Wild and The Moon is from the same owners as Comptoir 102, one of Dubai’s original concept stores and cafes in Jumeirah – famous for their organic menu and pricey collection of bangles and handbags.
Wild and The Moon reminds me of two things. It reminds me of the three wolves and the moon T-shirt made famous by this Amazon review, and it also makes me break into some bizarre rendition of Roberta Flacks “First time I saw your face.” Both are odd, and both have no bearing to the little café in Alserkal Avenue.
So, imagine my surprise when the fella behind the counter was wearing the three wolf T-shirt, and Roberta Flack was warbling away on the sound system. OK, that’s not true at all. What is true about Wild and The Moon is you can shorten it to Wild Moon, and it immediately becomes a character out of Dances With Wolves.
I’ve spoken about Alserkal Avenue in the past – it is Dubai’s free spirited, creative zone – Copenhagen has Christiania, Dubai has Alserkal Avenue – home to a multitude of creative spaces, Feng shui energies, and a VIP valet parking area.
Wild Moon is a vegan café serving a limited menu of healthy juices, vitality shots, cold drinks, and breakfast items.
During a time when global food manufacturers are letting us down badly with their nefarious manipulation of raw ingredients, I applaud Wild Moon’s efforts to take responsibility for their own ingredients. According to some research boffins in the US, a horrifying 74% of supermarket groceries contain added sugar and here is a little café in Alserkal that promises no refined sugars, additives, chemicals or GMOs. Good for you, Wild Moon, good for you.
However, this means you severely limit yourself to a lot of kale, spirulina and activated charcoal – not exactly the holy trinity of flavour and excitement.
The challenge for menu creation when all you are effectively serving are nuts, fruits, seeds and a few veg, is how to make it sound delicious and different. Wild and Moon do a pretty good job – however, there are lots of sprouted almonds and between you and me, sprouted almonds are just regular almonds left in a bowl of water overnight.
As I looked over the menu, I considered for a moment
how hard life must be for a vegan with a nut allergy.
I made the mistake of trying to add eggs to my avo “toast” and was quickly reprimanded by the dude behind the counter who reminded me that they operated a vegan menu and served no animal by-products. Unless, apparently, you order the bullet proof coffee, which contains ghee – a cow made product. I ordered it with extra cow, to compensate the lack of eggs. It made me feel better.
The Serb cautiously ordered the chia pudding, because I think those were the only two words she recognised from the menu. The rest of the menu read as if Professor Pomona Sprout from Hogwarts had opened a kitchen. The Sprouted Granola and Magic Budwig didn’t stand a chance with the Serb.
The space is intimate, with counter service and a small prep kitchen in the back. The juices are pre-made and kept in a grab and go fridge, which is a shame as you would want their core offering to be something of a show – and nothing says drama like stuffing a cucumber and some beetroot into a juicer.
The avo was ripe and flavoured well with za’atar and lemon. It was served with an almond and rosemary cracker which was surprisingly moreish – moist, slightly chewy and a good accompaniment for the avocados.
The chia pudding was made with almond milk and sweetened orange blossom maple syrup. The menu says it is served with fresh avocado, banana, and seasonal berries, but couldn’t find anything except pomegranate seeds, which was a shame, as it could have been a very filling and tasty dish.
The design is very Melbourne café, with simple white tiles, clean lines, and light woods. There are a few hanging plants, and the whole space is rather relaxed and quite pleasant.
Wild Moon is a nice little stop for a healthy juice or a light meal if you ever feel supermarket food or delivery meals are getting a bit too much for your three wolves T-shirt and blood pressure. Wild Moon is also perfect for vegans without nut allergies.
Wild Moon – 6.5/10
Breakfast for two – 102.00 Dhs
Alserkal Avenue, Al Quoz
