Starting off this category with one of my favourite, newly-explored places in Dubai, The Sunken Garden at the Ritz Carlton hotel at the D.I.F.C. Come with me as I'm exploring Dubai, as "newbie" in town. 

The pros              

• A crisp air coming your way –probably originating from a good air condition- but I like to tell myself it’s naturally coming from the manmade waterfall you have as a view and the greenery surrounding you. Believe whatever works for you, as long as the much-needed cold air keeps coming!
• It is DIFC's well-kept secret. Right when you think your eyes cannot stand to see any more glossy skyscrapers that remind you of your corporate life, you enter in a beautiful subtropical garden. The Sunken Garden is a breath of clean air in the middle of this fancy, dusty city.
• The lighting of this place will have to go to my pros-list; the lights are dimmed exactly in the way you need them to be after a long day in constantly bright Dubai. It is the perfect place for a drink-or four- to relax and rejuvenate you for the next day!

The cons

• The girl responsible for the reservations in the Garden might scare you on the phone about what you are about to spend on your casual drink-outing, while referring to a minimum spend. However, the spending seemed reasonable once you arrive and get a taste of both their environment and the quality of food and drinks offered.

• Again in the subject of minimum spend, once you hear that you get an image of a very fancy place with questionable crowd that has been for a blowout before meeting up at the Garden. I think for everyone’s sake the minimum-spend reminder could be cut out, in the time of the booking.

• Although I have to applaud the benevolence of the ensemble of the stuff, I like to be lazy with my drinks and finish them in my own time and not be scared to live my glass on the table in case the waiter wants to take it to pour me some more wine. I will order the second one when I feel the need to.

I would recommend you to order

• A rose flavored shisha. Judge me if you’d like but I am a huge shisha-love. The shisha at the Sunken Garden has been until now one of the best shishas I’ve ever had. It’s seems impossible to find this particular flavor elsewhere in Dubai where everyone is smoking this classic, artificial-smelling Apple hookah. The smell of the rose is so real at the Garden that the whole surrounding would smell like my grandma’s garden back in Greece, once I order it; and it lasts until for as long as you might take to finish your drinks and more!

• A glass of Catena. I have a thing with red wine since I lived in France and have been a fan of any frenchie red dry wine, without having any kind of extensive knowledge in the subject of wine in general. I know what I like though and I must say that this Argentinian Cabernet Sauvignon will make you want to order it-and maybe look it up and order it online so you can enjoy it at home, as I have!

• The prawn kebbeh; its small and nicely served to have as some finger food with your drinks. The shrimp meat is so tender you might want to get it as your main to not have to share it.

Stay tuned, more of reviews of my new discoveries coming your way!!