Those tiles. How they take me back. To the beautiful and grunge, the opportunity and excitement. Traditional, Lebanese, that adorned the floors of Hamra, a university city in my beloved Lebanon.

Many a days I spent walking along those tiles, experiencing new ideas, new loves and the new found freedom of being me.

By default how can I not be nostalgic, again stepping on them, more then a handful of years later, in Dubai, older, more experienced, and somewhat subdued by the ‘have to’s’ of the grown up world.

My finger browsing along the colorful bookshelf. And stop. It rests on a title “The Road Less Traveled, A new phycology of Love, Traditional Values and Spiritual Growth.” A subconscious yearning for what I felt when younger?

Slipping out the book I rest on a stool, sunglasses off and phone to the side.  ”Pancakes and coffee, Mexican single origin please.”  I request from the waiter.

Friends soon follow with their choice of literature. I close “The Road Less Traveled.” A treasure, that necessitates my undivided attention.

My pancakes arrive, fluffy and honey stripped in tune with the healthy mindset of the space. I finish the cakes and mop up all traces of honey as I sip my single blend.

Once you go single, you can never go back.  The complications and baggage don’t exist, shining through only something pure.

As the hours pass and the chit chat flows while the literature read we order the egg.

A touch under seasons, but a dish you feel an old friend has created. Eggs with fresh vegetables on toast, a classic.

At the helm of Spill the Bean is the space and the coffee. I find myself returning, alone even, grabbing my corner, coffee and book, loosing myself in my thoughts and feeling at home.

Location: Sunset Mall
Cuisine: Coffee
Price Per Couple AED 100