Liam Collens

Ras Al Khaimah intercontinental hotel Mina Al Arab

Beach at the intercontinental beach spa resort at Ras al Khaimah

Mezze selection at Levant & Nar in Ras Al Khaimah

Laurent Perrier champagne and sunglasses in Levant Nar Ras Al Khaimah

Don’t believe this foreign press tosh about the UAE right now. I’m staying in Ras Al Khaimah this weekend or, as we call it, RAK (“rack”).

Yes, there are interceptions. Yes we hear drones being shot out the sky.

We are getting on with our lives. 🤌🏽

Beach please.

The Daily Fail loves to grind this axe.

It’s a lovely old building!

Oof! Aloo bhaji, foul medames, paratha and garlic pickles for breakfast. Today will be the best day 💪🏽
📍 InterContinental Ras Al Khaimah Mina Al Arab Resort & Spa, an IHG Hotel إنتركونتيننتال منتجع وسبا رأس الخيمة

The morning after. We heard a lot of interceptions last night which is daunting and then comforting that it is the sound of interceptions. Still we are feeling very grateful that we can be here and we can be safe in Ras Al Khaimah.

The views this weekend. This is 1 hour north on Dubai in Ras Al Khaimah, a small emirate. Hopefully just the sounds of the sea over this weekend.

I’m glad that the warning is given and I hope they act on it!

This is wild. People are losing their collective minds about an alleged tyrant chef and here we have people who actually save lives being attacked at work.

I know the NHS can be a frustrating experience, but I will NEVER forget their kindness in the worst of times.

They deserve better.

Breaking.

British National (my mother) pictured earlier today drinking coffee outside in Dubai. All tables occupied. Don't believe the hyperbole.

We're sick if it.

Nobody is getting paid to defend the UAE. We've got nothing to moan about as hardly anything is getting through.

It's not Gaza

Maybe this is just a glitch but Noma appears to be missing from the online Michelin Guide for Copenhagen...
#foodsky

“Nomagate” claims its apex scalp: René Redzepi.

There so much to say about this. So much has already been said.

Right now my take is the dangers of worshipping false Gods.

Society holds up people for reasons and René was one of them.

Part of the shock of his fall is also his fall from grace.

MOLI by Shi, Dubai Hills - Restaurant Revisited. Uninvited Opinion: I was teased with the promise of endless corporate frivolity. It never happened. MOLI by Shi comes close.

open.substack.com/pub/liamcoll...

Singapore noodles search for lunch during a business lunch at MOLI by Shi in Dubai Hills.

I was teased with the promise of a career full of corporate lunches.

Bordeaux. Ribeyes the size of tectonic plates.

Reality turned out to be Pret A Manger and eating cold sandwiches al desko.

But MOLI by Shi’s keeps the flame alive. Also, why their business lunch is the best choice. Read more ⬇️

Heston Blumenthal: Why I’m closing my two-Michelin star restaurant As he prepares to close his award-winning London restaurant, Heston Blumenthal tells Hannah Evans about his future plans and his life with bipolar disorder

Sad times to see that Dinner by Heston London is closing. An institution and a pioneering concept.

Oh to be a fly on the wall in the backrooms leading to this announcement and the decision…

What will come of Dinner by Heston Dubai?

www.thetimes.com/article/3508...

It is not the bureaucracy of buying in Italy that should hold you back.

(I would know, I bought one.)

It’s the money-draining restoration work coupled with the unreliable “professionals” that ghost you in the process. It took us years to find the right team and stump up the cash.

Punching, Slamming, Screaming: A Chef’s Past Abuse Haunts Noma, the World’s Top-Rated Restaurant

Serious piece of reporting tonight by Julia Moskin of the @nytimes.com on the often violent culture at Noma, which came from the very top: chef Rene Redzepi. (Follows up an impressive collation of appalling stories by Jason Ignacio White, a former employee, on Insta)

www.nytimes.com/2026/03/07/d...

Don’t know what pringá is? Find out here 👇
(spoiler alert: it’s delicious)

Hey Iran, I have a very different impression of what an apology looks like.

Dinners at home these days with all these emergency warnings here in Dubai

🥩 Ribeyes fried med rare
🐟 Salmon rubbed with Shichimi Togarashi
🥔 Mashed potato with confit garlic
🥗 Mixed salad in sumac Dijon dressing
🍷 Coonawarra Cabernet Shiraz Merlot 2023

#cooking #foodsky

Please do share when the article comes out

Oof!! 😍

“The UAE has thick skin and bitter flesh – we are no easy prey,” he said.

“We will carry out our duty towards our country, our people, and our residents who are also part of our family.” Mohamed bin Zayed al-Nahyan, President of the UAE

An accidental Caturday shot this morning with the Lord of the Desert.

You love to see it!

Dinners at home.

💯

a glass of water with ice sits on a tray ALT: a glass of water with ice sits on a tray

Another day telling people that Americanos don't have milk in them. The fight goes on .

TaoXiang Taiwan Hotpot, Dubai restaurant review. "Fortune favours the brave in International City." TaoXiang Taiwan Hotpot is big on flavour and reminds us that some of Dubai’s best meals are not in obvious places.

Some of Dubai’s best meals are nowhere near its most obvious postcodes.

TaoXiang Taiwan Hotpot in International City proves the point. Minimalist interiors, deeply flavoured broths, spicy and excellent value for those willing to go a little further.

open.substack.com/pub/liamcoll...

Kraken, Dubai restaurant review: "There is Real Skill Beneath the Theatre". Pull back the maximalism to reveal Kraken’s tricks. It does not want for ambition. Dive deeper and, perhaps, the best is yet to come.

Everyone expected Grégoire Berger’s next move post Ossiano to be significant. Few expected an unlicensed seafood restaurant on Al Wasl Road. Kraken is theatrical and occasionally polarising, but beneath the drama sits serious skill. Full review on EatGoSee and Substack.

eatgosee.com/travel_post/...