Simply Abu Dhabi VI

1 8 8 S I M P LY A B U DH A B I History with a twist of fun But ‘Dinner’ is more than a name: it’s a concept. When we got to the restaurant we could see that the interior had been modelled with a firm eye on tradition, but with a sense of cheeky fun never far away. For example, the dining roomhad floor- to-ceiling glass walls, which gave us an amazing view of the kitchen and its unique pulley system. We were told that it had been modelled after a version used by the royal court, and it’s really quite a spectacle: the pulley's workings look like the intricate parts of an oversize watch and serve to rotate the spit on an open fire. There were some other lovely little touches, too: the ivory- painted walls were decorated with custom-made porcelain wall sconces in the shape of antique jelly moulds. A wall in the bar area displayed British recipes taken from sixteenth-century cookbooks – but, like a conjurer's sleight of hand, these appear and disappear, depending on the light's reflection! An eye for detail The wonderful menu for Dinner has been devised by Blumenthal together with Ashley Palmer-Watts, formerly Head Chef of the Fat Duck and currently Executive Head Chef for the Fat Duck group. It’s Palmer-Watts who’s currently heading up the kitchen at Dinner. He has gained a reputation for having a creative eye for detail coupled with a great enthusiasm for research. But most importantly of all, he loves British ingredients. And it’s these attributes that have enabled him to create the unique menu of historically inspired British dishes with Blumenthal for the new restaurant. As well as being talented, the pair really are incredibly dedicated: they spent years researching and exploring Britain’s gastronomic past, consulting with food historians and Royal Palaces and spending endless hours at The British Library.