BOCA’s Omar Shihab commissioned an artist to design the new illustrated menu

BOCA Dubai, Gault&Millau UAE 2022’s Sustainable Kitchen of the Year, has launched a new cocktail menu inspired by local and regional ingredients and an obsession with reducing waste in the bar. The new cocktail list is the result of months of research and close collaboration within the restaurant.

Founder and GM Omar Shihab sat down with Caterer Middle East to chat about the new cocktail offering. He said: “Our new bar offering features ingredients that are local and new, perhaps never been explored in the bar. Some of the ingredients are made out of waste from the kitchen.”

Introducing new ingredients can always be challenging Shihab explained, but due to his culinary team’s extensive experience with sustainable ingredients, he knew that adapting the ingredients into a drink format was doable. He said: “We understand these ingredients’ taste profiles and we know how they react to specific preservation methods. Giedre Bielskyte, our bar manager, was mapping out the taste profiles of each drink and seeing what we need to match the botanics of the cocktail’s main liquor.

“We were able to look at new items that are considered waste in the kitchen. Things like tomato water and fruit skins. We found ways to maximise those ingredients. For example, we use the skins as dehydrated garnish. We also thought it was very important to tap into what the kitchen usually buys. That was our inspiration for the pimientos del padron cocktail, which is our take on a paloma, made with BOCA’s favourite tapas.”

Oher cocktails on the list include the cold brew martini made with the UAE’s own Boon coffee. The foraged martini is made with UAE-native desert plant khansour, dried apricots and apricot leather made from apricot skin. The summer in Bethlehem cocktail is made with Palestinian brandy. Others include a frankincense negroni made with white Omani frankincense, and tomato and rayhan, made using tomato pulp that’s left over from paellaand native basil.

“We spent a lot of time with the kitchen team when developing this menu. They helped us explore new ingredients and provided us with a new source that may have been destined to the bin,” added Bielskyte.

The growing popularity of non-alcoholic beverages

BOCA’s new cocktails are also available with a low-ABV or no alcohol option using Lyre’s Non-Alcoholic products. Shihab said: “We are going through an evolution in the market. We are seeing a lot of new bars and menus including the no ABV option. The idea is how to integrate that in an organic way, without having to create a brand new category and what we are doing with this menu. We are using Lyre’s products in replacement for alcoholic products. So essentially we keep the cocktail the same but use zero-proof spirits instead. It is important not to alienate the non-drinkers.”

Over the last year, Shihab has seen see the market adapting a lot more to zero-proof beverages. He added: “The products are getting a lot more visibility, so the consumer is more open to drinking non-alcoholic beverages. We are so happy to get behind that as well.”