- Non Veg

Chicken Teriyaki, Salmon Teriyaki, Tuna/Salmon (both regular and spicy taste delicious with raw Tuna being my favourite),Prawn Tempura (ask for a regular and sauce on side).

-  Juices

Apple/Carrot freshly squeezed juice, Lemon mint (ask for no sugar syrup)

Desserts

Peanut Butter and Dark chocolate bars! OMG these were amazing and there is no added sugar, I had to control myself.

MUST TRY

Nutella Maki - Ok clearly these aren't so healthy but definitely a must try!

Omani Chips - I'm generally not a fan of chips but these tasted strangely delicious and I found the concept quite interesting.

Falafel Sushi - These tasted ridiculously similar to a falafel! I did not expect it to taste this good.

SERVICE: One of the most warm welcoming restaurants I have ever been to in Dubai. The lovely manager Khush and chefs are extremely attentive and also looking at ways to better improve your experience and quality of food. Will definitely be back and I hope you too experience this outlet.

I also loved the fact that they are involved with "Pending Meals" - God bless anyone that gives back to the community. 5% of your bill goes towards providing meals to the construction workers.

Stay healthy,

stay curvy,

xx

5 Tips to get you back on track to eating healthy

We’ve all been there.

Eating our nourishing food on a daily basis and feeling more inspired than ever. Shopping, cooking, prepping, training… it’s all going well.  Then, something happens… schedule gets busier than usual, you're unwell, social pressure to eat, maybe stress, personal events or whatever it may be. You slip up and eat some biscuits, cake, ice-cream, processed food and then you eat some more biscuits, cake, ice-cream, processed foods to the extent where you're full, bloated yet still manage to force down all that sugary goodness.

Oh no!

Panic mode!

Negative self talk kicking in!

Fat already bulging!

That's it! It's over, you've screwed up, you've ruined everything!?

However...   It doesn’t have to be like that.


Here are 5 tips that pushed me back on track to nourish my body with food.


1.  Give yourself a break.
The food you are eating now is still probably better than how you used to eat. I never used to pay attention to food as much as I do now,  eating so much more vegetables than I used to and cooking at home more than not. I’m still way better off than I was before I started investing in my health.
Potato fries (omg my fav) are OK once in a while.
I apply the 80/20 (also used in marketing), to my food as it's a simple rule to follow.
80% real food still allows for 20% of that other stuff. Yes delicious nasty stuff hehe

2. Morning Cardio
Get out of bed and kick start your day with some cardio. Slow steady state, to allow yourself to mentally unwind from all the negative thoughts you fed yourself those day you went off track. Continually think positive thoughts and remind yourself you have a CHOICE, a choice to make better choices.

3.  Drink lemon water. 
Water will start to cleanse the chemicals from your body.  Hydration is also the key to feeling satisfied when eating.  Many times we think we are hungry, when really those feelings are our body telling us we need to be hydrated.

4. Confess to a friend
This is an interesting one. I always found that when I openly spoke about my self-destructive behaviour I somewhat felt more responsible for my actions and they too reminded me of what I stood for. I would organise to meet for lunch and choose healthy options at the restaurant, doing something to get me exciting about eating wholesome food again.

5.  Don’t give up!
So you had a bad day, weekend, or even a month.  It’s not how you eat sometimes that matters.  It’s how you eat the majority of the time.  Keep at it it, it will become habit again.  You CAN do this! Take it one meal at a time.


Getting back on track is as simple as falling off! You can also view my previous blog on tips to train your brain to think positive.


Positive regards,


Fit N sometimes excessively Curvy

x

What's for lunch: A Kris Kros experience

Adventuring out to Downtown, my friend and I decided to stop by an Arabic infused restaurant called Kris Kros. The minute you walk in you're slapped with an ambiance of bright colours, a complete mood changer. It's so modern and chic, everything you want in a multi-cuisine restaurant.

Greeted with lovely smiles we first dug into the starters!
Trying to make healthy options I could not resist the sun-dried tomato bread served, I love when restaurants serve warm fresh bread! I am one to usually avoid grains as I don't digest it too well and also tend to spoil my mains as I get full fast but couldn't resist. Oh and yes, let's not forget the bread crisps in the shape of the letter K! A nice touch.

ATMOSPHERE: Overall this place a nice vibe to chill with friends and not to mention the TV screens that also show live coverage of the Premier League games (many would find this important). The seat arrangements were quite spacious, didn't feel as though it was clustered.

HEALTHY OPTIONS TO ORDER:

Appetizers:

- Sesame crusted warm goat cheese - This was nicely cooked eggplant filled with warm goats cheese and a tasty surprise of little sesame bites around the plate.

- Kale Salad - This would have to be my favourite! Such fresh ingredients with a lovely citrus flavour.

- Purple Rain (Vegetable Juice) - Absolutely delicious mix of beetroot, carrot and ginger.

I also asked what they recommend and they suggested the spinach artichoke dip which I wasn't too impressed with. The menu didn't mention anything about it been drowned in cream and being lactose intolerant I couldn't eat this and it visually did not look too appealing.

Non the less, they surprised us with a plate of Nachos, the gesture was really nice however they didn't really listen to my needs as I mentioned I was lactose intolerant, so nachos covered in cheese and sour cream dip was not ideal.

Main Course:

- House Smoke Salmon -  I asked for no potatoes and vegetables instead. This was beautifully cooked and the portion size was generous.

Desserts and Shisha - I would have loved to try these so will next time. The menu had such a wide range of options to try! A nice Mediterranean touch, I find it hard finding places that offer international cuisine along with Shisha.

SERVICE: As mentioned above, a little disappointed that they weren't so attentive to my food intolerance however the effort was really appreciated. 

Overall we didn't get quite the service we hoped for, we had to continually ask the waiter to order and get their attention and it wasn't busy. Really great team of staff and lovely management so hope that the service experience will be improved.
What I did like though was the liquid hand sanitser given before our meals, not many restaurants do this.

I will definitely be back and this time treat myself to some desserts and Shisha! Ow, and that Kale salad, it's too delicious to not order!