Men Time - Grand Avenues Review

Men Time – Lucid Dreaming!

I was a fairly regular spa goer a couple of years back and went to Men Time in Al-Mohalab mall the majority of the time. It was a small and cramped place but still very relaxing. I had always wished they’d open a bigger better place. That’s when we were blessed with the Men Time – Grand Avenues branch. I had a chance recently to enjoy a few of their treatments for the first time.

Ambience

I was really impressed by the interior design, kinda reminded me of the Grosvenor House in Dubai. Soft brown shades, low lighting and the combination of stone, suede and wood on the walls was earthy. The Spa is spacious and very clean. The selection of music was very nice; the sound level and distribution was just right.

Rooms

They boast 13 rooms of different sizes, I was treated in the larger of the rooms. Most rooms have showers, some have baths – for the more advanced treatments like wraps, etc. I saw only one room that had space for a traditional Thai massage. It would’ve been nice to have seen a room with a small waterfall or like one of the infamous rooms I keep hearing about in the ladies spa THE GARDEN.

The massage beds were comfortable and had built in heating. Rooms are kept at a reasonable temperature, neither too hold or too cold.

Staff

All the staff were courteous and attentive. The receptionist called me about 20 mins before my treatment to confirm and I was given a warm welcome. I was even given an extra 30 mins of my choosing, which made my day.

The therapist did a good job with catering to my preferences.

A great experience, with many future returns I hope.

Guys…..if your body is aching and you’re looking for a place to relax, then look no further.

Ladies……..your man deserves it and a Men Time gift voucher says it all ;)

FYI, I understand a new (larger) branch will be opening in KIPCO Tower – 40^th Floor, but I didn’t ask when J

Keep in touch with Men Time Spa via:-

www.mentime-ku.com

Facebook: /mentime.ku

Twitter: @mentime_ku

Instagram: @mentime_ku

Pet Peeves

      A minor annoyance that an individual identifies as particularly annoying to them, to a greater degree than others may find. So says Wikipedia.

A few peeves come to mind that really get under my skin:

1. Static electricity huh........ahhh!! has to be top of my list. It's so annoying when out of the blue you get a mini shock that you weren't expecting. It just creeps up on you from no where. I've become so conscious of it that I will avoid buying certain fabric or double think a metal-to-fabric contact just to escape the possibility of a shock. I don't know where this obsession of avoidance will take me as I slowly become senile - hopefully not to the point of wearing insulation gloves!

2. Speaking a long time without clearing the throat. I hate having to listen to someone pontificate until their voice becomes gargled and hoarse.

These are the two that come immediately to mind. I'm sure there are more.

Anyone else care to share?

Kuwait Chronicles

Bice Restaurant Review

Thought I'd try the newly opened Bice Restaurant in Al Hamra Luxury Mall after seeing a post of their crab cake on instagram by someone.

We started off with the crab cake, which was not that bad but a little seafoody (zafir). I also had the thinly sliced meat with rocket and artichoke - not bad.

Had rigatoni with eggplant and ravioli with riccota spinach as main. Both were amazing! Tomato sauce was light and slightly tangy which made it devine.

All in all was a great lunch with lovely atmosphere. Highly recommended and will pass by another time to flavour the rest of the menu.

Dear Mr. Mayor.....

     Driving around our lovely Kuwait can be annoying sometimes, especially when I see most public spaces being abused by residents. 

     I'll be posting and commenting on instagram whatever I see as I go along in the hopes that someday someone will be inspired to correct the wrong or pass the info along. I don't really want to mention specific areas yet (maybe there won't be a need to), however, I just want to highlight that we should give more attention to our beloved Kuwait.

Music piece of the week...

Nice Hip Hop/Glo-Fi remix by YinyuaS.

Checkout his soundcloud account.

Cavalli Caffe - The Grand Avenues - A two star restaurant

Perfection, exclusivity, glamour, meticulous detail....these are synonymous with the Roberto Cavalli brand. I wouldn't expect anything less, actually I would expect more.

     I recently had lunch at the Cavalli Caffe in the Grand Avenues, this was during its soft opening - one day before the official opening. Yesterday, 3rd of May, Mr. Cavalli personally cut the ribbon to mark the official opening.

Just wanted to share my experience with the food and service. We ordered:-

- Linguine pasta with mushroom sauce
- Penne in white sauce with black truffles 
- Sparkling water
- Espresso con panna
- Black tea with fresh mint
- Apple pie crumble
- Creme brûlée 


     I wasn't really impressed by the waiters and the attention to service and this was what bugged me the most. The Italian maître d’ was constantly hounding the waiters to do their jobs, pointing out the obvious as he went along and trying to orchestrate their duties. It was obvious they were amateurs and weren't cut out for the big time.

     We had to wait a full 10 mins until they realised they hadn't put out bread and when they finally brought it, the olive oil and balsamic vinegar were missing (one of the main ingredients at an italian table). For each dish served, we had to ask for a missing item, either parmesan cheese, a spoon, etc.

     The service was horrible, not what you would expect from such a high end brand and especially not one day before the official opening! At one point the waiter had order the bar for still water when I asked for sparkling, after a long wait and dry throat try to dry swallow the bread, I reminded him of the water -  he was at this time chit-chatting with his other waiter buddies totally neglecting the tables. The annoying part was that our table was in a very conspicuous place.

     I can say the food wasn't that great, nothing special honestly. My penne was too cheesy and drenched with sauce. The linguine was OK at best. My personal nespresso machine could make a better espresso and the cream was too airy and light. The black tea was what shock us the most, they offered "dilma" brand tea bags!! this is unbelievable for a high calibre restaurant. It was flat and had no taste. The creme brûlée tasted too much of egg. The apple pie crumble was actually not bad, they could've added more thicker slices of apple though.

The prices were actually reasonable, the entire meal cost less than 30 kd.

     I've noticed that soft openings and the early days of a restaurant are usually the best time to visit and take advantage of the original cooks preparing the food. This way you can really get a taste of what the food was intended to be. In this case, although we saw the Italian cooks roaming the floor, the food wasn't up to par.

     I think if the service was perfect, then it would have diverted our attention from the food and other shortfalls. Lots of places in Kuwait, from all types of businesses, rarely take time to perfect their customer service - an area of much needed attention.

The verdict - I give this place two stars.

- location - The Grand Avenues

- decor and ambience

Would I go back or recommend this place.........hhmmm..........I don't think so, until I hear otherwise.

Music piece of the week...

     I'll try to post as much variety of the music I enjoy, maybe I can get a few more people interested or at least introduce you to new sounds. Lets try music piece of the week to start off with and increase the dose as we go along.

I've been a fan of dubstep, liquid drum & bass and chillstep (to name a few) for a while now.

Wanted to share one with you.