Asian Lunch Buffet at Liwan, Al Ghurair Rayhaan by Rotana

For the past few months, my family and I have been having our Saturday lunches in fast food restaurants or food courts in the malls.  Not exactly healthy, I know, but we're always outside at 1pm, and by then, we're all hungry and we want quick fixes to fill our growling tummies. However, last Saturday was different as we were treated to a delectable spread of Asian cuisine in Al Ghurair Rayhaan by Rotana.

image from Al Ghurair Rayhaan & Arjaan by Rotana

Upon arriving and giving my name, we were led to our table smack in the middle of Liwan. But because we knew our girls would most probably spend most of their time at the Kids Corner, we asked to sit near that area instead.

Every Saturday, Liwan has an Asian themed buffet spread of a variety of authentic dishes from countries across Asia.  Of course Hubby and I were delighted because, well, we're Asians, and we always love food we're familiar with.

There was the usual sushi bar, cart of dumplings, and salad bar where you could make your own salad according to your preference.

But there were salads from across Asia you could choose from as well:

Indian Appetizer Salad

Filipino-Style Eggplant Salad

Singaporean Noodles & Shrimp Salad

Malaysian Calamari Salad

There was also Indian Chicken Tikka Salad, Thai Beef Salad and Sri Lankan Dressed Appetizer Salad.  With the salads alone, you can already tell how many different cuisines there are.

Here are some of the mains:

Thai Green Vegetable Curry

Stir Fried Noodles with Vegetables

Fish Tajine

Stir Fried Beef with Spring Onions

Sweet & Sour Fish

There was also Dal Makhani, Stir Fried Chicken with Black Pepper Sauce, Nasi Goreng, Stir Fried Lamb with Long Beans & Bean Sprouts, and Poached Bokchoi with Sesame & Soy Sauce.

Needless to say, we were very pleased with the restaurant's offerings. I really liked the Singaporean Noodles & Shrimp Salad and Malaysian Calamari Salad, as well as the Stir Fried Beef with Spring Onions, Sweet & Sour Fish, and Fish Tajine.

I did wonder, though, since it was an Asian themed buffet, why some of the mains didn't mention anything about what country it was from or what exactly the dishes were called.  Sure we know Nasi Goreng, Dal Makhani, and Thai Green Vegetable Curry, but what about the others?  Even though 90% of the diners that day were Asian, it would still be good to know the names of all of the food and which countries the recipes originated from.

The kids weren't left out, though.  They also had their own little set-up inside the Kids Corner.

And inside one of those chafing dishes was one of my girls' favorites from the Philippines: Pancit Bihon.

While Hubby and I enjoyed spoonfuls of dessert to conclude our meal, Caila and Sophie each decorated chocolate cupcakes with icing and sweets which they happily enjoyed devouring for their dessert.

concentrating on the task at hand

showing off their masterpieces

And just before leaving the 5-star hotel attached to Al Ghurair Shopping Centre, we made use of their photo booth in the lobby so that we could have a family photo to remember that day.

So if you want to have your fix of Asian cuisine under one roof, do try the Asian Lunch Buffet at Liwan on Saturday.  With the wide assortment of dishes to choose from, it's a great way to end the weekend, and a nice start to another busy workweek ahead.

The Standard buffet is priced at AED 120 including local water, chilled juice, soft drinks, while the Premium buffet is priced at AED 140 including local water, chilled juice, soft drinks and one mocktail.  You can also enjoy the lavish buffet for only Dhs69 by downloading the hotel's #Happy2017 coupon here: http://roho.it/ttmk.

Disclaimer: We were invited to try the Asian Lunch Buffet.  However, all views and opinions are my own.

Liwan Restaurant
Al Ghurair Rayhaan by Rotana
Rigga, Deira, Dubai
Phone: 04-2933000