Seafood Night at Olive Garden - Gefinor Rotana

Seafood nights are a difficult one, because the buffet should be generous enough and appetizing to be able to absolutely satisfy the guests.

At the seafood night at Rotana Gefinor Hotel, that appeared to be a simple task, since all the items at the buffet were dishes that would certainly appeal to seafood lovers.

The venue was packed, not a single table was empty; a healthy sign of a successful Seafood night, every Thursday!

The lady singing live was a smart add on and spread a glamorous mood, swaying between western and Arabic songs.

The constantly refreshed buffet was rich in varieties from make your own salad, Lebanese and international appetizers, shrimp salads, crab salads, marinated fresh salmon, mussels and others.

Salad Section

The main dishes included something for everyone, from seafood pasta, paella, sardines, fried and grilled fish and shrimps,...and the list is endless!

Hot Dish Section

Everything tasted really good, which makes it imperative to keep going back and forth to the buffet.

Stuffed Potatoes

Shrimps

Fried Sardines

Paella

Seafood Pasta

The dessert buffet wasn't that extensive, but who could ask for more than cakes, tarts…and the amazing tiramisu!

   

If you're a seafood lover with an exquisite taste, then mark your calendar for next Thursday, and bring a big appetite!

Tsunami Backyard Hazmieh Review

One of the very few restaurants in Lebanon that never fails to deliver the best and never disappoints!

Their new place in Backyard Hazmieh has the same feel like all of their other venues, but with an addition of outdoor seating, allowing you to enjoy great sushi with a feel of spaciousness and relaxation!

The Japanese are very sensitive people with an extreme attentiveness to detail, and the owners of Tsunami ensured to portray the Japanese etiquette and proper form, through the quality of their ingredients used, their friendly waitresses and their efficient service!

We started our dinner with Tsunami's Rice Paper Duck and White Fish Carpaccio. I have to say the White Fish was so fresh and the taste was superb.

Rice Paper Duck

White Fish Carpaccio

We tried a variety of salads from the exotic Mango Salad, Tuna Tartar and Fresh Crab. To be honest, the Women's Mistake was my personal favorite. I just have a weak spot for good salmon.

Mango Salad

Tuna Tartar

Fresh Crab

Women's Mistake

Then we got into the main show, Sushi.

The menu selection is extensive, and each item we tried was freshly prepared to perfection. There are so many maki & sashimi items to choose from and I assure you that whatever your order, you will enjoy!

The Octopus Tempura Maki was a gem. That octopus on top just took it into an entirely new level.

Octopus Tempura Maki

They call it the Skyline, and I've destroyed the entire city!!

Skyline

Avocado Spicy Shrimp

Wrapping up our dinner with a Sweet Banana surprise, dressed and fried, with vanilla ice cream on the side... A true rock star!

Sweet Banana

If you are after an immaculate sushi experience, then make Tsunami your next destination!!

The CORNER Restaurant Review

When you have shopped till you dropped at Beirut Souks and you need to reward yourself for strolling all the shops and carrying all those shopping bags, you must head to The Corner, a newly opened concept by the Boubess Group.

Located at the very top of the Souks, far away from the noise of kids playing and the cluster of all those cafes and restaurants at the Souks' lower part.

This new eatery is trendy looking with an outside terrace and an upper garden, providing few more options to sit at.

At first glance at the menu, you feel that it's quite similar to the one at Cozmo Cafe, but if you dig into it, you would realize that it has more additions and varieties, not to mention a much higher caliber of ingredients especially the meat and the chicken.

We had a sweet passion fruit based non alcoholic drink, that came in those amazing milk glasses of long ago...the juice was so refreshing and good that it will always be our meal starter at The Corner!

From a distance, we saw flames and heard the sound of sizzling, and there came our mixed fajitas chicken and meat platter with pita bread and all the accompanying condiments. What could be better than making your very own delicious wraps!

Mushroom and Swiss Burger please, and a dream came true! Brioche like bun created and freshly baked at the eatery, perfectly spiced exquisite Angus meat, fragrant mushrooms and generous Swiss cheese. A truly refined burger,  that would ensure a next visit! The very few times, the French fries were not the star, however good they were!

The chicken escalope is on the average scale, and to be honest, I've had better! It lacked flavour and juiciness!

If your mom makes the best fudgy moist chocolate cake, then be sure she is in for some serious competition! Frankly speaking, I never thought anyone could come close to my mom's baking, like this awesome homey cake!

Love is in the air...you got me at first bite...call it what you like! Their strawberry cheesecake has been definitely prepared in the skies and sent down to earth!

Fluffy cream, strawberry vanilla ice cream, fresh strawberries and sprinkles of chunks of biscuit like crumbles, all living inside an elegant deep white plate! I can't wait to have it again and again and again...


The Corner has so much to offer so better not miss on a divine meal!

Bose QC25 Noise Cancelling Headphones Review

Ever since I was a little boy, I used to see the Bose logo everywhere, on home speakers, cars' audio, radios and many others. It was so engraved in my subconscious, that when I grew up, the Bose name didn’t fail me, since it was very much appraised for its superb audio quality and premium products.

The QC25 was no exception. I decided to get these pair of headphones, as I felt that it was time I upgraded from my unimpressive Beats earphones. Though I knew they were available in several shops in Lebanon, I preferred to get them on my way back from Paris for 300 Euros, since they were selling for more than 400 USD in Beirut..

Retail Box

The package contained their very own carrying case, pretty useful when traveling and keeping your new investment away from any damages. An airplane headphone jack adapter, also came with, for enjoying entertainment on-board! I couldn’t be any happier, dismissing and waving goodbye to those lousy airplanes’ earphones!

Carry case

Airplane Headphone Jack Adapter

Having mentioned travelling, this is where the QC25 really SHINES, in noisy surroundings, given the noise cancellation capability!

I first tried my new toy, on my flight back to Beirut, where the magic was in the air! Once I put them on, oh my God, an  entirely new feeling came over me! With the noise cancellation feature, the headphones blocked out any cabin noise, giving me the feeling of comfort in my own bubble…the only time I felt I was flying was when my eyes were open! These babies cancel out static and ambient noise, even though, you can still hear someone close to you, trying to capture your attention. Quite impressive!! 

This system is powered by a single triple A battery, which lasts for around 30-35 hours, before it needs to be replaced.

The sound quality was flawless. Tracks were crisp, with an added punch to music, without overwhelming your ears with unnecessary bass. The physical headphone itself is comfortable. It's lightweight and the ear cushions are made with the best jelly like soft material, which won't aggravate you, even after prolonged hours of use.

I'm so pleased with my QC25 for my daily music time pleasure. Once they’re on, the experience of  noise cancelling is phenomenal!

It is a purchase you won't regret!

Apple wants you to cut the headphone cord. But why?

On September 7th 2016, Apple announced the new iPhone iteration, the iPhone 7, without a headphone jack. I still can't figure out a valid justification for this new implementation, and here's why:

1. If the phone's thickness was the reason, given that it didn't change from the previous generation, then there's no point in removing the jack.

2. Even though the new iPhone 7 is water resistant, removal of the headphone jack is not necessary.

3. If Apple wanted to go for simplicity, then why not throw in a wireless set of earpods instead of adding a lightning to headphone jack adapter.

In brief, Apple created the inconvenience of not being able to charge your phone while using wired headphones, which is totally uncalled for!

Now here lies Apple's business strategy, and that's to create the disadvantage and have YOU pay for it. In other words, Apple is indirectly imposing a hidden cost, that you might pay for later on, should you feel inclined to buy their new AirPods for $160.00 USD so that you can go wire free..

At a later stage, I'm definite that they'll come up with a multi-port adapter so that you could charge your phone and use wired headphones simultaneously, and Apple will charge no less than $50.00 USD for it (perhaps more)! 

Guess what, people will gladly buy it, and Apple will happily make a fortune out of it!!

In conclusion, and in the future, you might end up buying wireless earphones or a multi-port adapter, thus, incurring additional charges.

The sad thing is that other mobile manufacturers are following Apple's footsteps and removing the headphone jack in favor of a single USB-C port.

Tell us what you think in the comments' section below.

Samsung Galaxy S7 Edge Review

Mobile phones have drastically advanced over the past few years from using them to just make calls, into mini mobile computers having great high resolution screens, speedy processors and high speed connectivity. They simply transformed into what we now know as "Smartphones".

Being one of the leading manufacturers in the mobile industry, Samsung has pioneered one product line after the other, from the Galaxy S series to the Note series and with great success..

To date, Samsung have reached the 7th generation of their Galaxy S smartphone and the S7 Edge variant promises a smooth Android experience, Edge screen features, great battery life and water & dust resistance capabilities.. But does it deliver?

Let's find out.. 




Screen

The S7 Edge features a very bright 5.7 inch Amoled display. It's crisp, colors pop and scores high in outdoor screen visibility.

The edge display, despite making the phone better looking and almost bezel free, drove me crazy at times as I accidentally started those edge features that Samsung cooked into the software.. 

I was very excited about these edge features, yet eventually ended up turning them off. As for the curved edges, they won't affect the screen's ease of use in any sort in case you're wondering.

Battery

Battery life is sufficient, I never ran out of juice all day. To be honest, I have Samsung's wireless charger at the office, so my phone is constantly charged at my desk.. At home, I need the battery to hold through the rest of the night after a day of heavy use; therefore, I plug it into the fast charger, giving me the additional battery percentage I need within 30 minutes. If you're not a heavy user, one charge per day shall keep you on safe grounds.

Build Quality

The device definitely feels premium with two sheets of glass bonded together by the aluminium edges, but you feel like it's a drop away from total destruction.. Sorry Samsung but I'd rather have an all metal Galaxy S phone (ehem S8).

I went with the black model, so slick, and the phone feels good.. the only drawbacks are the smudges and slipperiness.. But you can easily evade this by throwing a case on.. Problem Solved!! 

Speed & UI

I've been using the phone since May 2016, it was super fast and smooth back then.. Today, it's still a fast phone but not as it felt during the first 2 months.. It could be the 128 GB SD card I'm putting inside the phone to fit all the pictures I have!! As for the look of the skin on top of Android, I still prefer Google now launcher over Samsung's Touchwiz UI (if they still call it like that), so I have it installed along with a basic theme making it look as close to vanilla Android as possible.

Camera

I'm sure you heard great things about the camera and yeah it's true.. It's the best camera on a smartphone.. Photography is a HUGE and imperative  factor for me when deciding on my next phone upgrade, especially that I use my phone very often for my food photography, scenery shooting and the casual snaps.. 
I was holding the latest generation iPhone prior to the S7 Edge, and the pictures used to be fine, and with some editing, they turned out great..

But with the Edge's new 12 MP camera, pictures are great as snapped, and with some very light editing, they become awesome.

Water resistance

To be honest, I just don't have the heart to submerge the phone in water.. I know the phone is IP68 certified, but I would never ever get it close to water..

If you do use yours for underwater photography, please share your feedback with me, maybe someday I'll harden my heart and do it... Or maybe not!

Conclusion

To wrap it up, the Samsung Galaxy S7 Edge is a great phone.. It's fast, battery is fine, camera is awesome and the screen is excellent.

Indeed some of the features that Samsung included in this phone might not be very useful to you, but might be someone else's cup of tea, just like wireless charging has become so important for me, it might never add a letter to your book of interest.

Do you want the latest and greatest, and like to be on the EDGE of what technology has to offer, and by chance happen to have $600.00+ USD to spare? If yes, then this is amongst your top picks!!