Rustic Dining at Le Pain Quotidien

While I was browsing the photos of my phone, I came across pictures of one of those dinner dates me and my husband had ages ago.  This dinner is one of the most memorable because it was the beginning of my affair with tartine. 

Blogging world, I would like to introduce to you the restaurant that makes my heart and my tummy do a flip-flop - Le Pain Quotidien.  Yes, I know it will take a lot of getting used to in pronouncing the name.  I practiced it in my head and a hundred times while taking a bath before visiting the restaurant.  Still, didn't nail it. It came out like I was talking and chewing something very very sticky at the same time.  It is actually read as "Le Pan Ko-Te-De-An."

The restaurant was right next to Starbucks in Al Najda St., at the ground floor of Twin Towers on the 13th street, this was January 2013.  Before we went there, I have already checked their menu to check what they offer and the price range of the shop.  I was prepared to have a three-course meal (had to skip lunch for this).

The place is just perfect for casual dining. Rustic and homey.  The place gives you that feeling of being in a great place that offers quality food.  The staff are warm and friendly and even helped you pronounced the words on the menu.

We ordered lemonades for drinks which arrived on time.  For our entree I ordered Chicken Mozzarella hot tartine while husbandry got the soup of the day.  The soup was good, just perfect for a cold night.  Perfect for winter time.  As for the tartine?  Well, what can I say.  It was love at first bite.  I just plainly love it.  I want to order more and forget about my main. The crunch of the bread plus the juicy chicken and cheese.

Homemade Lemonade

Soup of the Day: Corn and Mushroom

Chicken Mozzarella Tartine

For the main he got the Fisherman's pot and I got the Chicken chowder.  My husband enjoyed the meal but he was already full after the bowl of soup.  So he was not able to finish everything off.  As for my main, it was sort of dry.  The bread complements the chicken.  It was a bit salty for the creaminess of the chowder.  For dessert we only ordered one because we are already so stuffed but we just need to close the meal with something sweet.  Unfortunately, it was not that good.  My husband liked it because it was chocolate but nothing spectacular.

Chicken Chowder

Fisherman's Pot with Rosemary Potatoes

Chocolate Dome

In the end, the star of the night is the Tartine.  Hands down.  We ended the night a cup of Joe from the next door. 



Spoiler:  the branch here in Abu Dhabi has already closed the last we checked - July 2013.  We have to go to Dubai just to have those darn tartines.