Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
( 2473 2100; Crowne Plaza Hotel, Farwaniya; meals KD7-15; noon-midnight)
Perched in an eyrie high
in the atrium of the 'happening' Crowne Plaza Hotel, this Lebanese restaurant is spread
over a number of split levels, taxing the dexterity of the waiters who have to climb dozens
of steps per serving. Somehow they still manage to bring the mezze steaming hot from the
kitchens. Book for the Arabian Friday brunch.
Drinking & Nightlife
There are a number of Arabic cafes around town where mostly men go to chat over a
sheesha
and numerous small cups of sweet, black coffee. The coffeehouses mentioned be-
low are the equivalent of a commercial
diwaniya
(gathering) and business preliminaries
are often conducted informally on the premises.
Souq Marbarakia
COFFEEHOUSE
(btwn Mubarak al-Kabir, Ahmad al-Jaber & Ali al-Salem Sts; 4pm-midnight)
Women may feel rather un-
comfortable in the covered inner courtyard of the old souq, near the cafes on the western
edge of the souq, but men will love the convivial atmosphere.
Beit Lothan
COFFEEHOUSE
( 2575 5866; Arabian Gulf St, Salmiya; 10am-10pm)
Coffee, tea and a
sheesha
are available in a
quiet garden, adjacent to the Beit Lothan cultural centre.
Casper & Gambini's
CAFE
( 2243 0065;
www.casperandgambinis.com
; Usama Ben Monqiz St, Behbehani Houses, off Al-Soor St, Wattiya;
meals KD5-8; 10am-11pm)
More cafe than coffeehouse, this award-winning coffee specialist
serves up 100% Arabica coffee beans where solo women will feel perfectly at home. The
Espresso Freeze is reason enough to visit this atmospheric, wooden-floored venue in an
old Kuwaiti townhouse.
English Tea Lounge
LOUNGE
( 2242 2055; Sheraton Kuwait Hotel, Wattiya; high tea from KD8; 10am-1pm & 4pm-midnight Sat-Thu, 4pm-
midnight Fri)
The Sheraton, with its multiple marble pillars, record-breaking crystal chandeli-
ers and extravagant Persian carpets, looks like the last place to find a Welsh tea with
