Actor Greg Grunberg loves his food – and seemed as excited about his dining options in Dubai as meeting fans at the Middle East Film and Comic Con last weekend.
He had been making the most of his first trip to the UAE to take a culinary tour of the city’s restaurants – though not the usual high-end celebrity haunts you might expect.
“The food here is unbelievable,” he says. “I got the best chicken shawarma, just from this stand on the street. It was the best chicken shawarma I’ve ever had.
“There’s so many high-end restaurants and fancy stuff – but that’s just not my thing. I want to go to the local spots.”
If the name is unfamiliar, the face almost certainly will not be. Grunberg has appeared in a string of hit TV shows, including college drama Felicity, superhero adventure Heroes, spy drama Alias, while film audiences will recognise him as X-Wing Pilot Snap Wexley in Star Wars: The Force Awakens, and Commander Finnegan in Star Trek Beyond.
Grunberg had meticulously planned his Dubai foodie itinerary in advance, thanks to a chance TV encounter.
“I got lucky – I was back home watching the Food Network before I came out and it was ‘and now from Dubai’, so I was like ‘pause it’ and taking notes,” he says.
“Myself, Cas [Anvar, fellow actor and MEFCC guest] and [musician] Nick Marzack all went last night to this South Indian place, Calicut Paragon – oh my, you have to try the fish fry. “I’ve also got Alfanar in Festival Mall and [the ubiquitous] Ravi’s on my list.”
Of course, Grunberg wasn’t at Comic Con to talk about his favourite restaurants.
The actor is best buddies with writer, director and producer J J Abrams, whom he has known since he was 4 years old. He also presents pop-culture TV show Geeking Out with director Kevin Smith.
His geek credentials are second to none, so what is the geekiest thing he’s ever done?
"It's got to be standing in Star Wars and looking around, and you've got C3P0, R2D2, Harrison Ford, Carrie Fisher, all the new guys and my character is there and going, 'OK – here's the deal'.
"That is when your geek head literally explodes. That's gotta be the geekiest thing. There's a book by Disney on the making of [The Force Awakens], and I'm centre shot, lit up more than anybody else. That's just the coolest thing. I used to play X-Wing Fighter when I was a kid. Now I'm an X-Wing pilot."
With Disney lining up a host of new Star Wars movies, spin-offs and origin stories, might we see Snap Wexley: The Movie at some point?
“Put it this way, I can’t really talk about it, but when we were shooting I had all my lines like, ‘I got your back, Poe’, and ‘I got one, I got one’ – whatever, I’m just throwing those out,” he says.
“And then I had all these other ones they wanted me to say. Things like ‘I’ve been hit – I’m going down’. I refused to say it. That’s why I lived. I said: ‘No, you can shoot somebody else down. I will not die’.
"They called [The Force Awakens director] J J over and he's like, 'Well, if he won't say it, he won't say it'. I'm like, 'Come on guys, I'm not gonna kill myself off in Star Wars'.
“I guess it helps when you’re best friends with the director.”
This was Grunberg’s first visit to the UAE, and he was impressed by more than the food.
“Don’t tell San Diego, but I think this [Comic Con] is better than San Diego,” he says. “That might change as it keeps getting bigger, but right now it has the perfect balance.
“I was supposed to sign for an hour-and-a-half, but I ended up signing for about two-and-a-half hours and that’s fine, because those kids are so sweet and I want to have time with them. I didn’t know what to expect – but, honestly, everyone’s great.
“I think the difference is that the corporate influence hasn’t taken over yet – and hopefully it won’t.
“The amazing food has been filling my belly, and the people have been filling my heart. I love it here.”
cnewbould@thenational.ae
