Simply Abu Dhabi II

Sumptuous surroundings whet the appetite When it comes to fine dining, Abu Dhabi hasn’t seen anything like Hakkassan before. Truly fitting to the sumptuous surroundings of the Emirates Palace, Hakassan is a huge 1600 sq ft and takes pride in its own separate entrance and dedicated valet. Such extravagance and delicious fayre obviously comes at a price, but one we were more than happy to pay for an exceptional evening. The opulent dining room is spacious, yet not impersonal. With a luxurious interior fit for royalty and befitting of the Emirates Palace for us, the Feng Shui, like the food and the overall atmosphere, was just right. Carved wooden screens and latticing create an exclusive yet friendly vibe. We arrived stylishly 15 minutes late, which isn’t a cool thing to do when it comes to Hakkasan. This restaurant is money printing machine. The demand definatley outweighs the supply. 15 minutes late generally means, you can say bye bye to your reservation and we can understand why. With an endless list of VIP’s seeking a last minute table, as they do, we were lucky enough, to have not lost our reservation. The extremely professional, well mannered and softly spoken restaurant manager; Mr Aurelien Pottier made sure that we seated and greeted in typical Hakkasan sophisticated style . Before being taken to our table, our taste buds were tantalised and tempted by the incredible mixologist Mr Sanka Pasindu, who Pear Nashtini was out of this world. During our cocktail indulgence, Aurelien sat with us, casually chatting about his love for life, food, drink and Abu Dhabi. Wowzers, we know it would be physically impossible but, it made us wish all Restaurant managers were like this. The service levels here are just incomparable. We have eaten at Hakkasan London and sorry but it doesn’t come close to Hakkasan Abu Dhabi! We sat in one of the many dark wood ‘cages’, the partitions creating a sense of privacy should you desire it, without detracting from the overall atmosphere of the restaurant. What Hakkassan boasts in style, it matches in substance and we couldn’t wait to tuck in. Mouth-watering Chinese cuisine The impressive menu at this Michelin-star Chinese restaurant couldn’t fail to whet the appetite. Headed by Chef Lee Kok Hua, who worked under head chef Tong Chee Hwee in the London flagship restaurant for five years, Hakkassan’s award-winning reputation precedes it and we were positively champing at the bit to sample the delicacies on offer in such fantastically sumptuous and relaxing surroundings. Magnificently fresh food in generous portions that don’t over-phase are served with style and the menu boasts a wide choice of top class dishes including traditional favourites, Chinese staples and local flavours, all with a contemporary twist. The quality of the cuisine available is exceptional and it was difficult to narrow down our choice, but what a difficulty to be subject to! Renowned for its modern Cantonese cooking, signature dishes like the mouth-wateringly glorious Peking duck with caviar and grilled Wagyu beef with king soy sauce are served alongside exciting new dishes specially created for an Emirate clientele. If you’re a wine lover, then Teeshan Ramtohul, Hakkasan’s very own designated wine sommelier will certainly ensure you dine and wine correctly. If you don’t consume alcohol, a choice of drinks includes an appealing range of non- alcoholic ‘mocktails’ which will quench your thirst and perfectly complement your fine dining experience. Our personal favourite was the Eden, packed full of tasty black grapes. The perfect pre-dinner aperitif was so delightfully flavoursome that when the steamed red snapper was served, expectations of the food were high and as we relaxed into the evening and sampled the fine dining, the HAKKASAN hits the mark 49 SIMPLY ABU DHABI food more than exceeded those high expectations. At Hakkasan the dishes are kept simple which is what makes them so amazingly tasty and no one complained of the food being oily, which is a typical bugbear with Chinese food. A wide and delicious range of options make this the Chinese restaurant with something for everyone. An A La Carte Menu to appeal to all tastes, the array of vegetable, fish, meat and tofu dishes all have their own distinct appeal and the descriptions can’t fail to make you hungry. According to our fellow diners, the Sichuan tofu and aubergine is truly sublime. One of many delicacies for us to bear in mind on our next visit! We feel we really must go back soon as the menu had so many dishes vying for our attention, it would be a real shame not to sample as many as possible and having had such a special evening, reinforces our feeling that this is one restaurant well worth a return visit. Charmingly attentive waiting staff catered to our needs without being intrusive, allowing for a perfect evening spent in good company with great food. Beautiful glasses and magnificent crockery added to the sumptuous dining experience and made the food taste even better. Dinner is served from 6pm until midnight – the last booking being 11.30pm and the bar is open from 6pm until 2am. A&J would like to thank the attentive waiting staff for making our evening an incredible one to remember. For a truly unique dining experience that appealed to our palates as well as our senses our visit to Hakkasan didn’t disappoint. When you dine at the Emirates Palace the only way to dine is in style. Hakkasan, you were and still remain our favourite restaurant. For further information please visit www.emiratespalace.com or www.simplyabudhabi.com