Al Muntaha, Dubai. Restaurant review.
Sharper cooking, gentler décor, lunch is the move here.
I was invited to Al Muntaha by their publicity team. If you like or love this review, why not drop a like, share with a friend and subscribe!
Sixteen months ago, I wrote a not-so-glowing review of Al Muntaha, the Burj Al Arab’s Michelin-starred dining room on the 27th floor of the “seven-star” hotel.
The dining room’s Bond villain cosplay felt like someone prompted ChatGPT with “create the mood board for a Nigerian prince marrying a Russian oligarch’s daughter.” Each course was well executed, but heavy handed with someone auditioning for a second star.
The service, mind you, faultless—polished and buffed to a military shine, gently eased along with Gaja Nebbiolo, Ruinart Blanc de Blancs and Henri Giraud solera Ratafia. We paid; dazed, our eyes had seen too much.
Did you read that review? Ah, that’s because I never published it. I dined with a friend (and better writer) who edits a Very Important Guide; so discretion got the better of me and that draft atrophied in my Notes. (For the record, he never asked me to sit on it.)
Fast-forward to today. A lunch invite in hand, I step back into Al Muntaha with Mrs EatGoSee in heels and a new outfit. To my surprise, to my relief, things have changed and for the better.
Come for lunch. Really.
Sunlight is the best disinfectant. White walls replaced swathes of inky blue. Now daylight ricochets around the 65-seat dining room and bounces off its padded walls (some are actually padded).
At night? Darkness swallows the sea views and the restaurant’s iridescent ceilings whisper “Shirley Bassey and bingo from 8pm.” Trust me. Come for lunch. Overlook those panoramic views of Dubai’s stretching coastline and across the Arabian Sea. Let it slip down with chilled Aligoté or Ulysse Collin champagne by the glass.
The food has evolved in confidence.
This leaves us with the small matter of food and wine.
There are two set lunch menus: a four-course menu for AED450 and a five course one for AED705. Both are much lower than the nine-course AED1100 dinner menu, and that’s before two wine pairings at AED900 or the Prestige Pairing at AED2900.
Á la carte exists, but as starters near AED 300 and mains orbit AED 500, it makes the set menus the shrewd choice for whom such things matter. The cheese trolley is not included, but it’s a worthy extra indulgence.
Now, the dishes are far more focused with less throw-it-at-the-wall, more-is-more, maybe if we do this, we will get a second star, which candidly is how it felt one night 16 months ago.
This lunch is more self assured, seafood forward and with enough complexity, pomp and flourish to feel special, laying on a sense of occasion without lording it over you. It never feels like a creative, untethered frolic. There’s luxury, there’s indulgence. Dare I say, it’s classy warmed by Antonio’s tête-à-tête and storytelling.
Out comes a fragile tartlet of potato foam with a nose-whomp of grated truffle; a potato and mushroom pie matriculated from this Italian finishing school.
Later appears a tidy pile of spaghettoni—so thick, like boot laces, it takes 18 minutes to boil, apparently—with tuna crudo, shallots and the pop of mustard grains. I trace a heart on the plate as a note of appreciation for the kitchen. A lozenge of blue lobster cooked over robata is intentionally kept slightly raw with Altamura lentils and a spoon-coatingly rich bisque.
A Dover sole cooked whole comes sliced and sent to its final resting place in a bouillabaisse sauce with a crown of dressed lettuce. The “fish in a sauce” motif never feels monotonous. The pigeon, blushing medium, with radicchio, pickled shallots and blackberries that inflects a rewarding bitterness, bite and acid to the pigeon’s meaty earthiness.
Osetria caviar from Brescia appears on a marinated raw tuna tartlet, as pretty as a vintage brooch. White truffles shingled a pumpkin gnoochi and, later a chestnut ice cream with puréed Jerusalem artichoke like autumn leaves. I abandon my spoon to sweep the bowl clean with my fingers and lick them clean. Is there a greater compliment?
A picturesque dessert injects a fresh palate cleanser with blood orange, lemon sorbet and eucalyptus water rinsed down with a chaser of Mosel Trockenbeerenauslese. Divine.
Al Muntaha, Would I Return?
For special occasions where fine dining is required, certainly. I do think a little wine bar here would be great addition for those like me who would turn up to drink a bottle and admire the views.
Al Muntaha, Who Should Go?
People looking for a solid one Michelin starred restaurant in Dubai. Anyone interesting in checking out the Burj Al Arab. Fine dining experience seekers also hoping to couple it with an iconic Dubai landmark. Enthusiastic wine drinkers looking for a cut above.
Review information:
Number of visits: 2.
Number of dishes: 21 courses over two visits.
Drinks: Wine pairing. Al Muntaha is licensed.
Total spend including taxes and tips: AED3395 the first time; I was invited to Al Muntaha for lunch (net, it was complimentary), but menu prices are above.
Al Muntaha, 27th floor, Burj Al Arab Jumeirah, Jumeira Street, Dubai, United Arab Emirates. For the latest information, visit Al Muntaha’s website and its Instagram. 800 323232.
Liam is a restaurant critic, food and travel writer based in the Middle East. He owns EatGoSee and contributes to other publications. You can find Liam on Substack, Threads, Instagram, BlueSky or Facebook.
I resonate with what you wrote, especially about places evolving. It's so insightful to see how things improve, even if it took a while. Your honest perspective really shines thru. Makes me think of software updates, sometimes you need a patch!