There’s a new restaurant in town and I’m officially obsessed. Consider this your heads-up: Dāwa is going to awe you. Starstruck. All the things!
They describe themselves as ‘Modern Middle Eastern Seafood Tapas‘ – I’m calling it ‘Contemporary Bahraini Cuisine’. Potaytoh, powtatoh… the point is, it works.
Dāwa hits that rare, perfect balance: traditional meets modern, local meets chic…and miracle of miracles pricing that makes you skip a little on the way out. It feels fresh, confident and genuinely new.
About the Menu
A quick warning: the menu is long. A novella of tapas. Everything sounds good, everything looks good and if you take ordering as seriously as I do, it will trigger mild decision paralysis.
Which is exactly why I’ve done the necessary fieldwork.
I ate as much as humanly possible and pulled together The Hungry Fifi List, the dishes you absolutely should order on your first visit. (This list is a WIP; more research is required. I’ll be back and will update the below)
The Hungry Fifi Order List
Here’s what made the cut:
- Prawn Jirish Salad
- Carpaccio with Saffron & Lime Butter
- Safi & Calamari with Lime Butter + Squid Ink
- Prawn Orzo “Risotto” with Saffron & Lime
- Slow-Cooked Prawn Madrooba with Arborio
- Za’atar Gin Cocktail (infused in-house)
Bahraini tapas galore
Dāwa is new, exciting and already feels like it’s setting a tone for what modern Bahraini dining can be. If you love seafood, playful interpretations of regional dishes and menus that invite curiosity… go now!
And if you want to avoid the ordering stress? Just screen shot this list.
More updates coming soon as I return for, ahem, further research.
Instagram: @dawabahrain
Location: Harbour Heights, Manama
