So you think you can cook? Dubai cafe welcomes menu additions from home chefs

With so many cafes and coffee shops in Dubai, it can be difficult for new shops to set themselves apart and entice guests to come inside. But Mellow Yellow Bakeshop and Cafe has found a way to do that. Located in Uptown Mirdif, this little cafe has some big ideas.

The Emirati Maha Al Mazrouei started baking for friends and family in her home as a way to encourage her then 10-year-old daughter to bake. They started with red velvet cupcakes – and soon it wasn’t just friends and family ordering them, but also strangers.

Al Mazrouei then started an arts and crafts workshop for kids in her home. She loved the tight community she was creating and thought to put it all together and launch a community cafe.

And that’s how Mellow Yellow was born.

The cafe, which opened one year ago, serves breakfast, lunch and dinner along with a host of sweets and cakes. There’s a book corner in the shop where guests can take or leave books at will. There are children’s workshops on Saturdays (Dh20 per child). It has also just launched adult workshops called mom-inars. The latest mom-inar was titled How to Plan the Perfect Party and was hosted by the children’s writer Muby Astruc.

Al Mazrouei loved the direction her cafe was headed, but she wanted more ways to involve the community. That’s when she met Maitha Khoory, a 27-year-old Emirati mum who loves to cook and bakes, too. Khoory had toyed with the idea of pursuing a culinary career, but she didn’t have the confidence.

“I really want to do this for a living. But sometimes when you look at other people and what they’re doing, you kind of get discouraged,” Khoory says. “There’s too many amazing [chefs] out there. What would make me special?”

That fateful meeting between Al Mazrouei and Khoory produced an idea that would benefit both of them: Mellow Yellow’s Home Chef Series. The idea is to highlight one home chef each month and incorporate their ideas and recipes into set menus offered at the cafe. Al Mazrouei says: “It’s open to all kinds of cuisines and people who have talent for cooking at home, but they don’t really have the chance to showcase their food or actually become a chef in real life. It’s part of the community cafe that we inspire.” The only rule is that the chefs have to use ingredients that Mellow Yellow has on hand.

Khoory is the home chef featured at the cafe during Ramadan. Where most restaurants offer the same set menu or buffet every night, Khoory’s iftar menus change every day. She has come up with seven different menus that include a soup, salad, main and dessert.

All dishes have an Emirati twist and mains include meat thereed, shish barak pasta, Italianised moussaka and tuna biryani (a favourite among guests). The desserts, the highlight of Khoory’s menus, include Emirati aseeda, Nutella meringue, chocolate mahalabiya and her famous Mars qatayef – sweet dumplings stuffed with Mars chocolate bars.

Al Mazrouei says it’s especially significant to feature a home chef during Ramadan. She says: “Ramadan is a special month and a lot of people – especially Muslim expats that are away from home – miss that home taste of food. The person behind this menu is a person who loves cooking at home. It’s something special. You can find the taste of home in it.”

Khoory says she’s proud of what she’s created. “I wasn’t sure what the feedback would be, what other people would think. But the feedback has been excellent. I was pleasantly surprised that everyone liked everything on the menu.”

Khoory says she’s thankful for everything Al Mazrouei has done for her: “She was extremely accepting of me. She did not care that I had no experience professionally. She put 100 per cent confidence in me.”

And Khoory now has confidence in herself. Her experience at Mellow Yellow has pushed her to take herself – and her culinary dreams – more seriously.

Al Mazrouei is looking for more home chefs to feature in her cafe. “Just contact us,” she says. “Moms, dads, anyone. No ties. No contract. Just come and let the world know that you can produce a great meal.”

• Mellow Yellow is located in Uptown Mirdif. Its regular menu is always offered along with the menus created by the home chefs. Call 04 259 1500 or visit www.mellowyellowcafe.com

sjohnson@thenational.ae