Urban Review: Blue Fig
Taste 
Style
Vibes
Price
Parking
Staff
Roba: Blue Fig is, I believe, Amman’s signature outery. Recommended and adored by almost 80% of a certain class of the Ammanite population, Blue Fig has managed to garner a cult-following since it first strutted its minimalistic architecture and artistic restauranting in 1998. It is loved and adored by quite a diverse group of people, including coffee-drinkers, romantic daters, bar-hoppers, breakfasters, clubbers, and evening tea-timers. Blue Fig, which can either be experienced with its indoor, dark, pub-like, loud-music atmosphere or with its outdoor garden setting, surely manages to satisfy a darn whole lot of tastes.
That being said, I have a love-hate relationship with Blue Fig. I feel like its crowd is always there to see and be seen. Their menu is very diverse and you always have a lot of choices, even if you don’t feel like having anything. The minimalism was slightly over done, making the place borderline depressing.Their food is rather brilliantly fantastic or horribly disgusting. It is unique, with its own spirit and soul, and I really cherish that. The staff is very rude, for the most part. The chairs are my least favorite things about any outery in town, cramping my back within seconds of being seated. It is amazingly cultured, which is wonderful. The music is way too loud.
Moose: As a college student, going to Blue Fig simply meant getting a cup of coffee from the green coffee cart parked right outside – probably one of the first street-side coffee carts. Since then I have been there a total of one time. It looks like a nice place with unique design and all, but I am not really a big fan of the whole wood-metal-glass architecture thingie, especially when it is coupled with the superficial Ammanite crowd. A perfect place for a laid back mid-summer coffee on the balcony around sunset time, if you can manage to find a place among the obnoxious college kids.
Final verdict: Overrated as an outery, but has certainly managed to become a landmark, and that gives it an extra point.
Total:
Location: Abdoun
Reservations: Yes
Phone: 592-8800
Recommended Item: New Orleans Burger, Taj Mahal Pasta
Average Price: 4.5-6 JD
bla
February 13, 2008 @ 4:37 pm
will, i believe that “certain class” you talked about is only (at the best case) 10% of amman.
mostly students get to cheaper locations, such as gloria jeans (frankly, their coffee tastes way better !).
ASKAdenia
February 13, 2008 @ 5:00 pm
thanks a lot, but I have a note, that you use flickr too much to upload the images and use it in ur site, unfortunatly Flickr is block in UAE, so me and all visitors will not able to see the images:(
Latroun
February 13, 2008 @ 6:10 pm
was it a “whiskey glass” or a wine tumbler?
http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_ss_gw/103-6002994-2039864?url=search-alias=aps&field-keywords=wine tumblers&x=0&y=0
Anon
February 13, 2008 @ 6:54 pm
What exactly is an outery?
Roba
February 13, 2008 @ 6:57 pm
Latroun, no they weren’t that.
Anon, http://andfaraway.net/blog/2007/08/09/reviewing-the-amman-city-scene/
Imad
February 13, 2008 @ 7:12 pm
Thanks Roba for taking time to review Amman’s eateris and happening places :) For us who live outside of the country and come to visit once a year this is very helpful. As far as Blue Fig, this is my wife’s favorite place. I like the atomsphere and the food is OK but I hate the service…last time I was there it took the waiter over 30 minutes to get me a drink. Oh, I almost forgot..Whats up with ‘Car Cleaners” outside? When I walked to my car I noticed the windshield wipers were up in the air and some dude standing next to the car with a rag in his hand. I got pissed off and told him never touch may car again…but I guess this is common scene in Amman, I was told.
Hareega
February 13, 2008 @ 9:17 pm
i remember when blue fig opened that area was soooo empty, then they built that circle next to it and i used to compete with a friend on how fast can we turn around that circle BACKwards hehe
before i left jordan i remember a place called vis-a-vis opened, how is that place doing?
m7md
February 13, 2008 @ 9:23 pm
nice review, never been to blue fig though , they have alcohol ? i hope that they have the real nice irish coffee ! or Kahlua (used in cacusian “white russian”), thats interesting
i used to drink coffee at starbucks actually .. but i agree with mr. “bla” , gloria jean’s coffee tastes way beter ! than star bucks (its not as bitter !) , but i dunno about blue fig
Saned
February 13, 2008 @ 9:46 pm
If there is one thing in this review that is totally correct, it would be the rudeness of the staff. I haven’t seen snobbish people like them at any other place in Amman!
Ahmad
February 14, 2008 @ 12:36 am
((i used to drink coffee at starbucks actually .. but i agree with mr. “bla” , gloria jean’s coffee tastes way beter ! than star bucks (its not as bitter !) , but i dunno about blue fig ))
I feel there are two kinds of people living in jordan. The majority are suffering from the increase of oil price and hardly buy one chicken or eggs.
Other live in the same country but they have probelm for finding irish coffee or place to chill out.
I really hope that decision makers put a double tax on coffee , they will get more money. One word describes the situition here is Ya3 on this life.
Danial
February 14, 2008 @ 2:17 am
no offense to anybody…
i used to drive by that place,till i tried it once,i didn’t like it,i felt it’s more like “a showing-off restaurant”, people ’s actions tend to be more fake and artificial,service is based on the customer appearnce (by the way,i hade a good customer service),prices are not reasonable, and for a normal jordanian person s/he can’t afford going there and have fun,a much better suggestion (for a get-away place” is to go “al hussein gardens”,make ur own coffee or tea,w kilo bizer men 3end “shaheen”,and u r all set ? ? think about it…
i used to live in jordan ,but this post is about just few people of jordan…
————————————————————
“Average Price: 4.5-6 JD”
“I feel there are two kinds of people living in jordan. The majority are suffering from the increase of oil price and hardly buy one chicken or eggs.
Other live in the same country but they have probelm for finding irish coffee or place to chill out.
I really hope that decision makers put a double tax on coffee , they will get more money. One word describes the situition here is Ya3 on this life. “
ali alhasani
February 14, 2008 @ 2:17 am
Love the Place…one issue keeps me from going to it…Money!…
which is something common for most guys like me…unless they work and take like 500jd..then that’s something else =)..
Lina
February 14, 2008 @ 3:58 am
the waiters at Blue Fig have the worst attitude ever! I really like the design but I usually feel out of place there amidst the dominant crowd. It’s great when they have live gigs outside in the summer…
Note: the menu is great but I don’t understand why they put french fries with EVERYTHING, even your omelets.
amjad
February 14, 2008 @ 6:06 am
if they serve Alcoholic drink then they are just another bar, its measury that 80% persent Of Certain “Class” love to attend such bar … we dont want more drunks in our street ,Do we??
amjad
February 14, 2008 @ 6:11 am
I feel there are two kinds of people living in jordan…… Ahamad I agree with you 100% , BUT ITS REGULAR SYMPTOM OF CAPITAL REGIME “SOME WILL BE RICH ON THE SHOULDERS OF OTHERS ” I HOPE MORE TAX ON COFFEEE could solve the fuel problem but belive its bigger than that
Ayyob
February 14, 2008 @ 9:53 am
I’ve never been to the place but I’ve heard of it sooo much. I’m actually in the country about 2 months of the year. I’m in Zarga when I’m in Jordan. College students are obbsessed with blue fig and vis-a-vi. They believe going there makes them the ‘cool’ kids.
Also, your saying that their waiters are snobby. Thats because there young and they work at the ‘coolest’ place in the country. Thats how it is for people who run places and cafes in all the malls too. Thats kind of expected from this type of crowd.
super devoika
February 14, 2008 @ 11:36 am
I didn’t think that Blue Fig is a minimalistic place… from an architect point of view… I even once heard it followed the deconstruction movement rather than the minimalist movement…
?!
R
February 15, 2008 @ 6:19 pm
i hate the place
it’s a show-off place
it’s small but with big furniture units….the waiters r rude as everyone said…their food is nie(i tried manakeesh at breakfast)…i hate how their cookies turned form delecious to dry ones where you r lucky if you could spot chocolate in them!
Mariam Ayyash
March 31, 2008 @ 11:49 am
80% of Ammani people? yam heik? shoo wein 3ayshe 7adertek? anoo dream belzabt 3allagtee fee w lissa mas7eetee?!
i never go to blu fig, its a bar! they can build their fortune on alcohol, but they are not going to use my money
Roba
March 31, 2008 @ 12:49 pm
Before you have a cow, do notice that the post specifically said “80% of a CERTAIN class”. The class could be 5% of the population, 1%, 50%… I had a certain class in mind, and I was only talking about it.