World Vegan day (November 1)
Canadian national Mowrad Rownak is a parttime IT manager, a ‘natural lifestyle’ trainer, and vegan. Rownak became a vegan because, he says, “it was the right thing to do. I felt like I was on the path of being a natural human. I love to eat raw vegan food and healthy food gives you a healthy mind and body. Nor does he feel short of options in UAE. “When it comes to places in Dubai, Raw Love Vegan has some of the best vegan desserts because they are handmade and organic. I would say among the vegan crowd Be Supernatural is a popular vegan cafe. It used to be Tidjoori but they closed down.” A vegan diet can be hard to get used to, especially when you’re used to starting your day with scrambled eggs. They say being vegan is stressful since you don’t have much to choose from. Well, those who say so clearly haven’t explored enough options. For those looking for a lazy lunch, you should head to Jumeriah. Comptoir 102 opposite Jumeirah Beach Centre is a laid back café founded by Parisians Emma Sawko and Alexandra de Montaudouin. Their love for healthy food resulted in anorganic food menu with recipes that use raw, vegan and gluten-free ingredients. Try their avocado crostini (Dh65). Toasted bread topped with macadamia sauce and alfalfa sprouts, guacamole and cucumber; it’s a lovely dish to have with salad on the side.
A drive down Jumeirah Beach Road will lead to One Café by Life n’ One. Life n’ One is a wellness centre. Try their veggie burger (Dh59) or a wild rice salad (Dh49).
If your idea of relaxing involves crowds and endless shops, then head to The Dubai Mall and dine at BeStro. Their food is raw, plantbased, organic, and free from meat, dairy, sugar, gluten and chemicals. Try their zucchini lasagne (Dh51), and for dessert, you can’t miss the cacao fondant (Dh31).
If you’re more into smoothies, then Sophie’s at Palm Jumeirah won’t disappoint. For Dh27, you can have one of their cocoa-sesame concoctions, or banana with sesame — all gluten and dairy free, of course.
milrina@khaleejtimes.com; KT intern