A Little Something For The Weekend
Where to Eat, Wine, Nobu?! & 2024's Dubai Michelin Guide.
Ramadan. Introducing Rufus to my parents. His grandparents, for the first time. An extended Eid al Fitr. The small matter of a historic Dubai deluge. These are just a few things since my last newsletter.
I’ve seldom been busier. My last roundup will attest!
“First we eat, then we do everything else.” - M.F.K. Fisher
I weaponised my parents’ visit to showcase just some of my favourite Dubai restaurants. Places they did not visit the last time they came. And so we ate. A lot. (Also, many places were left for their next return, inshallah.)
The Good & The Meh
Gallus Rotisserie, where whole rotisserie chickens rest on planks of sourdough that absorb all those rich chicken roasting juices in transit. Load up mash or truffle mash slathered with a mushroom cream sauce. Add a tub of chimichurri and the Gallus (chicken jus, garlic and tomato). It’s a reliable must-order. (149 dhs for a whole bird with three sides and three sauces).
The biryani wars continued, and my mother’s remorseless, insatiable yearning for fragrant rice and seasoned mutton remains unabated. Mrs EatGoSee and I preferred Masala Studio in Studio City, while my mother leans towards the perennial Gazebo. (65 dhs for an enormous Dum Hyderabadi Kachi Gosht Ki Biryani of beautifully seasoned lamb, 39 dhs for achari paneer and 9 dhs for lacha paratha).
Reif Kushiyaki is where my Dad came to appreciate that Japanese food is way more than cold rice and raw fish. A perennial stalwart familiar to long-time readers. We ordered some personal favourites: kimchi melon, spicy prawn toast (the GOAT dish for Mrs EatGoSee), the hearty, crispy mushroom clay pot rice (my GOAT) and chicken miso kushi. (Read a review here)
21 grams was a pilgrimage as much as a visit. We munched through a menu of new dishes, with standouts like the beef chorizo with roasted red grapes (55 dhs), sarma cabbage now with mashed potato (80 dhs), and a rich krem pita with the sweetest red plums that cut right through all that cream. (Read a review here)
Kowloon Hong Kong Restaurant in Dubai’s International City scratched our dim sum itch. However, half the dishes were instant regrets. The highs were high with baby fist-sized shrimp sui mai (25 dhs) and the crispy garlic festooned Typhoon Shelter Dumpling (28 dhs). A liminal meal where I would go back, with Peggy.
11woodfire, this visit stood in stark contrast to other visits nearly two years ago, and what a difference time (and kitchen changes) can make! An Australian Angus Ribeye medium with the firm bark like an oak tree (440 dhs), leeks braised then layered on suave yams with pops of pink grapefruit and dill (50 dhs) and two fish carpaccio of tuna and swordfish (AED 95). Oh, I was invited to 11woodfire for transparency.
The Coterie’s Sunday Roast was a mixed affair, leaning on your goodwill with admirable pricing and totemic portions. I do not see myself rushing back.
Lowe (read a review here) for a delicious dinner for Dad’s birthday, snuffling wood-fired sesame bread littered with onion (21 dhs) then dredged through smoke aubergine with seaweed zaatar (18 dhs), the fire of Simy’s Kerala spiced wagyu croquettes (60 dhs), sweet Hokkaido scallops on planks of brioche (40 dhs), really good anchovies steeped in olive oil and esplette pepper and tomato vinegar (58 dhs), all before a slow roasted lamb shoulder with sumac onion salad that took our breath away in its portions and depth (210 dhs, easily shared for 4-6 people). It’s still a Dubai-favourite restaurant.
BOCA’s Sunday Family Lunch was my parents’ favourite meal over the prior two weeks. It’s also an outstanding deal: four tapas, one starter, one main, and a dessert EACH for 200 dhs per person. Our favourites were the beef croquettes, golden latticed shrimp fritters, goat’s cheese with chimichurri, and slow-cooked lamb with mash. Stick around for dry Furmint. Hats off to the BOCA team, who helped send my parents to Portugal in style.
Pitfire Pizza’s multiple visits and orders culminated in The Palm Pizza being a shared favourite: gorgonzola, bresaola, rosemary and balsamic vinegar on an olive oil base. (Read a review here)
You should eat here, now.
Sri Krishna Bhavna. An unpretentious vegetarian South Indian restaurant in Al Barsha (also in Karama). It’s not fancy, but they did spend on the decor. Eat the medu vada (15 dhs), the special Davanagere Benne Masala Dosa (23 dhs) and whatever else they say. I am wrestling with a not-so-small addiction to lime soda spiked with salt and black pepper. It’s easily one of the best restaurants I’ve been to at this price point.
Is Saylor’s Worth the Hype?
Dubai’s whispers roared to a chorus about a new British chippie in Dubai Hills. (Where are those Hills anyway?) Saylors aims to fill a vacant gap in Dubai for an excellent fish and chip shop. Does it answer the brief? I can’t say I was bowled over. The 10 dhs condiment of tartare sauce is decanted from an industrial-sized Colman’s tub (on display near the cash register). Note: this was a takeaway: aka, I drove there, picked it up, and brought it back as our air fryer breathes new life into almost everything. I’m keeping my powder dry until I dine in, but I’m not rushing back. Also, it’s not a budget fish and chip shop either.
Does Nobu Still Have It?
Stories on my Instagram danced around this topic. I do not believe Nobu is intended for Dubai residents, aka not repeat business, but instead, tourist business. So, I’m not the intended audience. The decor impresses. The service is warm, professional and knowledgeable. This plus one sat for the “Dubai” Omakase menu, where we did not sit chef-side at a counter. Instead, we sat at a typical two-seater table. The pricing is headshaking. 595 dhs for the signature, 795 dhs for the Dubai menu (amusingly, more expensive than a signature menu — marketing team?) The dishes are OK. Nothing terrible, but nothing exceptional. Does anyone want a steak flambeed over a hot stone in 2024? I would eat at Mimi Kakushi or TERO at this price point or plumb for Hoseki at almost twice the price. Sorry folks!
“A meal without wine is like a day without sunshine.” - Jean-Anthelme Brillat-Savarin.
Worth It Wine.
Gaja Langhe Sito Moresco. I would drink it by the bathtub. It has everything I love about my favourite reds: vibrant cherry and red currant, high acid, light-bodied, and enough tannin for structure.
News.
It’s confirmed. The Michelin Guide Dubai 2024 will be announced on 4 July. Will new places get listed? Will some go up? Will others crash out? Do you have any predictions or thoughts?
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