At Fi’lia, women take centre stage. Helmed by Palestinian-Jordanian Executive Chef Sara Aqel, the Bib Gourmand-award restaurant perched on the 70th floor of SLS Dubai Hotel & Residences in Business Bay takes pride in instilling a female-focused ethos.
Only 26, Aqel played a key role in the restaurant opening and is the mind behind the creation of the menu and dining experience.
The menu features recipes passed down through three generations of women and is split into three categories: Nonna, Mamma, and Fi’lia – the Italian terms for grandmother, mother, and daughter respectively.
While the first Fi’lia branch in the world was an Italian restaurant with a Miami influence, Aqel felt that American and Italian cuisines weren’t much similar, but that Mediterranean and Italian cuisines were “far-away cousins, with common flavours and ingredients.” As a result, the fourth Fi’lia branch opened in Dubai in April 2021 as an Italian restaurant with Mediterranean influence.
The Perfect Fit
When asked to join the Fi’lia team only weeks before the official opening of the restaurant, Aqel felt that this was her calling: the young chef is the fourth in a family of five daughters, just as Fi’lia Dubai is the chain’s fourth branch globally (a fifth is expected to open in Paris later this year). What further added to her excitement was the idea of a female-led restaurant. When it came up, she got really inspired, having lived among women who have always been her true support system.
“I grew up among strong women who were always there for each other and made me seek better in life. I was constantly linking Fi’lia to myself. When the idea of a female-led restaurant was suggested, I developed an attachment to Fi’lia and could just imagine the restaurant with many ladies sticking together through thick and thin like a family,” says Aqel.
Defying Stereotypes
Despite her belief in empowering women and giving them a platform to shine, Fi’lia is all female-led, but not exclusively female-run, as the Arab chef firmly believes in inclusivity. “We don’t want 2022 to be a different form of the 1970s when women were excluded. Our aim today isn’t to exclude men by saying only women can do this,” affirms Aqel.
While it was challenging to find people who believed in this project, the Fi’lia team made it happen against the odds. The team only had a short four weeks to assemble and adjust to working together prior to the restaurant’s opening, but all team members were eager to exceed expectations, says Aqel.
“People doubted that a female team could handle a restaurant fitting 225 people. They were sceptical that ladies would be able to work together. For us, there’s no such thing as ‘challenge’. Our philosophy is to work hard regardless of the possibility of encountering challenges. We don’t expect things to be challenging – we just do them. If there’s an obstacle, we deal with it on the spot. This made it work even better,” adds Aqel.
“People doubted that a female team could handle a restaurant fitting 225 people. They were sceptical that ladies would be able to work together. For us, there’s no such thing as ‘challenge’. Our philosophy is to work hard regardless of the possibility of encountering challenges. We don’t expect things to be challenging – we just do them. If there’s an obstacle, we deal with it on the spot. This made it work even better,” adds Aqel.
The Path Of Empowerment
The menu at Fi’lia is an ode to the women who were the first chefs in our lives: our grandmothers and mothers. Divided into three sections – Nonna, Mamma, and Fi’lia – it holds a great meaning. Nonna features classic dishes with which one can’t be playful, Mamma includes grandmother dishes with a twist, and Fi’lia is about the dishes that Aqel really likes – “something that your grandmother would disapprove, but secretly love.”
Back in the day, no one encouraged women to open restaurants even when their cooking was delicious, says Aqel: “Our mothers and grandmothers are the ones who needed empowerment. Had my mother had a restaurant serving the food that she served us in the house, it would’ve earned a MICHELIN Star. People always told her ‘thank you, this was great’, but no one told her to serve her food on a table and make money out of it. At Fi’lia, we’re championing women in the industry by championing women who were the first chefs in our lives.”
Related: The story of Orfali Bros
Come As You Are
The Bib Gourmand-awarded restaurant offers a fun but relaxed ambience and a sense of family, as the chef always passes by the tables to meet her guests and personally serve them. With its genuine food served with genuine warmth, the restaurant is designed to evoke the diners’ memories and trigger their senses. “I’d go out to a table to explain a dish and end up learning about what they ate last weekend and their plans for the next weekend. We don’t expect guests to have a certain attitude or dress or behave in a certain way. We want them to find their place among us,” explains Aqel.
Fi'lia serves Italian fare with a Mediterranean influence
Zero Waste
The restaurant uses local produce, especially fruits and vegetables. Most of its dairy products are local, and ingredients that aren’t found in the UAE are sourced from Italy or Greece.
At Fi’lia, Sara and her team combine their creativity with a vision of sustainability by locally sourcing produce such as dairy, fruits and vegetables and utilising every ingredient in the kitchen to try to achieve zero waste. For her, there is no room for lazy minds in her kitchen. “We see potential in everything in life, and part of it is seeing produce and being determined to use it all. This isn’t only about sustainability, but also about creating the next generation of chefs,” says Aqel.
What To Order At Fi’lia
Among the signature dishes are Burrata Popolare, Feta Al Forno, Gnocci & Caviar, Nostri Agnolotti, Jerusalem Artichoke Pizza, and the Torta All’olio.
The Burrata Popolare consists of fresh asparagus purée, tomato emulsion, rocket leaves, and kalamata foam
Burrata Popolare is inspired by the artwork of renowned Italian chef Massimo Bottura and consists of fresh asparagus purée, tomato emulsion, rocket leaves, and kalamata foam. Feta Al Forno, meanwhile, is inspired by Aqel’s sister who used to bake feta cheese for her. This heartwarming dish is made of oven baked feta cheese and cherry tomatoes, topped with roasted pine nuts and almonds and served with a toasted sourdough bread.
The Gnocci & Caviar features gnocci, rosemary butter, Parmigiano, and caviar, and the Nostri Agnolotti is a pasta that combines roasted chicken, Pecorino Romano cheese, spinach, veal jus, and rosemary butter. As for the Jerusalem artichoke pizza, it has many ingredients that the chef wouldn’t eat separately but work perfectly together: pickled onions, Gorgonzola cheese, spinach, some mozzarella, and Jerusalem artichoke chips.
To make your experience even sweeter, end your meal with the tasty Torta All’olio, which is an olive oil cake served with cherry compote, Donnafugata olive oil sorbet, and whipped cream.
Nostri Agnolotti features roasted chicken, Pecorino Romano cheese, spinach, veal jus, and rosemary butter
Have a look at all 14 Dubai restaurants that were awarded a Bib Gourmand in 2022 here.
