Something for The Weekend #17
Are water menus now a thing? Do you have $500k for coffee? The effect of Ozempic on restaurant menus, and more.
During my DXB-MXP flight, while wielding a toddler in economy I found some time to punch together some headlines that caught my eye over the last week. Here’s a little Something for the Weekend.
Pass the water menu?
Back in March 2022, a PR mail shot invited me to attend a water tasting with a water sommelier at 9 AM on a Tuesday.
I declined for two reasons.
The first is that, come 9 AM, I am already at my desk for an hour or more. The second? It was a water tasting with someone who calls themselves a water sommelier with a straight face.
Over many years of dining, never has a water menu arisen, nor the need for an escorted romp through one. The Guardian UK reports that La Popote, a restaurant in the leafy, footballers’ wives stomping ground of Cheshire, boasts a water menu with prices stretching from free tap water to a knee-bending £19 for Vidago, a Portuguese brand where some claim it is recognized for its “healing properties, is used in treatments and health programs”.
I acknowledge that not all water tastes the same, especially sparkling water. There are some German water brands where licking a fistful of Maldon would be less salty, but I can’t take a water tasting or water menu seriously. It turns out that I’m not alone.
Have you been to a restaurant with a water menu or a water sommelier? Do you have first hand experience of La Popote? Is this an unanswered need for diners or is this just tosh?
If you’re interested: 29 Popular Bottled Water Brands, Ranked Worst To Best, Tasting Table.
Do you have a spare 2 million dirhams for coffee?
In SFTW #16, I griped about the burgeoning cost of cold brew in Dubai. Lo and behold, The National reports that Julith Coffee & Roastery, a brand new Dubai coffee shop, paid more than 2 million dirhams ($544,000+) at a Panamanian auction to secure an “exceptionally rare variety” of coffee.
This “Washed Geisha” variety (my new band name) commands more than $30k per kilo and will be served in “extremely limited quantities”. You don’t say.
Assuming 8 grams of coffee for an espresso, that’s 125 portions per kilo at $240 per single espresso before mark up. I do wonder how long it will take to break the back of over half a million dollars of Washed Geisha.
If you’re interested: How coffee chains like Costa lost the matcha generation, BBC.
Ozmezze, anyone?
The FT reported that 63% of people on Ozempic spend less on dining out. This further shrinks the proverbial pie for restaurants already struggling to make ends meet as there is less spending out there to grab as people dine out less and, often, spend less while they are out.
How do restaurants lure the punters back?
Step forward, the Banc in Dubai serving Ozempic-sized portions or as they put it, “lighter and ‘more intentional’ portions” higher in protein, but smaller in size.
This sounds like advocacy for smaller plates by another name in my view, but I cannot help but sympathize with restaurants seeking solutions and accommodating for the pivot in diner’s habits. It was not that long ago that restaurants were tripping over themselves to defensively snuffle vegan and plant-based options into their menus to grab those audiences.
Are you someone on Ozempic, Mounjaro, or any semaglutides and what has been your experience of dining out while on it?
Great Substack Reads.
The Kendall Roy hero image caught my eye, but the death of the corporate job by Alex resonated with me, especially the section titled The Hidden Economy of Nonsense.
Justin Myers makes me laugh like few others on Substack with his wit and word play. He writes about that great British stalwart—Boots.
The Usuals.
You can find out more about me here, together with my Substack page.
Flick through my Dubai Restaurant Guide here.
Find weekend inspo in one of Dubai’s best breakfast spots.
Visit the best spots in Jumeirah Lakes Towers and Dubai Hills, two Dubai dining IYKYK hotspots IMO.
Some of world’s great dining spaces.
Liam is a restaurant critic, food and travel writer based in the Middle East. He owns EatGoSee and contributes to other publications. You can find Liam on Substack, Threads, Instagram, BlueSky or Facebook.
Big opportunity around Ozempic. Most people pretend it’s not happening but it is and it’s getting bigger, be brave and start talking to those people, build an offering for them and you’ll get more of them coming to you, don’t wait, move now.
Thank you very much for the shoutout!