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With the holy month in full flow, the GulfWeekly team have been invited to more iftars and ghabgas than you can shake a fist full of dates at, writes Kristian Harrison.
But this one was different. The fruity treats were not served in a bowl, or in a tray, but in McDonald’s packaging. From Big Mac boxes to McFlurry cups and cardboard chip sleeves, this was an event with a twist.
The famous Fakhro fast food franchise hosted the celebration at the ART Rotana Hotel & Resort in Amwaj Islands to launch its new regional initiative, titled ‘Your Right To Know’.
The digital platform, exclusive to the GCC, aims to set a precedent for the quick service industry by inviting people from the region to ask any questions they desire about the brand and its food.
Your Right To Know, McDonald’s say, will provide a truthful reference for customers who wish to know exactly what goes into classics such as the Chicken McNuggets and Big Macs, whether the meat is halal, and how the food is prepared.
Of course, with every nutritionist on the globe using scaremongering tactics, and with the prevalence of YouTube ‘experts’ and documentaries like Super Size Me abound, there are a lot of rumours and unsubstantiated claims floating about where the industry is concerned.
At the event, Abdulla Adel Fakhro, director of the Fakhro Restaurants Company, spoke about the aims and ambitions of Your Right To Know, with regards to clarity and openness.
He said: “Transparency is the key to every business, especially in today’s world where consumers demand more information to help them make decisions.
“As a brand, we’ve always been committed to this mantra. For example, thousands of people have visited our kitchens since we started our Open Door programme in 2006, and we were the first restaurant to communicate nutritional information in our restaurants.
“Your Right To Know comes as a continuation of this journey. It’s an ideal tool to foster dialogue with consumers and demonstrate pride in the food we serve.”
With McDonald’s being a family-friendly chain, I decided I had to bring along my ‘sister from another mister’ and GulfWeekly’s newest intern, Amani, along for her first media experience.
Of course, despite our aching fasting stomachs, food was secondary as soon as we cast eyes on the photo booth, complete with a vast array of props. We let out our inner children (although the older, supposedly mature heads in the office might say we’re children on the outside too) run loose by gallivanting with giant burgers, sundaes, sunglasses, sombreros and more as we printed out reams of silly photographs to adorn our office wall.
Much to our immense disappointment, the food on offer was not actually McDonald’s own. Our dreams of a waiter bringing a giant silver platter littered with McChicken Sandwiches and Quarter Pounders, circled by McNuggets and fries were not met.
Inevitably, when the audience were invited to offer their own questions to the staff, I decided it was my right to know: ‘Where are the Big Macs?’
Thankfully, after some mumblings about ‘hotel policy’, when the buffet was unleashed it was delightful and somewhat made up for our disappointment.
An extensive salad bar, filled with crunchy and fresh vegetables, provided the appetisers, but it was the live pasta station which really had us salivating. From spaghetti to carbonara to bolognaise, coupled with a wide selection of toppings, the team must have made four trips to the poor chef who was inundated with requests.
On the meaty side of things, the lamb rogan josh was exquisite, with the meat tender and flavourful, while the chicken and beef options proved similarly fulfilling.
And although McFlurry’s were out of the question, there were other whacky desserts on offer that had something for every palette. My personal favourite was the cinnamon apple crumble, which upon revealing in the office the next day had Editor Stan raging with jealousy as he had missed out on his pudding of choice.
Also, on offer was a chocolate rice pudding crumble, which looked like the best thing ever on paper, but the chocolate was richer than the Sultan of Brunei so it proved difficult to eat more than a teaspoon-full.
Amani decided to be a stickler for tradition and tapped into her Arabic roots by sampling the um ali, cheese kunafa, Arabic baklava and the banana peanut caramel tart, and judging by her bouncing over to the photo booth for another round of daft photography, I’m guessing their sugar content was of sufficient quantities.
After a night of rolling back the years and being able to unleash our inhibitions, along with some truly superb food, it was definitely a night to remember.
Although next time, a burger buffet is a must!
