Anand Al Saeed, or simply Anand, is my all around favorite restaurant in Abu Dhabi. It's located in the same super block as Al Mariah mall (not to be confused with Al Maryah Island/mall). Parking can be a bit of a pain around there, so I generally take advantage of the ample parking by Sun and Sand Sports, a little bit east of the restaurant in the same super block. Like many restaurants in Abu Dhabi, Anand a family seating area in
the back. Unlike many restaurants in Abu Dhabi, this area is often
pretty full of families or mix gender couples, especially during busy
times.
Anand has a small menu, and they specialize in (correct me if I'm wrong in the comments) West Indian veg food. The dal that comes with their thali reminds me a lot of the sweet and spicy dal that my friend's mom (whose family is from Gujarat) cooks up on special occasions. Their menu also features snacks and Punjabi food. I've tried most of the snacks, but I've never had any of the stuff off the Punjabi part of the menu. Walking in at dinner time, I'd say only one out of every ten customers has something off the Punjabi part of the menu, so I've left it alone until now. Anand doesn't have menu cards, rather they write it up on a white board at the back of the restaurant.
My favorite thing off the Anand menu is the thali. Never the same two days in a row, it features three stews, a fried vegetable dish, and chapatis and or rice. Most of the time the thali will come with another side dish, like warm curdled yoghurt (I'm not a big fan) or just plain yoghurt. Recently, during the later evening (after 8 or 9) they've had pulao available in addition to rice. Pulao is rice that has been cooked with chopped up veggies (normally carrots and green beans), nuts, and some dried fruit. It is similar to biryani, but the spice profile is a little different, and I would argue that it's more of a side dish/complimentary dish instead of a meal in itself. As far as the stews, generally there will be some combination of sweet and spicy dal, a thick chick pea stew, rajma (kidney bean) stew, or the potato and tomato based bhaji they serve with puri bhaji. The fried veggies are my favorite part. I often find myself stuffing my face with oily cabbage or "ivy gourd" (the vegetable in tindly) scooped up with warm chapati.
Thali at Anand is an exercise in restraint, and refusing food. Waiters will come around very frequently with refills for everything. I often end up eating second and third helpings of some dishes before I realize that I'm super full. My tactic is to eat only one or two chapatis and to save the dal for the rice they serve at the end. 14 dirhams truly gets you "all you can eat".
Anand only starts serving thali in the afternoon. If I roll up before noon, I generally get the puri bhaji. Puri bhaji is tomato and potato stew served up with deep fried dough, or puris. This dish is pretty simple, but also amazing.
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| Puri Bhaji |
A friend of mine, who's also a big fan of Anand, has been telling me for weeks to get their chaat, but I never bothered until very recently. The other day I had the sev puri, pav bhaji, vada pav and a single pani puri curteousy of a too-full stranger. The sev puri and vada pav were pretty standard (but nonetheless scrumptious!) while the pav bhaji was a little strange if you're used to the Mumbai style pav bhaji you get at places like Salam Bombay/Chhappan Bhog.
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| Sev Puri |
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| Pav Bhaji alà Anand |
The thing that I appreciate most about Anand is the fact that the food, for the most part, isn't super indulgent. I can happily eat there a few times a week and not feel icky. Anand feels like the day-to-day cooking that I might do at home. The flip side of this is that if I were to have a guest visit me for a few days in Abu Dhabi, I probably wouldn't take them to Anand. Having a friend visit for a few days is a special occasion, and the food should be celebratory and rich, verging on gratuitous. Anand is tasty, but it's also something you could eat everyday.
