The full menu
This is the complete menu — thirteen items, all of them things you would actually be handed in Dubai, Riyadh or Istanbul rather than an American approximation of them. Nothing here comes out of a syrup pump.
Most events take a combination: a hot tea and coffee menu, the dirty soda bar for guests who want something cold, and kunafa for dessert. Tell us the shape of your event and we will help you pick.
Tea
The signature. Strong black tea, cardamom, evaporated milk, brewed and poured to order.
Karak is the tea Dubai runs on — sold from roadside cafeterias in small cups, strong enough to stand a spoon in. Ours is brewed in the pot rather than pumped from a syrup bottle: loose black tea, green cardamom, sugar and evaporated milk, simmered until the colour turns that deep amber and poured hot. It is the drink most guests have never tried and immediately ask for again.
Black tea with no milk, brightened with lemon and a little spice. The Gulf digestif.
Sulaimani — also spelled Sulaymani — is what the Gulf drinks after a heavy meal. Black tea steeped with lemon, sometimes cardamom or saffron, served clear and unsweetened unless you ask. It is the natural counterpart to karak on a menu: one rich and milky, one clean and sharp, and between them almost every guest finds something they want.
Maramiya — fresh sage steeped with black tea. Herbal, warming, naturally caffeine-light.
Maramiya is a fixture in Levantine and Gulf homes: sage leaves steeped alone or with black tea, drunk for comfort as much as flavour. It is the cup guests reach for when they want something warm without more caffeine, and it is the one older relatives at a wedding will thank you for putting on the table.
Fresh ginger and lemon, steeped hot. The caffeine-free option that isn't an afterthought.
Every event has guests who are not drinking caffeine — pregnant, fasting-adjacent, or simply done for the day. Ginger and lemon steeped fresh gives them something made with the same care as everything else on the counter instead of a forgotten box of teabags.
Chilled and lightly sweetened — the outdoor-event workhorse.
Southern California does not always cooperate with a hot-drinks menu. Iced tea keeps the booth working through a July afternoon wedding or a daytime festival, and pairs with the dirty soda bar for guests who want something cold and uncaffeinated.
Coffee
Finely ground coffee simmered in a cezve and poured unfiltered, grounds and all.
Turkish coffee is made one small pot at a time — coffee ground to powder, simmered with sugar to your preference, and poured so the grounds settle in the cup. It is slow on purpose. At an event it becomes a moment guests stand and watch, which is exactly why it belongs at a booth rather than behind a machine.
Pale, cardamom-forward and lightly roasted, served in small handleless finjan cups.
Saudi coffee surprises people who expect something dark. The beans are barely roasted, so the cup pours a light gold, and the flavour is carried by cardamom, and often saffron or cloves. It is poured from a dallah into small cups and traditionally served with dates — hospitality in liquid form.
Gahwa poured from a traditional dallah — the Gulf's welcome drink.
Gahwa is the cup you are handed the moment you walk into a home anywhere in the Gulf. Lightly roasted, spiced with cardamom, poured from the long-spouted brass dallah into a finjan filled barely a third of the way — a deliberate gesture meaning your host expects to refill it. For a wedding or a cultural event it does something a drinks table cannot: it opens the room.
Sweet, milky and mild — the Middle Eastern café version, not a French press.
Ask for French coffee anywhere from Cairo to Dubai and you get a sweet, milky, mild cup — closer to a dessert than a morning coffee. It is the crowd-pleaser on the coffee side of our menu, and the one guests who say 'I don't really like coffee' end up ordering.
Coffee with sweetened condensed milk — rich, sweet and currently everywhere.
The Spanish latte took over Gulf café menus and then took over everyone else's: coffee built on sweetened condensed milk instead of plain steamed milk, which makes it rounder and considerably sweeter. It is our newest addition and the one younger guests ask for by name. Available hot or iced.
Cold
Soda built with cream, syrups and fruit — the trend, done as a full serve-to-order bar.
Dirty soda is soda finished with cream, flavoured syrup and fruit purée, and it has gone from a regional habit to one of the most-searched drinks in America. It is also the perfect counterweight to a hot Gulf tea menu: entirely caffeine-free if you want it, endlessly customisable, and a genuine draw for teenagers and kids at a family event.
Snack
Flaky paratha wrapped around melted cheese and Chips Oman, with hot sauce.
If you grew up anywhere in the Gulf, this needs no explanation — the chilli-and-lime crunch of Chips Oman folded into hot paratha with melting cheese is the late-night snack of an entire generation. If you did not, it is the single most photographed thing we serve. Anyone who spent time in the UAE will stop mid-sentence when they see the bag.
Sweet
Shredded pastry over soft cheese, baked and soaked in syrup. Served warm.
Kunafa — or knafeh — is crisp shredded pastry layered over soft cheese, baked until golden and finished with sugar syrup so the middle pulls when you cut it. Served warm, it turns a drinks booth into a full dessert station, and it is the reason a lot of our guests come back for a second visit to the counter.
On the counter
What guests say
“Honestly one of the best Karak experiences in California. Mohammad really knows what he's doing. Every cup hits different, rich, smooth, and full of authentic Eastern flavor. You can literally taste the spices, the warmth, the culture in every sip. It's not just tea, it feels like a small trip to the Middle East right here in Cali. If you're into real Karak, this place is a must.”
“I had the pleasure of having The Dubai Karak at my birthday celebration, and they truly exceeded every expectation. They were so kind, generous, and welcoming, creating such a beautiful atmosphere from the moment they arrived. The karak was absolutely amazing, rich and authentic, and they offered so much more than just drinks. Every detail, from their presentation to their outfits, was executed perfectly from A to Z. They brought such a luxurious, elevated vibe that made everyone fall in love with the experience and truly made my party unforgettable!”
“I drink Karak very frequently and I've tried it here and it was the best Karak I've tried so far. I recommend everyone trying it out!”
Questions
Yes. Most events pick a hot menu plus one or two extras. Tell us your guest count and the kind of event in the quote form and we will suggest a combination that fits.
The drinks are brewed and poured at the booth. Kunafa and paratha are prepared for service and finished warm.
The entire drinks menu is vegetarian, as is the kunafa and the chips and cheese paratha.
Yes — ginger lemon tea and sage tea are the caffeine-light options, and the dirty soda bar can be built entirely caffeine-free.
Send your date and guest count and we will put together the right combination for your event.