Alpha

Nightclub turned brunch spot is a popular party venue by night and day in Garhoud Discuss this article

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Brunch at Alpha is a strange concept. Forgetting for a moment that it is a buffet served out of a club near the airport (a difficult task, I know), the meal doesn’t kick off until 4pm, and then goes straight into Alpha’s evening line up. Outwardly, the late start-time seems like a good concept; noon always seemed a bit early for champagne and beers. But as the time approached, I found it awkwardly placed in the day. I wasn’t hungry, having eaten lunch, while my date was famished, having purposefully given it a skip. When we arrived, and saw the brunch offerings, it seems I was the luckier of the two.

Unlimited drink or not, when you’re dropping Dhs195 on a meal, you’re entitled to some halfway decent grub. I’m not talking foie gras and truffle butter, maybe just a well-executed burger and a scooping or two of fluffy-ish eggs. None of these things were in sight at Alpha. Though there were mini burgers with the consistency of hockey pucks and the temperature of tepid tea, paired with hard, brittle buns that felt as if they’d been left outside weeks. These were the outside barbecue offerings; indoors a couple of tables framed some acoustic performers who, though talented, sang to a near empty room. I couldn’t help but feel guilty every time I squeezed past them to load my plate; the act just seemed like an unnecessary blow to their egos.

The food offerings – chicken curry that managed to be bland and overspiced at the same time, and a handful of tough chilli prawns – only added to the dreariness of the environment. The plus side, I suppose, was that the music was good, and the booze unlimited, if you’re the type of person to go in for that sort of thing. I’m personally not, and I can’t imagine there are that many people in Dubai who would be willing or able to drink enough in three hours to justify the rather high price tag.

The bill (for two)
2x Brunches Dhs390
Total Dhs390

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