Dubai's hotel occupancy dropped from 90% to 16% since the start of the conflict.
Yet, on a street of empty restaurants, Jun's was completely full.
Somewhere between Canada and Dubai, you will find a new version of how you define success.
That's what Kelvin Cheung, the Chef, wrote me as a memoir. It goes without saying that eating at Jun's was a moving experience. Let's rewind.
One stressful weekday, Priti Goyal, a friend in our Antler DXB3 cohort had only good things to say about this incredible restaurant. Only 225dh for a 6-course tasting menu, she told me.
I was curious to try it and see what Third Culture cooking was really about. And it was Ruhao Lou, my co-host at our rapidly growing Cappis community, who introduced me to the concept. Like many who have left their homes to pursue great things, who were raised in a foreign land, often struggling with their identity, we grasp at moments of familiarity.
The menu walks through Chef Cheung's life story, each dish a reminder of his past.
When he studied medicine in Chicago and needed cash to pay for his tuition, he opened a food stall. Hot and sour soup was the most popular dish, and hence, the cutest miniature wontons in hot and sour soup were served.
A combination of pu-er scented chocolate ganache, white rabbit candy flavoured bites, horlicks, and chai brought tears to my eyes, as I relived the fleeting moments of joy from my childhood.
Each bite told a story that resonated with a journey similar to mine. The work of a fellow Chinese-Canadian in Dubai provided a sense of home in an unfamiliar land. On my way out, the chef's note was still in my hand.
I'm already planning to come back with my closest friends and family. I've starred almost a hundred restaurants in Dubai that I want to try before the end of the Antler residency in June. Despite this, the next time I think about dinner with someone I want to impress, Jun's is the first place I'll consider.
Hyper-personalization is the reason I came. It's also the reason I'll keep coming.