1500 food boxes delivered to Calais’ stricken refugees

Food aid being loaded by (left to right) Les Leslo, Umair Chaudhry, Saad Khawar and Dalawar Chaudhry for the refugees of Calais (Courtesy: getwestlondon.co.uk)

A well known Pakistani restaurant in West London generously donated £6000 worth of food aid to poverty stricken refugees stranded in Calais.

Chaudhry’s TKC contributed a whopping 1500 food boxes in October containing a pilau rice and chickpea meal.

These were loaded onto an aid convoy organised by Slough-based charity group YouthWay.

TKC’s manager, Dalawar Chaundry, reportedly described the situation in Calais as “a crisis” and said he was “fortunate and proud to be a part of this humanitarian cause”.

For the convoy’s van driver, Yassar Kassana, this would be his third trip in delivering aid to refugees who neither had “no running water” nor were “very unwell”.

Youthway’s first convoy earlier in October consisted of 12 vans carrying blankets, scarves, food, and other emergency aid.

Japan Halal Expo seeks to break new grounds

Japan’s second halal expo last week attracted even more visitors, vendors and businesses than its predecessor last year with the purpose “to improve [the] Halal environment in Japan”.

Held at the Makuhari Messe International Conference Hall, it was hoped that this year’s expo will help Japan break into the top 10 of the Halal Friendly Holiday Destination Rankings.

Japan has gradually risen through the rankings conducted by Crescent Ratings, a leading authority on halal travel, from 23rd two years ago, 17th last year, to 11th this year.

Co-hosts Halal Media Japan and the Makuhari Messe said they were looking “to improve [the] Halal environment in Japan … in order to promote understanding on Halal and assist companies concerned [with] develop[ing] products and services based on the needs of Muslim visitors to Japan and Muslims residing in Japan”.

Located in the Mihama-ku ward of Chiba city, the event was supported by a number of prominent organisations with around 100 companies and organisations attending the two day event.

(Courtesy: Urdu World News)

Culinary excursions across Dubai

By Umar Loane

Rigga Road is located in the heart of eastern Dubai in Deira, and is host to half a mile of assorted restaurants from every corner of the globe.

One place that’s a must for any foodie to visit is Automatic. Established since 1977 in the older part of Dubai, this restaurant offers a wide range of middle eastern appetisers, salads, soups, Shawarma sandwiches and one of the best value mixed grills in town – less than £15!

Fattoush 16AED

With all the veg you’ll need, the Fattoush provides the perfect start to the day. It is essentially a bread-salad made from toasted or fried pieces of pita bread combined with mixed greens and other vegetables.

Moutabal 15AED

The Moutabal isn’t hummus, but mashed Aubergine, and can be had with bread or, in my case, a spoon!

Shawarma Platter 25AED

Automatic has the reputation for having the best Shawarma in the business, and I won’t disagree.

It’s on another level of fast food. However, their mixed grills are just awesome – succulent chicken with Arab-style kebabs that are fast cooked making them crispy on the outside and soft on the inside. The chips though are for show and bring nothing to the table.

World’s First Halal Sparkling Wine

Less alcohol in it than orange juice (courtesy: d-i-n-a-r.com)!

A German company has managed to produce the first-ever non-alcoholic sparkling “wine” in accordance with Islamic law, the Worldcrunch reported.

Producers in Rüdesheim have made a Riesling-quality bubbly with an alcohol extraction method that is so thorough that the final product is said to contain fewer traces of alcohol than orange juice.

Discovered by the Munich-based company Vigorous Trading, this halal-certified drink has been named Dinar – the first Umayyad coin minted in the eighth century.

And to replicate the taste of alcohol, the makers have found that the juice of dates and pomegranates do the trick where the sparkling date wine is “slightly tangy and therefore a good match to the alcoholic original, whereas the pomegranate version is slightly sweet” in taste.

While Dinar has been available since September, it is scheduled to premiere at the United Arab Emirates’ embassy this month for its national bank holiday celebrations.

Bottoms up!

When ‘The Berlin Doner’ came to town

Regular FtL followers will know that in October, we reviewed the very impressive German Doner Kebab (GDK) – an international franchise that’s now seeking to mark its territory here in Britain.

You’ll also recall that we had nothing except praise for its version of the much blighted doner, and awarded it a high Rubber Dinghy Rating of 8.

And you’d think, given such praise, that their version would be difficult to rival let alone surprise.

And here’s the jolly fella behind The Berlin Doner (no, he really is a jolly fella).

Well… you’d be wrong because, behold: The Berlin Doner.

This little hut is part of a number of other food vendors who come to town to setup stall in Ealing Broadway Shopping Centre’s food court during the Christmas period.

And boy do these guys know how to create a doner!

Unlike GDK, which opts for veal, these guys prefer 100% beef as part of a varied menu that offers the following:

• Beef Doner, £5.50.
• Chicken Doner, £5.
• Wrap Doner, £5.
• Doner Box, £6.
• Veg Doner, £5.
• Mixed doner also available.

The bread in which this is served is a fairly thick, crusty and beautifully toasted one, which is packed to the brim and beyond with a very generous mixture of meat(s), salads (of your choice) and a selection of three divinely delicious sauces that literally help transcend this entire concoction to unprecedented heights.

The secret, ladies and gentlemen, is to get all three sauces to really appreciate how good these doners are on a cold winter afternoon after a hard day’s shopping.

In our view, grab yourself a beef and chicken doner mix along with all three sauces; but, here’s the secret: be sure to ask for EXTRA meat and EXTRA sauce!

Trust us, you’ll be thankful; and also be sure to let the good owner know you visited on our recommendation.

Wheelchair bound chef opens Canada’s first food truck

Chef Aleem Syed (Courtesy: The Mississauga News).

A chef who was left wheelchair bound after a crippling accident in 2008 has become the owner of Canada’s first wheelchair accessible food truck – The Holy Grill.

While recovering in hospital, Aleem Syed, 34, of Brampton, was visited by another wheelchair bound cook, the chef, Pascal Ribreau, who invited Syed to his successful Toronto restaurant – the Celestin.

Upon his arrival, Syed was given a cutting board and told to get chopping. And he hasn’t looked back since.

He now attends corporate events, weddings and other special events, serving upscale ethnic halal street food from his food truck while also finding time to run a busy catering business from a kitchen in downtown Toronto.