We’ve been to Oeno once, and decided to return after a friend recommended it for a nice evening out. They had all these deals happening on a Thursday – and since it was a 3 minute taxi ride from our place (8, if the tram was passing….), we made some plans to meet friends over a hopefully cheap-night-out 😉

Thoughts, and things to take note :

1. Quiet before 8pm. Mind you, we were the 4th person in the bar when we rocked up at 6:45pm (hey, we don’t go out without the kids very often… gotta make the most of it!) It’s a nice to go early so you can have a proper adult conversation before the rest of Dubai turns up.
2. Facebook page says you have to book, but when I rang, the team said they don’t take reservations, walk-in only. Give them a call anyhow in case they change their mind on this.
3. Ladies get 3 complimentary drinks between 5pm as 12am. Red, white, and sparkling. Get the sparkling. You have to go to the bar to get the drinks. It was quite amusing when the staff came to get our orders and I asked for a glass of wine as part of this deal, and he told me to go to the bar (note: There was absolutely no one at the bar or in any of the tables near us, at that time) – so I just stood up, walked two steps to the bar, and asked the other guy for a glass of wine. Rules are rules ay? Hehehe. C’mon guys 😉
4. Happy hour deals between 5pm to 8pm, so you can get beer (bottles) for 30AED, OR you can go straight to the 150AED deal (valid till 12am) which gets you 5 bottles of beer (also 30AED).
5. Better still, Marriott Bonvoy gets you 30% off everything, so we got Heinekin pints for 35AED instead of 50AED (and this is valid all night… woohoo). They only have Heinekin and Stella on draft.
6. It gets absolutely packed after 9pm. Guys handling their FB DM said Khalil was coming at 7pm (which was why we turned up at 6:45pm), but in actual fact he only starts his gig at 8pm. It is also VERY loud – with all the chatter in the bar, and his music (which is great) – you have to shout across the bar tables. It kinds of transforms into a full-on bar by 9pm, not the ‘wine bar’ where you can have a quiet conversation with an acoustic set (which was what we originally thought we were getting into… hehe)
7. You can use the Entertainer for food – choices are quite limited – we got beef pepperoni pizza + wagyu beef sliders. More than enough for the two of us that our friends who turned up later helped finish up the pizzas.
8. They need to change those bar stools, as we felt like our kids sitting on them (taking into consideration that my husband and I are both almost 6 feet tall, this says a lot). Any shorter and your legs are basically dangling off the chairs 😉
9. The crowd? Say, 60% women, not a surprise as it’s free drinks for girls. Mixed groups like us. And a couple of very attractive women sitting by themselves 😉

Overall? A good option to head to on a Thursday evening especially if you live in the area – and you’re looking for a reasonably priced night out (where you don’t want to be committed to an evening brunch price) and would like some live music. So many deals – Entertainer for food, Happy hour for drinks, 3 complimentary drinks for the girls, Marriott Bonvoy discounts for when you finish off everything else – c’mon, who is to complain when you can get draught Heineken pints for 35AED ?

Setbacks? Well, little things as mentioned above but nothing major. I’m happy enough that the guys handling their social media actually responds quite quickly to my queries. SO MANY other venues don’t handle their social media DMs at all it’s ridiculous, so good on you Oeno/Westin 😉 One thing to mention – Oeno allows smoking indoors, FYI. It wasn’t too bad last night, but just letting you guys know in case you don’t like that kinda scene – click here for all the smoke-free bar options 

• Oeno, Westin Mina Seyahi 
• Website
• Deals available on a Thursday evening :
  • Entertainer 241 for food,
  • 5pm-8pm Happy hour drinks,
  • 5pm-12am 3 complimentary drinks for ladies,
  • 5pm- 12am 150AED for buckets of beer and selected wine bottles,
  • Marriott Bonvoy 30% off F&B till 15-September; and
  • Ask for their Mina Passport where you get a stamp when you spend 100AED or more, which gets you more deals and prizes (valid till 30-September-2019)