When Syed Jafar Husain arrived in the UAE from India in the 1970s he longed for home.
Like countless others who came in search of a better life, he missed family and friends but there was also one other important ingredient missing — the food.
He longed for the spiced, slow-cooked kebabs and thick sweet lassi of his native Lucknow.
Mr Husain left his job in sales and opened a small restaurant named Al Afadhil dedicated to the traditional food of his home city.
He never hired a chef and made the food himself. Al Afadhil first opened on Dubai Creek in 1979 and moved several times before settling in its current location in Al Nahda, Sharjah in 1990.
Today, trucks from the adjacent industrial area rumble past the dark wooden doors, while the clank of weights drifts across from a nearby gym. On the side of the wall is a simple sign stating: “Lucknow Kabab”. Inside is a collection of small tables and booths. A simple menu, barely unchanged in decades, lists only seven recipes.
Mr Husain died in 2018 but his legacy is being carried on by his two sons, Mohammed, 30, and Mustafa, 27.
It has become renowned among generations from Lucknow and, to this day, has only a handful of items on the menu.
“My dad simply missed the traditional food of Lucknow,” said Mohammed. “In the early 1980s there just weren’t as many options.”
One of the specialities is “galouti kebab” that takes about 14 hours to prepare. The dish has its roots in the historic royal kitchens of Lucknow and consists of tenderised, soft lamb mixed with spices, slow-cooked and served with a tamarind chutney that is a family secret.
This dish costs just under Dh14. A thick sweet lassi that people dip their paratha into is also a favourite.
“Nothing can be changed in the recipe,” said Mohammed. The two brothers work seven days a week from 4am to the afternoon to ensure they respect their father’s legacy.
Customers who have left the UAE have also spread the name of the restaurant far and wide. They even catered a wedding in Bonn, Germany. “We have fans across the world,” said Mohammed. “They tell us our food has to be there when they have guests over.”
Al Afadhil (it loosely translates as “generous”) moved from its first location in Dubai to Sharjah's Bank Street in the 1980s. Bank Street has since been restored to a heritage area known as the Heart of Sharjah but it was here where the restaurant made its name. Scores of workers in offices and banks there came in droves in search of a taste of home.
“Customers used to fight to get into the place,” said Mohammed, with a smile. “The majority of the crowd told dad to increase their prices and stop giving it for cheap but he said no. He never wanted to overcharge. To this day customers say the same. We say no.”
After Bank Street, it moved to Al Nahda. A second branch opened in Dubai’s Karama in 2014 which is now the most popular of the two.
The pandemic and rising costs hit the business, but now the brothers said it is back to about 60 per cent of what it was.
Today they employ more than 20 staff across two branches. People from the Lucknow community travel from across the UAE to eat there, while it also attracts celebrities from the cricket and entertainment world.
“My dad never thought of customers’ money,” said Mustafa. “He just wanted them to be happy.”
Mohammed said: “It is more than 40 years of legacy here. If we can improve and provide the same quality, then we will be following in our dad's footsteps.”
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Which honey takes your fancy?
Al Ghaf Honey
The Al Ghaf tree is a local desert tree which bears the harsh summers with drought and high temperatures. From the rich flowers, bees that pollinate this tree can produce delicious red colour honey in June and July each year
Sidr Honey
The Sidr tree is an evergreen tree with long and strong forked branches. The blossom from this tree is called Yabyab, which provides rich food for bees to produce honey in October and November. This honey is the most expensive, but tastiest
Samar Honey
The Samar tree trunk, leaves and blossom contains Barm which is the secret of healing. You can enjoy the best types of honey from this tree every year in May and June. It is an historical witness to the life of the Emirati nation which represents the harsh desert and mountain environments
How Filipinos in the UAE invest
A recent survey of 10,000 Filipino expatriates in the UAE found that 82 per cent have plans to invest, primarily in property. This is significantly higher than the 2014 poll showing only two out of 10 Filipinos planned to invest.
Fifty-five percent said they plan to invest in property, according to the poll conducted by the New Perspective Media Group, organiser of the Philippine Property and Investment Exhibition. Acquiring a franchised business or starting up a small business was preferred by 25 per cent and 15 per cent said they will invest in mutual funds. The rest said they are keen to invest in insurance (3 per cent) and gold (2 per cent).
Of the 5,500 respondents who preferred property as their primary investment, 54 per cent said they plan to make the purchase within the next year. Manila was the top location, preferred by 53 per cent.
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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Our family matters legal consultant
Name: Hassan Mohsen Elhais
Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.
Company: Instabug
Founded: 2013
Based: Egypt, Cairo
Sector: IT
Employees: 100
Stage: Series A
Investors: Flat6Labs, Accel, Y Combinator and angel investors
Tips to stay safe during hot weather
- Stay hydrated: Drink plenty of fluids, especially water. Avoid alcohol and caffeine, which can increase dehydration.
- Seek cool environments: Use air conditioning, fans, or visit community spaces with climate control.
- Limit outdoor activities: Avoid strenuous activity during peak heat. If outside, seek shade and wear a wide-brimmed hat.
- Dress appropriately: Wear lightweight, loose and light-coloured clothing to facilitate heat loss.
- Check on vulnerable people: Regularly check in on elderly neighbours, young children and those with health conditions.
- Home adaptations: Use blinds or curtains to block sunlight, avoid using ovens or stoves, and ventilate living spaces during cooler hours.
- Recognise heat illness: Learn the signs of heat exhaustion and heat stroke (dizziness, confusion, rapid pulse, nausea), and seek medical attention if symptoms occur.
How much do leading UAE’s UK curriculum schools charge for Year 6?
- Nord Anglia International School (Dubai) – Dh85,032
- Kings School Al Barsha (Dubai) – Dh71,905
- Brighton College Abu Dhabi - Dh68,560
- Jumeirah English Speaking School (Dubai) – Dh59,728
- Gems Wellington International School – Dubai Branch – Dh58,488
- The British School Al Khubairat (Abu Dhabi) - Dh54,170
- Dubai English Speaking School – Dh51,269
*Annual tuition fees covering the 2024/2025 academic year
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More from Rashmee Roshan Lall
Tearful appearance
Chancellor Rachel Reeves set markets on edge as she appeared visibly distraught in parliament on Wednesday.
Legislative setbacks for the government have blown a new hole in the budgetary calculations at a time when the deficit is stubbornly large and the economy is struggling to grow.
She appeared with Keir Starmer on Thursday and the pair embraced, but he had failed to give her his backing as she cried a day earlier.
A spokesman said her upset demeanour was due to a personal matter.
Conflict, drought, famine
Estimates of the number of deaths caused by the famine range from 400,000 to 1 million, according to a document prepared for the UK House of Lords in 2024.
It has been claimed that the policies of the Ethiopian government, which took control after deposing Emperor Haile Selassie in a military-led revolution in 1974, contributed to the scale of the famine.
Dr Miriam Bradley, senior lecturer in humanitarian studies at the University of Manchester, has argued that, by the early 1980s, “several government policies combined to cause, rather than prevent, a famine which lasted from 1983 to 1985. Mengistu’s government imposed Stalinist-model agricultural policies involving forced collectivisation and villagisation [relocation of communities into planned villages].
The West became aware of the catastrophe through a series of BBC News reports by journalist Michael Buerk in October 1984 describing a “biblical famine” and containing graphic images of thousands of people, including children, facing starvation.
Band Aid
Bob Geldof, singer with the Irish rock group The Boomtown Rats, formed Band Aid in response to the horrific images shown in the news broadcasts.
With Midge Ure of the band Ultravox, he wrote the hit charity single Do They Know it’s Christmas in December 1984, featuring a string of high-profile musicians.
Following the single’s success, the idea to stage a rock concert evolved.
Live Aid was a series of simultaneous concerts that took place at Wembley Stadium in London, John F Kennedy Stadium in Philadelphia, the US, and at various other venues across the world.
The combined event was broadcast to an estimated worldwide audience of 1.5 billion.
THE BIO
Bio Box
Role Model: Sheikh Zayed, God bless his soul
Favorite book: Zayed Biography of the leader
Favorite quote: To be or not to be, that is the question, from William Shakespeare's Hamlet
Favorite food: seafood
Favorite place to travel: Lebanon
Favorite movie: Braveheart
Our Time Has Come
Alyssa Ayres, Oxford University Press
The Sand Castle
Director: Matty Brown
Stars: Nadine Labaki, Ziad Bakri, Zain Al Rafeea, Riman Al Rafeea
Rating: 2.5/5
What you as a drone operator need to know
A permit and licence is required to fly a drone legally in Dubai.
Sanad Academy is the United Arab Emirate’s first RPA (Remotely Piloted Aircraft) training and certification specialists endorsed by the Dubai Civil Aviation authority.
It is responsible to train, test and certify drone operators and drones in UAE with DCAA Endorsement.
“We are teaching people how to fly in accordance with the laws of the UAE,” said Ahmad Al Hamadi, a trainer at Sanad.
“We can show how the aircraft work and how they are operated. They are relatively easy to use, but they need responsible pilots.
“Pilots have to be mature. They are given a map of where they can and can’t fly in the UAE and we make these points clear in the lectures we give.
“You cannot fly a drone without registration under any circumstances.”
Larger drones are harder to fly, and have a different response to location control. There are no brakes in the air, so the larger drones have more power.
The Sanad Academy has a designated area to fly off the Al Ain Road near Skydive Dubai to show pilots how to fly responsibly.
“As UAS technology becomes mainstream, it is important to build wider awareness on how to integrate it into commerce and our personal lives,” said Major General Abdulla Khalifa Al Marri, Commander-in-Chief, Dubai Police.
“Operators must undergo proper training and certification to ensure safety and compliance.
“Dubai’s airspace will undoubtedly experience increased traffic as UAS innovations become commonplace, the Forum allows commercial users to learn of best practice applications to implement UAS safely and legally, while benefitting a whole range of industries.”
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- Golden circle - Dh995
- Floor Standing - Dh495
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