Crumble Cafe- Breakfast, Sheesha, and Work.

Last Saturday we headed to Crumble Cafe on Sheikh Zayed road for a late and lazy brunch. We kept hearing great things about and were excited when we warmly invited to try out their menu.

After a quick insight into the history of Crumble Cafe (Previously Roti Mum), by the hospitable manager Ahmed, we picked some of the menu items to try.

While waiting for our food to arrive, I noticed that there were several people sitting with a shisha while working on their laptops. Free WiFi, the availability of power outlets, and separate smoking and non-smoking sections make this Cafe very work-friendly. The choice of furniture a bit too bright for my liking, but I loved how sunny and well-lit the place was.

We started with some fresh fruit juice mixes. I was very pleased to note that for once, the fresh fruit juice was actually fresh. A lot of restaurants serve you juice out of a store-bought bottle and there’s nothing more insulting to my intelligence. My favorite was the Spice Sunrise, that packed a great punch of ginger, and M loved the Bellini Twist.

Next up, we tried the Mixed Appetizer Platter. This is a great sampler, as you get to try a bit of everything. M enjoyed the fried Mac & Cheese balls and Mozarella sticks. My favorite were the spring rolls. The fried chicken strips were also nice. The star was the salsa dip though. It was actually spicy, and we all know how I feel about spice!

We were pleasantly surprised by the soups we ordered. The Tomato Soup was clearly slow cooked to perfection, but the Mushroom Soup is what really wowed us. Served in a Cappuccino cup, this creamy soup was so hearty and the illustration of comfort. The vanilla foam and crushed almonds on top really set it apart, and I loved this soup so much that I wiped the cup clean! This is exactly what I want the next time I’m down with a cold! The crisp-bread served with the soups made for excellent croutons.

Next up, what I was most looking forward to: the Chicken and Waffles! How on Earth can anything that has the word “waffle” go wrong? We thoroughly enjoyed this, although we’ve had better versions. While the crispy coating made of corn flakes looked visually very appealing, it was a little challenging to eat as it kept crumbling and falling off.

For the entrees, I wanted something light and healthy so I went for the Healthy Breakfast Casserole: a colorful medley of crunchy sautéed vegetables under two sunny-side-up eggs. Now THIS is what a veggie-lover and Carb-hater wants for breakfast! It was so delicious, and made me wonder why it tastes so much better than when I sauté veggies at home. A few bites later, I realized why: the chef had used butter whereas I use olive oil. Oh well, you don’t want to be tooo healthy, do you now?

Meanwhile, M was digging into and thoroughly enjoying his Creole buttery seafood Yorkshire pudding that came with rice and coconut coconut foam. Sounds elaborate? It was. This dish had so many layers of flavors, which tasted so different individually as compared to when they were had together. And there were so many different combinations possible! M was enjoying every bite- each bite a little different from the last one. This was a very unexpected find, and definitely a new flavor profile for us. A brainchild of their chef, who is from Myanmar, this dish is very unique.

As always, when dessert arrived, my excitement was hard to contain. A few quick pictures and I dug right in. We requested the Date Pudding and a Stuffed Bun. We were also brought the house special : Deep Fried Oreos. I sighed in disappointment when I got these. Ugh. Lame old deep fried Oreos, when I could be saving my appetite for the food stuff. Fine. Let’s just get these over with before I move on to the rest. So i dip this warm dough covered Oero into some ice-cream, take a bite and Oh Boy Oh Boy Oh Boy! How can something so simple taste so GOOD? Imagine a tiny donut, stuffed with an Oreo. That’s what this was like. Within the next few seconds, I had devoured 3 of these little bombs of deliciousness! I would have had all four but M ate one. Boo.

The Roti Mum Coffee Bun topped with ice-cream was as satisfying as expected. The Date Pudding was also delicious, however a bit too sweet for my liking. All three desserts were wonderfully warm and served with some really good vanilla ice-cream though, and I could see little bits of Vanilla bean in it.