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Coffee houses have become popular places to unwind, catch up with friends and sometimes, to escape the world for a while.
Although there are a number of coffee shop franchises in the kingdom, few offer the dazzling combination of Fair Trade and organic brews that are served up at Esquires in Saar.
This little gem of a place is nestled in the Nakheel Centre, next to St Christopher’s School, and is a firm favourite with regular visitors who flock there for the refreshments and stay for the ambience.
From the moment you walk through the door you are greeted not just by the intoxicating aroma of freshly-brewed coffee, but by the welcoming smiles of the friendly staff and fellow patrons.
As it is located by the primary and junior schools, mornings are a busy time at Esquires and when I arrived at around 9.30am the coffee shop was buzzing with mums looking for a much-needed caffeine boost after the often chaotic school run.
Ahmed Shawqi Nafea, Esquires operations manager, said: “Mornings are perhaps the busiest time of day for us. We start at 6am and the shop is soon packed with people looking for a casual place to enjoy a spot of breakfast and one of our 100 per cent organic coffees or smoothies.
“We offer a friendly environment with a great selection of food and drinks and I think that’s why we get so many regular customers, it’s nice to see familiar faces and give them a wave and a hello.”
The décor is just as inviting as the staff and management and the warm tones of the comfortable furniture and the refreshing greenery of the potted plants all add to the casual, homely feel.
Outside there is a play area for toddlers to run around while the grown ups enjoy their choice of beverage or snack.
I’m not a morning person and my day doesn’t start until I’ve had my caffeine fix, which often results in a hearty breakfast taking a back seat. However, at Esquires there are so many delicious, fresh and quick breakfast options available that there’s no reason to skip what many deem ‘the most important meal of the day’.
Muesli with fruit yogurt, bagels with cream cheese or honey or butter and the Editor’s favourite scrambled eggs with toast and jam are all popular breakfast options, but I was tempted by the freshly-made waffles.
Having spent my New Year’s Eve in the Netherlands, I like to consider myself a connoisseur when it comes to quality waffles and the Esquires offering comes up on top. They were crisp, fluffy, golden brown and delicious with an accompaniment of honey and strawberry syrup.
To wash it down, Mr Nafea recommended Flat White, a textured, creamy and intense espresso (and regarded as the national drink of New Zealand) with a meticulously-crafted design worked into the foam on top by the expert baristas.
You can instantly notice the difference between an Esquires coffee and a cup made haphazardly at home … the subtleties lie in the aroma, the texture and most importantly, the refined taste.
Esquires is a place for friends and colleagues to meet, to escape the world, surf the net or simply treat themselves to a premium drink and delicious food while reading the latest issue of GulfWeekly, trying to solve the Sudoku problems on the Esquires Elevenses page.
