Black tea brewed very dark, poured into a small glass rather than a cup, served with a sugar cube: you place the cube between your front teeth and drink the tea through it. The sweetness is the point; it dissolves slowly.

Every Iranian café in Dubai does this. The experience — backgammon boards available, dried fruit in a bowl on the counter, the smell of saffron somewhere in the room — is one of the quieter pleasures of Oud Metha and the older Deira streets. Nobody there is in a hurry, and you shouldn't be either.