A full house at L´Horloge du Sud restaurant in Matonge, the city's African quarter. Below, a cornet of frites, the ubiquitous snack of Brussels. Photographs by John Brunton for The National
A full house at L´Horloge du Sud restaurant in Matonge, the city's African quarter. Below, a cornet of frites, the ubiquitous snack of Brussels. Photographs by John Brunton for The National

Year-long festival debuts Brussels, Europe's secret foodie spot



Food may not often be one of the obvious attractions for visitors to Brussels, who come to the unofficial capital of Europe on business or politics, for the splendid museums, art nouveau architecture or hip fashion boutiques. But the cuisine here is one of Europe's hidden foodie secrets, and I am in Brussels precisely to look behind the cartoon caricature of a stodgy nation that is invariably portrayed happily tucking into a steaming bowl of mussels or a cornet of "frites" smothered with mayonnaise.

And there is no better moment to come than now - the city is in the middle of a year-long food festival celebrating Belgian cooking, irreverently named Brusselicious.

More than 50 events are planned throughout the year, with several spectacular gastronomic highlights. Six days a week, a sleek white designer tram will whisk gourmets around Brussels for a two-hour, haute-cuisine meal prepared by one of six participating two-star Michelin chefs, well priced at €75 (Dh362).

One of them is Lionel Rigolet from Brussels's flagship restaurant, Comme Chez Soi. "Cooking a gourmet meal in a tram is certainly going to be a challenge," Rigolet tells me with a wry smile. "But it is a great opportunity, and we will use it to showcase the best products you can find in Belgium and surprise people with the high level of gastronomy we enjoy here. For sure, Belgium is a small country, but we are fortunate to have magnificent food suppliers from all over the countryside."

Then, in June, all eyes will turn upwards for "Dinner in the Sky", a breathtaking idea that is not for the faint-hearted or vertigo-sufferers. Each week, a floating restaurant resembling a space shuttle will be suspended from a towering crane above a different emblematic site in Brussels - the Atomium, Cinquantenaire Park, Palais Royal and Cambre Forest. Twenty-two fearless diners will be strapped in with safety belts around a full kitchen, where a stellar chef will prepare an unforgettable meal.

Of course, not all the events are haute-cuisine, and even the noble frite has its own celebration - a month-long Chippy Festival in November, the aim of which is to find the city's best frite. The organisers have drawn up a "Frites Walk", featuring the 10 best stands dotted around town. Honestly, I have to admit that each time I visit Brussels, it is impossible to resist the temptation to try at least one cornet of golden, crispy chips. The Brusselicious website (www.brusselicious.be) has details of the whole 2012 programme, and is also where to reserve in advance, because most events, such as the tram, have limited availability.

What surprises me every time I come to Brussels is the number of cutting-edge gourmet restaurants where young chefs are taking the classic recipes and ingredients of Belgian cuisine and transforming them into exciting modern dishes. Brasserie de la Paix is normally booked out weeks in advance, but I have made my reservation long before and will be meeting the most talked-about chef in town, David Martin.

This elegant Art Nouveau dining room is right opposite what was once the city's cattle market and abattoir, today a seething weekend market filled with Maghreb and African stallholders. David has perfectly preserved the ambience and tradition of the Brasserie, but elevated the quality and inventiveness of the cuisine to gourmet levels. A slice of tête de veau, or calf's head, is brilliantly complemented by a langoustine soufflé; caramelised wild mackerel is served with a dashi bouillon; and deep-fried croquettes, a local favourite, are filled with creamy potatoes and foie gras instead of the usual Ostend shrimps.

In the kitchen, David is experimenting, slow-cooking locally grown beetroot and endives covered in a hard crust of sea salt, and explains his philosophy: "I only serve what I like to eat, so you'll see classic brasserie cuisine here but with my own personal touches, sometimes even influenced by Japanese gastronomy. I hope I'm inventing 'new classics', because why should I just do the same dishes that are on the menu of every other brasserie in the city?"

Chef Martin suggests some hot new restaurants for me to check out. Most of them are away from Brussels's historical city centre, the Grand Place, a magnificent medieval square which sadly boasts the tourist-trap Rue des Bouchers, lined by scores of gaudy restaurants that really should be a no-go area for anyone interested in food.

What a difference, though, when I walk past the luxury boutiques of Avenue Louise, what the Bruxellois call their Champs-Élysées, and arrive at an Art Nouveau mansion where the young chef Vincent Vervish has just opened the innovative Er Pu. Re. The concept here sounds as strange as the name - recipes using teas from around the world or aromas from cigars. When the dishes arrive, I can only describe the subtle, memorable dishes as spectacular: think sole served with a shrimp and smoked tea sauce, or wild duck roasted with a subtle infusion of Havana cigar.

There is the same esprit and humility at another newcomer, Le Selecto, in the funky fashion neighbourhood of Sainte Catherine. This is a no-frills, reasonably priced address, a trend that is becoming known as "bistronomie" cooking.

The chef, Olivier Morland, insists that he is not looking for Michelin recognition, believing the ingredients should be the star rather than the chef. He insists on using the finest vegetables, fish and meat, and simplifies his recipes to allow the natural flavours to stand out, in dishes such as warm Zeeland oysters served with a fruity quince compote, or creamy polenta smothered with wild mushrooms, peppery rocket and slivers of Parmesan.

The chef who is inspiring much of this culinary revolution in Brussels is Christophe Hardiquest, hailed in 2011 as Chef of the Year by the influential Gault Millau Guide. His celebrated Bon-Bon restaurant has just moved premises to a highly exclusive address on Avenue de Terveuren, the exclusive neighbourhood favoured by ambassadors for their luxury residences. It means getting a cab, but I cannot visit Brussels and miss the chance of tasting Hardiquest's unique cuisine. He has expanded on his "atelier de cuisine" concept, and now diners sit at a long counter manned by a brigade of enthusiastic young chefs inventing dishes in front of them, all under the watchful eye of Monsieur Hardiquest.

Don't even think of asking to look at the menu, because dining here is all about surprise, with dishes changing every day. I tasted a sea scallop carpaccio with oyster gazpacho, pigeon roasted in a crust of sesame seeds accompanied by a spice consomme, a sensational déclinée of eel, prepared with foie gras and apple, tempura-fried, and a powerful foam "cappuccino". But tomorrow the selection will undoubtedly be completely different.

The fact that Brussels is one of the world's most multicultural cities is apparent just by sitting in a cafe, where customers are chatting away in a dozen different languages. This means that parallel to traditional Belgian cuisine and gourmet fine dining, food lovers can discover a melting pot of restaurants specialising in delicious ethnic cuisines. These range from funky African diners that reflect the roots of Belgium's former colonies to a thriving Chinatown and colourful North African quarter. Then, there are dozens of eclectic locales that mirror the various nationalities that work around the EU headquarters - everything from exotic Greek to surprising Norwegian cuisine.

I start out in the ultimate ethnic restaurant, Hemispheres, which showcases the cuisines of more than a dozen countries across the globe, complemented by exhibitions and concerts. This welcoming spot has become something of an institution for cultural tolerance, with diners relaxing in a sumptuous decor, ordering an Algerian chorba soup of tomatoes, coriander and cinnamon, lamb kebab with Egyptian spices or Caribbean chicken with mango, while the dish of the day could be Brazilian seafood rice.

The creator of Hemispheres is Soraya Zekalmi, a Moroccan-born restaurateur and singer who, in typical Belgian style, effortlessly slips between speaking English, Arabic, French and Flemish.

"While the Bruxellois may love their old-fashioned home-cooking such as stoemp, a delicious take on bangers and mash, waterzooi, chicken stew, and a thick fillet pur steak and heaps of frites, they are also very open to trying exotic cuisine; more like the Britons, in fact, than our closer neighbours in France," says Zekalmi.

Soraya directs me first to L'Horloge du Sud, in the lively African quarter of Matonge, whose menu ranges from freshwater tilapia fish from Lake Tanganyika, marinated in lemon and chilli, then steamed in a banana leaf, to kedjenou, a rich guineafowl stew that is the national dish of the Ivory Coast. Then, for a complete contrast, I stop off at Up North, a smart new address specialising in Norwegian food. Chef Egil Haaseth not only serves classic smoked salmon and tasty herrings, but also inventive dishes such as cod cooked with dried lamb and a tangy blueberry sauce.

The obligatory last stop for an ethnic food tour of Brussels has to be the aptly named Marche Exotique, which takes place every Sunday morning. Hundreds of stalls are anarchically spread across scores of streets outside the Midi train station. The electric atmosphere here is more Marrakech than Brussels, with noisy vendors selling dozens of different olives, fragrant oranges, fresh herbs and pungent spices.

Every Sunday, crowds of North African immigrants line up, waiting for buses to take them back for family reunion holidays in Algeria or Tunisia, but if you have a look at the colourful restaurants at the heart of the market, around the Place de la Constitution, you will be surprised to discover they are nearly all Spanish and Portuguese, reminders of a much earlier wave of immigration to the Belgian capital. Close your eyes and you could be in Lisbon or Madrid, with scarcely a word of French or Flemish being spoken.

The atmosphere in these market restaurants is noisy and a bit rowdy, but the food is out of this world. Sit down for a lazy Sunday lunch at Oh! Fadista and you can feast on a tasty caldo verde soup followed by bacalao dorado (salt cod scrambled with eggs and potato). Lovers of Spanish cooking should head to La Laguna, which for 50 years has been serving tempting tapas from the Asturia region, such as grilled sardines or octopus à la gallega. And you won't find moules marinières or frites anywhere on the menu.

Thanksgiving meals to try

World Cut Steakhouse, Habtoor Palace Hotel, Dubai. On Thursday evening, head chef Diego Solis will be serving a high-end sounding four-course meal that features chestnut veloute with smoked duck breast, turkey roulade accompanied by winter vegetables and foie gras and pecan pie, cranberry compote and popcorn ice cream.

Jones the Grocer, various locations across the UAE. Jones’s take-home holiday menu delivers on the favourites: whole roast turkeys, an array of accompaniments (duck fat roast potatoes, sausages wrapped in beef bacon, honey-glazed parsnips and carrots) and more, as  well as festive food platters, canapes and both apple and pumpkin pies.

Ruth’s Chris Steakhouse, The Address Hotel, Dubai. This New Orleans-style restaurant is keen to take the stress out of entertaining, so until December 25 you can order a full seasonal meal from its Takeaway Turkey Feast menu, which features turkey, homemade gravy and a selection of sides – think green beans with almond flakes, roasted Brussels sprouts, sweet potato casserole and bread stuffing – to pick up and eat at home.

The Mattar Farm Kitchen, Dubai. From now until Christmas, Hattem Mattar and his team will be producing game- changing smoked turkeys that you can enjoy at home over the festive period.

Nolu’s, The Galleria Mall, Maryah Island Abu Dhabi. With much of the menu focused on a California inspired “farm to table” approach (with Afghani influence), it only seems right that Nolu’s will be serving their take on the Thanksgiving spread, with a brunch at the Downtown location from 12pm to 4pm on Friday.

MATCH INFO

Chelsea 1 (Hudson-Odoi 90 1')

Manchester City 3 (Gundogan 18', Foden 21', De Bruyne 34')

Man of the match: Ilkay Gundogan (Man City)

Essentials

The flights
Emirates flies direct from Dubai to Seattle from Dh6,755 return in economy and Dh24,775 in business class.
The cruise
UnCruise Adventures offers a variety of small-ship cruises in Alaska and around the world. A 14-day Alaska’s Inside Passage and San Juans Cruise from Seattle to Juneau or reverse costs from $4,695 (Dh17,246), including accommodation, food and most activities. Trips in 2019 start in April and run until September. 
 

Match info

Uefa Champions League Group H

Manchester United v Young Boys, Tuesday, midnight (UAE)

COMPANY PROFILE
Name: HyperSpace
 
Started: 2020
 
Founders: Alexander Heller, Rama Allen and Desi Gonzalez
 
Based: Dubai, UAE
 
Sector: Entertainment 
 
Number of staff: 210 
 
Investment raised: $75 million from investors including Galaxy Interactive, Riyadh Season, Sega Ventures and Apis Venture Partners
The specs
Engine: 77.4kW all-wheel-drive dual motor
Power: 320bhp
Torque: 605Nm
Transmission: Single-speed automatic
Price: From Dh219,000
On sale: Now
Key changes

Commission caps

For life insurance products with a savings component, Peter Hodgins of Clyde & Co said different caps apply to the saving and protection elements:

• For the saving component, a cap of 4.5 per cent of the annualised premium per year (which may not exceed 90 per cent of the annualised premium over the policy term). 

• On the protection component, there is a cap  of 10 per cent of the annualised premium per year (which may not exceed 160 per cent of the annualised premium over the policy term).

• Indemnity commission, the amount of commission that can be advanced to a product salesperson, can be 50 per cent of the annualised premium for the first year or 50 per cent of the total commissions on the policy calculated. 

• The remaining commission after deduction of the indemnity commission is paid equally over the premium payment term.

• For pure protection products, which only offer a life insurance component, the maximum commission will be 10 per cent of the annualised premium multiplied by the length of the policy in years.

Disclosure

Customers must now be provided with a full illustration of the product they are buying to ensure they understand the potential returns on savings products as well as the effects of any charges. There is also a “free-look” period of 30 days, where insurers must provide a full refund if the buyer wishes to cancel the policy.

“The illustration should provide for at least two scenarios to illustrate the performance of the product,” said Mr Hodgins. “All illustrations are required to be signed by the customer.”

Another illustration must outline surrender charges to ensure they understand the costs of exiting a fixed-term product early.

Illustrations must also be kept updatedand insurers must provide information on the top five investment funds available annually, including at least five years' performance data.

“This may be segregated based on the risk appetite of the customer (in which case, the top five funds for each segment must be provided),” said Mr Hodgins.

Product providers must also disclose the ratio of protection benefit to savings benefits. If a protection benefit ratio is less than 10 per cent "the product must carry a warning stating that it has limited or no protection benefit" Mr Hodgins added.

Singham Again

Director: Rohit Shetty

Stars: Ajay Devgn, Kareena Kapoor Khan, Ranveer Singh, Akshay Kumar, Tiger Shroff, Deepika Padukone

Rating: 3/5

The five pillars of Islam

1. Fasting

2. Prayer

3. Hajj

4. Shahada

5. Zakat 

Company Profile

Company name: Yeepeey

Started: Soft launch in November, 2020

Founders: Sagar Chandiramani, Jatin Sharma and Monish Chandiramani

Based: Dubai

Industry: E-grocery

Initial investment: $150,000

Future plan: Raise $1.5m and enter Saudi Arabia next year

If you go

The flights
There are various ways of getting to the southern Serengeti in Tanzania from the UAE. The exact route and airstrip depends on your overall trip itinerary and which camp you’re staying at. 
Flydubai flies direct from Dubai to Kilimanjaro International Airport from Dh1,350 return, including taxes; this can be followed by a short flight from Kilimanjaro to the Serengeti with Coastal Aviation from about US$700 (Dh2,500) return, including taxes. Kenya Airways, Emirates and Etihad offer flights via Nairobi or Dar es Salaam.   

Electoral College Victory

Trump has so far secured 295 Electoral College votes, according to the Associated Press, exceeding the 270 needed to win. Only Nevada and Arizona remain to be called, and both swing states are leaning Republican. Trump swept all five remaining swing states, North Carolina, Georgia, Pennsylvania, Michigan and Wisconsin, sealing his path to victory and giving him a strong mandate. 

 

Popular Vote Tally

The count is ongoing, but Trump currently leads with nearly 51 per cent of the popular vote to Harris’s 47.6 per cent. Trump has over 72.2 million votes, while Harris trails with approximately 67.4 million.

Where can I submit a sample?

Volunteers can now submit DNA samples at a number of centres across Abu Dhabi. The programme is open to all ages.

Collection centres in Abu Dhabi include:

  • Abu Dhabi National Exhibition Centre (ADNEC)
  • Biogenix Labs in Masdar City
  • Al Towayya in Al Ain
  • NMC Royal Hospital in Khalifa City
  • Bareen International Hospital
  • NMC Specialty Hospital, Al Ain
  • NMC Royal Medical Centre - Abu Dhabi
  • NMC Royal Women’s Hospital.
The biog:

Languages: Arabic, Farsi, Hindi, basic Russian 

Favourite food: Pizza 

Best food on the road: rice

Favourite colour: silver 

Favourite bike: Gold Wing, Honda

Favourite biking destination: Canada 

MATCH INFO

What: Brazil v South Korea
When: Tonight, 5.30pm
Where: Mohamed bin Zayed Stadium, Abu Dhabi
Tickets: www.ticketmaster.ae

Juliot Vinolia’s checklist for adopting alternate-day fasting

-      Don’t do it more than once in three days

-      Don’t go under 700 calories on fasting days

-      Ensure there is sufficient water intake, as the body can go in dehydration mode

-      Ensure there is enough roughage (fibre) in the food on fasting days as well

-      Do not binge on processed or fatty foods on non-fasting days

-      Complement fasting with plant-based foods, fruits, vegetables, seafood. Cut out processed meats and processed carbohydrates

-      Manage your sleep

-      People with existing gastric or mental health issues should avoid fasting

-      Do not fast for prolonged periods without supervision by a qualified expert

RESULT

Bournemouth 0 Southampton 3 (Djenepo (37', Redmond 45' 1, 59')

Man of the match Nathan Redmond (Southampton)

Australia (15-1): Israel Folau; Dane Haylett-Petty, Reece Hodge, Kurtley Beale, Marika Koroibete; Bernard Foley, Will Genia; David Pocock, Michael Hooper (capt), Lukhan Tui; Adam Coleman, Izack Rodda; Sekope Kepu, Tatafu Polota-Nau, Tom Robertson.

Replacements: Tolu Latu, Allan Alaalatoa, Taniela Tupou, Rob Simmons, Pete Samu, Nick Phipps, Matt Toomua, Jack Maddocks.

Madrid Open schedule

Men's semi-finals

Novak Djokovic (1) v Dominic Thiem (5) from 6pm

Stefanos Tsitsipas (8) v Rafael Nadal (2) from 11pm

Women's final

Simona Halep (3) v Kiki Bertens (7) from 8.30pm

Kill%20
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THE BIO: Mohammed Ashiq Ali

Proudest achievement: “I came to a new country and started this shop”

Favourite TV programme: the news

Favourite place in Dubai: Al Fahidi. “They started the metro in 2009 and I didn’t take it yet.”

Family: six sons in Dubai and a daughter in Faisalabad

 

RESULTS

6.30pm: Meydan Sprint Group 2 US$175,000 1,000m
Winner: Ertijaal, Jim Crowley (jockey), Ali Rashid Al Raihe (trainer)

7.05pm: Handicap $60,000 1,400m
Winner: Secret Ambition, Richard Mullen, Satish Seemar

7.40pm: Handicap $160,000 1,400m
Winner: Raven’s Corner, Richard Mullen, Satish Seemar

8.15pm: Dubai Millennium Stakes Group 3 $200,000 2,000m
Winner: Folkswood, William Buick, Charlie Appleby

8.50pm: Zabeel Mile Group 2 $250,000 1,600m
Winner: Janoobi, Jim Crowley, Mike de Kock

9.25pm: Handicap $125,000 1,600m
Winner: Capezzano, Mickael Barzalona, Salem bin Ghadayer

Korean Film Festival 2019 line-up

Innocent Witness, June 26 at 7pm

On Your Wedding Day, June 27 at 7pm

The Great Battle, June 27 at 9pm

The Witch: Part 1. The Subversion, June 28 at 4pm

Romang, June 28 at 6pm

Mal Mo E: The Secret Mission, June 28 at 8pm

Underdog, June 29 at 2pm

Nearby Sky, June 29 at 4pm

A Resistance, June 29 at 6pm 

 

MATCH INFO

Manchester United 1 (Fernandes pen 2') Tottenham Hotspur 6 (Ndombele 4', Son 7' & 37' Kane (30' & pen 79, Aurier 51')

Man of the match Son Heung-min (Tottenham)

THE BIO

Favourite holiday destination: Whenever I have any free time I always go back to see my family in Caltra, Galway, it’s the only place I can properly relax.

Favourite film: The Way, starring Martin Sheen. It’s about the Camino de Santiago walk from France to Spain.

Personal motto: If something’s meant for you it won’t pass you by.

Cricket World Cup League 2

UAE squad

Rahul Chopra (captain), Aayan Afzal Khan, Ali Naseer, Aryansh Sharma, Basil Hameed, Dhruv Parashar, Junaid Siddique, Muhammad Farooq, Muhammad Jawadullah, Muhammad Waseem, Omid Rahman, Rahul Bhatia, Tanish Suri, Vishnu Sukumaran, Vriitya Aravind

Fixtures

Friday, November 1 – Oman v UAE
Sunday, November 3 – UAE v Netherlands
Thursday, November 7 – UAE v Oman
Saturday, November 9 – Netherlands v UAE

T20 SQUADS

Australia: Aaron Finch (c), Mitchell Marsh, Alex Carey, Ashton Agar, Nathan Coulter-Nile, Chris Lynn, Nathan Lyon, Glenn Maxwell, Ben McDermott, D’Arcy Short, Billy Stanlake, Mitchell Starc, Andrew Tye, Adam Zampa.

Pakistan: Sarfraz Ahmed (c), Fakhar Zaman, Mohammad Hafeez, Sahibzada Farhan, Babar Azam, Shoaib Malik, Asif Ali, Hussain Talat, Shadab Khan, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Usman Khan Shinwari, Hassan Ali, Imad Wasim, Waqas Maqsood, Faheem Ashraf.

COMPANY PROFILE

Name: Qyubic
Started: October 2023
Founder: Namrata Raina
Based: Dubai
Sector: E-commerce
Current number of staff: 10
Investment stage: Pre-seed
Initial investment: Undisclosed 

Company%20profile
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A%20QUIET%20PLACE
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RESULTS

6.30pm: Al Maktoum Challenge Round-1 Group 1 (PA) Dh119,373 (Dirt) 1,600m
Winner: Brraq, Adrie de Vries (jockey), Jean-Claude Pecout (trainer)

7.05pm: Handicap (TB) Dh102,500 (D) 1,200m
Winner: Taamol, Connor Beasley, Ali Rashid Al Raihe.

7.40pm: Handicap (TB) Dh105,000 (Turf) 1,800m
Winner: Eqtiraan, Connor Beasley, Ali Rashid Al Raihe.

8.15pm: UAE 1000 Guineas Trial (TB) Dh183,650 (D) 1,400m
Winner: Soft Whisper, Pat Cosgrave, Saeed bin Suroor.

9.50pm: Handicap (TB) Dh105,000 (D) 1,600m
Winner: Hypothetical, Mickael Barzalona, Salem bin Ghadayer.

9.25pm: Handicap (TB) Dh95,000 (T) 1,000m
Winner: Etisalat, Sando Paiva, Ali Rashid Al Raihe

Thank You for Banking with Us

Director: Laila Abbas

Starring: Yasmine Al Massri, Clara Khoury, Kamel El Basha, Ashraf Barhoum

Rating: 4/5

Jigra
Director: Vasan Bala
Starring: Alia Bhatt, Vedang Raina, Manoj Pahwa, Harsh Singh
Rated: 3.5/5
Results

6.30pm: Dubai Millennium Stakes Group Three US$200,000 (Turf) 2,000m; Winner: Ghaiyyath, William Buick (jockey), Charlie Appleby (trainer).

7.05pm: Handicap $135,000 (T) 1,600m; Winner: Cliffs Of Capri, Tadhg O’Shea, Jamie Osborne.

7.40pm: UAE Oaks Group Three $250,000 (Dirt) 1,900m; Winner: Down On Da Bayou, Mickael Barzalona, Salem bin Ghadayer.

8.15pm: Zabeel Mile Group Two $250,000 (T) 1,600m; Winner: Zakouski, James Doyle, Charlie Appleby.

8.50pm: Meydan Sprint Group Two $250,000 (T) 1,000m; Winner: Waady, Jim Crowley, Doug Watson.

The five pillars of Islam

1. Fasting

2. Prayer

3. Hajj

4. Shahada

5. Zakat 

RESULT

Los Angeles Galaxy 2 Manchester United 5

Galaxy: Dos Santos (79', 88')
United: Rashford (2', 20'), Fellaini (26'), Mkhitaryan (67'), Martial (72')

COMPANY PROFILE

Company: Bidzi

● Started: 2024

● Founders: Akshay Dosaj and Asif Rashid

● Based: Dubai, UAE

● Industry: M&A

● Funding size: Bootstrapped

● No of employees: Nine

Company%20Profile
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3ECompany%20name%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Hoopla%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EDate%20started%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EMarch%202023%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EFounder%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Jacqueline%20Perrottet%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EBased%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Dubai%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ENumber%20of%20staff%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%2010%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EInvestment%20stage%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EPre-seed%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EInvestment%20required%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20%24500%2C000%3C%2Fp%3E%0A

Anna and the Apocalypse

Director: John McPhail

Starring: Ella Hunt, Malcolm Cumming, Mark Benton

Three stars

If you go
Where to stay: Courtyard by Marriott Titusville Kennedy Space Centre has unparalleled views of the Indian River. Alligators can be spotted from hotel room balconies, as can several rocket launch sites. The hotel also boasts cool space-themed decor.

When to go: Florida is best experienced during the winter months, from November to May, before the humidity kicks in.

How to get there: Emirates currently flies from Dubai to Orlando five times a week.
Another way to earn air miles

In addition to the Emirates and Etihad programmes, there is the Air Miles Middle East card, which offers members the ability to choose any airline, has no black-out dates and no restrictions on seat availability. Air Miles is linked up to HSBC credit cards and can also be earned through retail partners such as Spinneys, Sharaf DG and The Toy Store.

An Emirates Dubai-London round-trip ticket costs 180,000 miles on the Air Miles website. But customers earn these ‘miles’ at a much faster rate than airline miles. Adidas offers two air miles per Dh1 spent. Air Miles has partnerships with websites as well, so booking.com and agoda.com offer three miles per Dh1 spent.

“If you use your HSBC credit card when shopping at our partners, you are able to earn Air Miles twice which will mean you can get that flight reward faster and for less spend,” says Paul Lacey, the managing director for Europe, Middle East and India for Aimia, which owns and operates Air Miles Middle East.

David Haye record

Total fights: 32
Wins: 28
Wins by KO: 26
Losses: 4

MATCH INFO

Newcastle United 1 (Carroll 82')

Leicester City 2 (Maddison 55', Tielemans 72')

Man of the match James Maddison (Leicester)

Federer's 11 Wimbledon finals

2003 Beat Mark Philippoussis

2004 Beat Andy Roddick

2005 Beat Andy Roddick

2006 Beat Rafael Nadal

2007 Beat Rafael Nadal

2008 Lost to Rafael Nadal

2009 Beat Andy Roddick

2012 Beat Andy Murray

2014 Lost to Novak Djokovic

2015 Lost to Novak Djokovic

2017 Beat Marin Cilic

RESULTS

2pm: Handicap (PA) Dh 40,000 (Dirt) 1,200m
Winner: AF Senad, Nathan Crosse (jockey), Kareem Ramadan (trainer)

2.30pm: Maiden (PA) Dh 40,000 (D) 1,000m
Winner: Ashjaan, Fabrice Veron, Eric Lemartinel.

3pm: Maiden (PA) Dh 40,000 (D) 1,700m
Winner: Amirah, Conner Beasley, Ali Rashid Al Raihe.

3.30pm: Handicap (PA) Dh 40,000 (D) 1,700m
Winner: Jap Al Yaasoob, Szczepan Mazur, Irfan Ellahi.

4pm: Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed Al Nahyan Cup Prestige Handicap (PA) Dh 100,000 (D) 1,200m
Winner: Jawaal, Fernando Jara, Majed Al Jahouri.

4.30pm: Handicap (TB) Dh 40,000 (D) 1,200m
Winner: Manhunter, Ryan Curatolo, Mujeeb Rahman.