Zaydoun's List

Last week, my online friend Pink Suede Shoes compiled a list of her favorite things in Kuwait (mainly shopping and eating!) that also served as a useful guide for locals and visitors alike. However, as befits an overwhelmingly pink blog, it was a tad girly.. So without further ado, here's my guys' list in response to each item on hers and a few of the items listed in the comments. I then got carried away...

1. Best Haircut: Salmiya: Hadi at GQ, Downtown: Mesbah at Hello.
2. Best Travel Agent: Barakat
3. Best Office Supplies: Mogahwi, Sultan Center,  and I'm told that Jarir is good too
4. Best Men's Gym: The Palms is pretty impressive. I haven't yet seen the new one called O2, but I'll report on it when I do.
5. Best way to get rid of your belly: Sign up for Hypoxi Vacunaut at JW Marriott. Now!
6. Best Pool Club: The Palms
7. Best Beach: Hilton Resort
8. Best Dentist: Bayan Dental Clinic. Get your teeth checked with a killer view!
9. Best Sports Injury Clinic: International Clinic, Mowasat Hospital
10. Best Outdoor Hangout: In decent weather, you can't beat Marina Crescent at sunset. The terraces at Souk Sharq and Le Notre are pleasant during the week too, especially after work.
11. Best Indoor Hangout: Marina Mall if you can handle the noise and the crowds.
12. Best Private Party Space: "Hangout" at Galleria 2000, Astro Lounge in Shaab.
13. Best Bookstore: Qurtas for Arabic books. Sadly, Virgin Megastore for English. I haven't yet been to Jarir, mainly because I hate that area, but I hear it's good.
14. Best Outdoor Terrace: Burj Al-Hamam's terrace is spectacular. The balcony at Le Notre is nice too
15. Best Dishdasha Fabric: Abdulla Taqi, Abul-Hassan.
16. Best Dishdasha Tailor: Al-Mas (I've been going since I was a kid).
17. Best Headgear: For qutras and gahfiya's there's only Abdullah Al-Musallam in the old souq.
18. Best Dress Shoes: Go during the sales to Villa Moda, Tod's, Comfort Shoe, Emporio Armani.
19. Best Casual Men's clothing: Villa Moda, Polo Sport, Diesel, Top Man.
20. Best Suits: Zegna, Paul Smith, Canali, Lanvin.
21. Best Designer Bargains: The Villa Moda sale, designer knock-offs at Zara and Top Man.
22. Best Jeans: Diesel if you're fit, Ralph Lauren jeans if you're not.
23. Best Sunglasses: Hassan's (have they been sued by Harrod's yet for their logo?)
24. Best Bokhour (incense and sandalwood): Al-Marshood
25. Best Watches: Kuwaitis have this obsession with expensive watches that I somehow escaped. There all kinds of expensive watches available here, but nothing says pure class better than a Cartier.
26. Best Boat & Jetski servicing: Al-Sabih
27. Best Cinema: The one at Laila Gallery for unbelievable seats. Since it's a single theatre and not part of a multiplex, this would ideally be the place to show serious arthouse flicks and documentaries... sigh!
28. Best Audio: Fahad Bourisly can totally refit your space with premium audio equipment at half the cost of the bigger dealerships.
29. Best ISP: Qualitynet is a misnomer if ever there was one. Gulfsat will be coming soon with a high speed DSL service that leaves the others in the dust.
30. Best Music Store: None. Even Virgin sucks.. Buy online!

And now for the food:

1. Best Japanese: Maki, hands down. Yes it's loud and your clothes smell like Tepanyaki when you leave.. but who cares? It's not like you're going clubbing later! Edo and Wasabi are hip and stylish, but something's not quite right there and I haven't yet figured it out. Sakura creeps me out, and Kei is just dull. Haven't tried Kamikaze yet.
2. Best Burger: Johnny Rockets for now.. until some enterprising soul decides to open a non-franchise real burger joint. The mini-burgers at Nino have a cult following even beyond Kuwait's borders!
3. Best Brunch: Even without Eggs Benedict, Le Notre brunch wins this one by a mile!
4. Best Pizza: La Piazza. Blue Fig has some interesting pizzas, and I hear Nino's pizzas have improved.
5. Best Kabab: Al-Hejja. Absolutely phenomenal! Go early because they usually run out of meat by 9 pm.
6. Best Shawarma: Ajami.
7. Best Falafel: Dodo
8. Best Grill: Kabab-Ji
9. Best Kunafeh: Kanafani, Taibawi
10. Best Ice-Cream: Zahra Cafe, home-made with no preservatives. For commercial cravings, Baskin & Robbins' Strawberry Cheesecake!!
11. Best Arabic Ice-Cream: For you foreigners, this is basically Arabic gelato and it's pure heaven. The best place is Bekdash.
12. Best Cakes: Zahra Cafe, Sugar & Spice, Lorenzo.
13. Best Bread: Bredz. And of course, any Iranian baker with a clay oven. Remember to take your own sesame seeds because they don't usually have them
14. Best Indian: Asha's, Bukhara, Mughal Mahal.
15. Best Italian: A tough one since none of them are really that good. Riccardo is the only one sort of close to authentic Italian but it's also the dullest, most boring restaurant in town!
16. Best Sandwich Delivery: Casper & Gambini's. Fast, delicious, and nutritious!
17. Best Coffee: I don't drink coffee but even I know that Starbucks is the McDonald's of coffee (i.e. CRAP) So I will recommend Blue Fig, Water Lemon Zahra Cafe and Second Cup.
18. Best Cheese Selection: Sultan Center at Souk Sharq.
19. Best Fish: The fishmarket at Souk Sharq. I'm a huge fan of Kuwaiti fish, in fact I think it's the best in the world!
20. Best Fruit Vendor: The one on Baghdad Street whose name I forget, next to Dodo falafel.
21. Best sandwiches for boat trips and picnics: Mr. Baker

Whew!! That was exhausting!!!