If video killed the radio star, then the internet pretty much killed anticipation. With most goods and services just a couple of clicks away, attention spans are waning and patience is wearing thin. So, buckle up and sit tight for a Gen X gripe.
I am married to a menu sleuth. This means that no matter how far ahead the restaurant is booked, my husband will know exactly what he’s going to order when we get there. He knew what he was going to eat when went to Rang Mahal (peppered lamb chop, butter naan); Pitfire Pizza (Pepperoni Primo, garlic knots) and The Maine (600g rib-eye, triple-cooked fries and steamed broccolini, please), to name but a few.
His rationale for sleuthing is that he can start looking forward to his dinner in advance. Perhaps pre-planning any belt-loosening which might be necessary, or what colour shirt to wear following the infamous sushi-dropped-in-soy-sauce-while-wearing-white-shirt incident of 2013, which remains a sore subject to this day.
Sleuth is an interesting word. Think sleuth and the likes of Poirot, Miss Marple or Sherlock Holmes spring to mind. The sleuth is cerebral and measured, their decisions thoughtful, their actions deliberate. All of which must make me a Menu Moriarty, forever wondering why anyone would willingly forfeit the joyous spontaneity that comes from being presented with a list of never-seen-before choices and experiencing the thrill of thinking: “Oooh, what shall I have?”
Perusing the menu is part of the whole restaurant experience, along with that awkward pull-out-sit-down chair dance between you and the maitre d', which I have never quite mastered. And the frosting on the cake – the cherry is the actual arrival of the food – is discussing the menu together. “This looks nice,” you might say, pointing to something featuring heirloom tomatoes and a balsamic glaze. “Did you see that they have…,” your dining companion might reply, having spotted a dish you like. But if you already know what you’re going to have thanks to menu sleuthing, this removes or at least seriously impairs the casual chatter that is part of the restaurant experience.
Those who know me might assume I would be a big fan of menu sleuthing, because I am that most wretched of dinner party guests: the picky eater. My pickiness is esoteric and, even though I say it myself, both adorable and quirky. For example, I like prawns, but only the small ones, because the big meaty ones freak me out. I am not a vegetarian and enjoy a good steak, but if I’m invited to a dinner party at your house, I will tell you that I am vegetarian because I dislike meat being cooked for me if I cannot personally oversee its preparation. And what host doesn’t love a guest in their kitchen prodding at the chicken fricassee and asking: “Are you sure it’s done on the inside?”
In my defence, I had a bad experience once with a pink chicken at a dinner party, from which I have never fully recovered.
Am I against restaurants having their menus online? Of course not. For those who are picky (not me, obviously, other people), have allergies or certain preferences it can be useful. But if you’re Googling the menu just to decide what you’re going to eat three weeks from now, quite frankly, you’re abusing the system and should have your internet privileges revoked. If it’s a steak restaurant, let’s assume there’ll be steak and a vegetarian option based around cauliflower, or worst case scenario, a salad. If it’s an Italian restaurant, assume variations on pasta will be available, and so forth. You don’t need to know exactly what’s on the menu.
For me it comes down to the fact there’s not much mystery in life these days. For every vague question you have, there’s thousands of YouTube videos explaining, debunking and offering alternative theories to the answer. For every passing query there’s a plethora of TikToks, Instagram posts and hashtags dedicated to examining every angle while also suggesting you get ready with them and enjoy their outfit of the day.
For me, menu sleuthing removes a little bit of the fun, anticipatory not-knowingness that comes from discovering a new restaurant. I just told my husband I’ve written this column about him. “I’m not sure about sleuth,” he said. “I’d call it being a connoisseur.”
COMPANY%20PROFILE
%3Cp%3EFounder%3A%20Hani%20Abu%20Ghazaleh%3Cbr%3EBased%3A%20Abu%20Dhabi%2C%20with%20an%20office%20in%20Montreal%3Cbr%3EFounded%3A%202018%3Cbr%3ESector%3A%20Virtual%20Reality%3Cbr%3EInvestment%20raised%3A%20%241.2%20million%2C%20and%20nearing%20close%20of%20%245%20million%20new%20funding%20round%3Cbr%3ENumber%20of%20employees%3A%2012%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
LOS ANGELES GALAXY 2 MANCHESTER UNITED 5
Galaxy: Dos Santos (79', 88')
United: Rashford (2', 20'), Fellaini (26'), Mkhitaryan (67'), Martial (72')
Key figures in the life of the fort
Sheikh Dhiyab bin Isa (ruled 1761-1793) Built Qasr Al Hosn as a watchtower to guard over the only freshwater well on Abu Dhabi island.
Sheikh Shakhbut bin Dhiyab (ruled 1793-1816) Expanded the tower into a small fort and transferred his ruling place of residence from Liwa Oasis to the fort on the island.
Sheikh Tahnoon bin Shakhbut (ruled 1818-1833) Expanded Qasr Al Hosn further as Abu Dhabi grew from a small village of palm huts to a town of more than 5,000 inhabitants.
Sheikh Khalifa bin Shakhbut (ruled 1833-1845) Repaired and fortified the fort.
Sheikh Saeed bin Tahnoon (ruled 1845-1855) Turned Qasr Al Hosn into a strong two-storied structure.
Sheikh Zayed bin Khalifa (ruled 1855-1909) Expanded Qasr Al Hosn further to reflect the emirate's increasing prominence.
Sheikh Shakhbut bin Sultan (ruled 1928-1966) Renovated and enlarged Qasr Al Hosn, adding a decorative arch and two new villas.
Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan (ruled 1966-2004) Moved the royal residence to Al Manhal palace and kept his diwan at Qasr Al Hosn.
Sources: Jayanti Maitra, www.adach.ae
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Women’s World Twenty20 Qualifier
Jul 3- 14, in the Netherlands
The top two teams will qualify to play at the World T20 in the West Indies in November
UAE squad
Humaira Tasneem (captain), Chamani Seneviratne, Subha Srinivasan, Neha Sharma, Kavisha Kumari, Judit Cleetus, Chaya Mughal, Roopa Nagraj, Heena Hotchandani, Namita D’Souza, Ishani Senevirathne, Esha Oza, Nisha Ali, Udeni Kuruppuarachchi
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How to become a Boglehead
Bogleheads follow simple investing philosophies to build their wealth and live better lives. Just follow these steps.
• Spend less than you earn and save the rest. You can do this by earning more, or being frugal. Better still, do both.
• Invest early, invest often. It takes time to grow your wealth on the stock market. The sooner you begin, the better.
• Choose the right level of risk. Don't gamble by investing in get-rich-quick schemes or high-risk plays. Don't play it too safe, either, by leaving long-term savings in cash.
• Diversify. Do not keep all your eggs in one basket. Spread your money between different companies, sectors, markets and asset classes such as bonds and property.
• Keep charges low. The biggest drag on investment performance is all the charges you pay to advisers and active fund managers.
• Keep it simple. Complexity is your enemy. You can build a balanced, diversified portfolio with just a handful of ETFs.
• Forget timing the market. Nobody knows where share prices will go next, so don't try to second-guess them.
• Stick with it. Do not sell up in a market crash. Use the opportunity to invest more at the lower price.
KILLING OF QASSEM SULEIMANI
CONFIRMED%20LINE-UP
%3Cp%3EElena%20Rybakina%20(Kazakhstan)%0D%3Cbr%3EOns%20Jabeur%20(Tunisia)%0D%3Cbr%3EMaria%20Sakkari%20(Greece)%0D%3Cbr%3EBarbora%20Krej%C4%8D%C3%ADkov%C3%A1%20(Czech%20Republic)%0D%3Cbr%3EBeatriz%20Haddad%20Maia%20(Brazil)%0D%3Cbr%3EJe%C4%BCena%20Ostapenko%20(Latvia)%0D%3Cbr%3ELiudmila%20Samsonova%0D%3Cbr%3EDaria%20Kasatkina%E2%80%AF%0D%3Cbr%3EVeronika%20Kudermetova%E2%80%AF%0D%3Cbr%3ECaroline%20Garcia%20(France)%E2%80%AF%0D%3Cbr%3EMagda%20Linette%20(Poland)%E2%80%AF%0D%3Cbr%3ESorana%20C%C3%AErstea%20(Romania)%E2%80%AF%0D%3Cbr%3EAnastasia%20Potapova%E2%80%AF%0D%3Cbr%3EAnhelina%20Kalinina%20(Ukraine)%E2%80%AF%E2%80%AF%0D%3Cbr%3EJasmine%20Paolini%20(Italy)%E2%80%AF%0D%3Cbr%3EEmma%20Navarro%20(USA)%E2%80%AF%0D%3Cbr%3ELesia%20Tsurenko%20(Ukraine)%0D%3Cbr%3ENaomi%20Osaka%20(Japan)%20-%20wildcard%0D%3Cbr%3EEmma%20Raducanu%20(Great%20Britain)%20-%20wildcard%3Cbr%3EAlexandra%20Eala%20(Philippines)%20-%20wildcard%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
Mohammed bin Zayed Majlis
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Analysis
Maros Sefcovic is juggling multiple international trade agreement files, but his message was clear when he spoke to The National on Wednesday.
The EU-UAE bilateral trade deal will be finalised soon, he said. It is in everyone’s interests to do so. Both sides want to move quickly and are in alignment. He said the UAE is a very important partner for the EU. It’s full speed ahead - and with some lofty ambitions - on the road to a free trade agreement.
We also talked about US-EU tariffs. He answered that both sides need to talk more and more often, but he is prepared to defend Europe's position and said diplomacy should be a guiding principle through the current moment.
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KILLING OF QASSEM SULEIMANI
If you go
The flights
There are direct flights from Dubai to Sofia with FlyDubai (www.flydubai.com) and Wizz Air (www.wizzair.com), from Dh1,164 and Dh822 return including taxes, respectively.
The trip
Plovdiv is 150km from Sofia, with an hourly bus service taking around 2 hours and costing $16 (Dh58). The Rhodopes can be reached from Sofia in between 2-4hours.
The trip was organised by Bulguides (www.bulguides.com), which organises guided trips throughout Bulgaria. Guiding, accommodation, food and transfers from Plovdiv to the mountains and back costs around 170 USD for a four-day, three-night trip.
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
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Bernardo Silva 54', Sane 66'
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