Al Madina Flower, Dubai - One Dish Wonder

Clockwise from left: Raita, Papadam and Sour Pickle, Parathas, Chicken Korma and finally the Mutton Biryani.

There are a lot of underpaid, overworked expats in Dubai, from places like India, Pakistan and Nepal. The amount they earn doesn't leave them with much to put towards eating out, and because of that there are a huge number of excellent value eateries where skint workers can enjoy a good meal without breaking the bank.
So maybe I've found the humanitarian silver lining in this sweatshop of a city; They don't earn much, but they have access to damn fine food for cheap. I like to find where the taxi drivers and laborers eat, and follow them inside for some inevitably amazing food which usually costs less than the tip at a 'regular' restaurant.

So, after all that, where did I end up? In Satwa, a predominantly Filipino neighborhood near the Dubai Creek, where I stumbled upon the Al Madina Flower cafeteria.

Cosy. In a good way.

This place is tiny. It can comfortably seat 15 people inside and another 4 outside on the mini verandah, which is livened up by a small array of green pot plants and flowers. Al Madina Flower, right?
Inside there is the usual cafeteria layout, only more compact - a cash counter near the door, to pay on your way out, a handwashing basin, a warmer full of samosas and fried chicken or fish, a fridge with randomly assorted soft drinks and laban (a watered down yoghurt drink with salt), and a few tables surrounded by plastic stools. Oh, and behind all that is the micro-sized kitchen and juice counter. Who looked at this place before it became a cafeteria and thought that it could ever fit this much stuff inside? They must have been damn good at Tetris, that much is for sure.

After a warm greeting we placed our order; one mutton biryani, a bunch of greasy parathas and a serving of whatever chicken curry was going at the time, which turned out to be a mild korma curry.
It all arrived after no more than two minutes, along with raita (yoghurt with chilli and onions), spicy and sour pickle, papadams and a very oily little jug full of chilli flakes and coriander with other spices mixed in. You gotta love side dishes.

Mystery Sauce. Very zingy and oily. Contained a lot of vinegar, which worked well with the rice.

The biryani was and is the best I have had. Ever. The spice blend was generous and rich, with whole cardamom and cloves, long slivers of green chilli and specks of mustard seeds and fresh coriander. The rice was fluffy and perfectly cooked, with multi coloured grains of red, orange, yellow and white giving a bright vibrance to the whole package. The meat was gorgeous, fall-away-from-the-bone mutton, cooked for hours and hours. Never dry, never tough, and not oilier than it needed to be. Not too much sinew, bone or cartilage to make it seem cheap, but enough to make it rustic and hearty. I didn't find any tiny shards of shattered bone, just a few large pieces of cinnamon bark which had to be carefully set aside. All those intense flavours worked in harmony and complimented by the smooth spice of the raita and the pungent lingering sting of the pickle.

The chicken korma curry was simple and respectable. It was tasty, but not worthy of sharing a space at the same table as the biryani. Hell, I felt unworthy as well. The chicken was soft, and the sauce gave a nice creamy flavour to the slightly mushy parathas which we used to mop up as much as we could before...
Refills.
Yep, this place refills every part of every dish for free, other than the meat and bread. So just as we were starting to feel satisfied and proud to have made it to the bottom of the biryani, a gigantic bowl full of fresh spiced rice is plonked onto the plate. Same went for the curry sauce, which was instantly replenished whenever the level fell too low. We didn't even have to ask for any of this. Now that's what I call service. Two big thumbs up for attentiveness.
We had a couple of chai teas after admitting defeat at the hands of the never-ending rice mountain on our table. The tea was not as creamy as we would have expected, but it is possible that our taste buds were just overwhelmed by that stage.

RECOMMENDED

It's hard to highly recommend a place like Al Madina Flower. There is no denying that their biryani is world class; It's better than the ones I've had in India. But everything else was just adequate. The chicken curry was quite plain, and the parathas seemed a bit soggy. The staffs' attention to the needs of customers was second to none, and considering the budget that the place runs on, it is an achievement for everything to be so well kept. It is a quality establishment, with a solid commitment to good food, but it just doesn't tick every box.

I still recommend this as the perfect place to stop by for lunch if you have time. Five bucks for a bottomless meal for two people is hard to pass up. It won't take you long to be served, but it could take you forever to empty your plate.

The bill (for 2):
1 x Mutton Biryani (with unlimited extra biryani rice)
1 x Chicken Korma (with unlimited extra curry sauce)
4 x Paratha
2 x Papadams
2 x Chai tea
TOTAL: 20 Dhs (Approx. US$5)

Restaurant address: Satwa, on Al Hudaiba Road, across from the West Zone Supermarket. 100 meters from the Iranian Hospital.

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