The tasting menu is becoming a prolific option in restaurants in Dubai, and is a brilliant way to sample the chef’s signature dishes. With no need for decisions from diners, their taste buds’ fate is left in expert hands. With everything from Italian culinary journeys to Japanese omakase, there are many excellent degustation experiences from the city’s top chefs. Here are ten noteworthy options to try.
Al Muntaha
This exceptional fine dining restaurant, housed in the iconic Burj Al Arab Jumeirah, has a marvellous tasting menu in a special occasion setting. The restaurant, which was just awarded four toques by G&M for 2023, has a six-course tasting menu from chef Saverio Sbaragli. There’s an AED650 version for lunch and an AED1,1100 option for dinner. Dishes include salmon trout on a yoghurt sauce, ravioli del plin with guinea fowl and Parmesan cream, while the dinner menu also stars langoustine royale and veal filet mignon. Found on the 27th floor of this iconic hotel, there are also stunning panoramic views.
Al Muntaha, Burj Al Arab, Umm Suqeim, jumeirah.com/en/dine/dubai/burj-al-arab-muntaha (800 323 232).
Armani/Ristorante
A chic, Italian, two-toque restaurant found in one of the most famous buildings in the world, Armani/Ristorante can be found nestled at the base of Burj Khalifa, boasting Dubai Fountain views. And it also has a tasting menu, devised by chef Giovanni Papi. The seven-course menu is AED999, while with a wine pairing comes to AED1,698. Dishes on the tasting menu include pan-seared langoustines, vitello and tonno, ossobuco Milanese and glazed blue lobster with heirloom beetroot carpaccio.
Armani/Ristorante, Armani Hotel Dubai, Burj Khalifa, Downtown Dubai, http://armanihotels.com/en/restaurant/armani-ristorante (04 888 3666).
Avatara
This restaurant is the first and only fine-dining vegetarian degustation experience in the UAE and was recently awarded one toque by G&M. Currently found at voco on Sheikh Zayed Road (and to move to Dubai Hills in June), Avatara comes from the team behind Tresind and Tresind Studio, so the flavours and plates are exquisite. There are two menus, vegetarian or vegan, plus two different wine pairings to choose from. The 16-course degustation experience is served at two seatings daily and includes dishes such as achari broccolini with tomato relish and crispy kale, jackfruit momo with sea buckthorn thukpa and black rice crisp and turnip steak with berry pulao and chilli curry. The tasting menu costs Dhs450 for 16-courses, with wine pairings either Dhs495 or Dhs1,000.
Avatara, voco Dubai, Sheikh Zayed Road. Opening in Business Park 1, Dubai Hills in June, http://avatara.ae.
Celebrities
One of the best value tasting menus in the city, this one from top name Mauro Colagreco can be found at the renowned Italian-Argentine chef’s restaurant in the exclusive One&Only Royal Mirage. The four-course menu at two-toque restaurant Celebrities also comes with three amuse bouche, homemade bread and a palate cleanser to complete the line-up. The tasting menu focuses on some of the restaurant’s signature dishes, including beetroot with pistachio, yoghurt and hibiscus, slow-cooked egg with wild mushrooms, potato foam and black truffle, as well as glazed beef ribs with apple, red cabbage and mustard and a yuzu and black lemon ice cream for dessert.
Celebrities by Mauro Colagreco, One&Only Royal Mirage, Al Sufouh (04 399 9999).
Hoseki
An exclusive omakase experience with just nine seats, this high-end one-toque restaurant at the Bvlgari Resort treats diners to traditional Japanese plates. Each couple or group gets their own private chef, while there are two menus, the hisui menu, which includes five appetisers, sushi, miso soup, Japanese omelette and fruit platter for AED1,750 and the ruri degustation menu (the same but with seven appetisers) for AED2,250. Meanhing ‘gemstone’ the menus at Hoseki come from chef Masahiro Sugiyama, and use only the freshest ingredients.
Hoseki, Bvlgari Resort Dubai, Jumeirah 2, bulgarihotels.com/hoseki (04 777 5433).
Moonrise
With a menu from Solemann Haddad, G&M’s Future Great in 2022, Moonrise’s tasting experience is available for just eight diners a sitting, and focuses on sustainable, locally sourced ingredients. Menu at this two-toque restaurant change depending on the season, and there’s a Middle Eastern-Japanese theme throughout the nine-course omakase fusion menu.
Moonrise, Eden House, Satwa, moon-rise.xyz (050 697 2946).
Ossiano
One of the most talked-about tasting menus in the city, dishes here come from Grégoire Berger – who in 2022 was crowned G&M’s first ever chef of the year. Designed to take diners on a journey to an ‘underwater universe’ via food, food, The Next Chapter experience comprises ten ‘waves’ or courses, complemented by a curated wine list. The menu is AED1,150, and an extra AED845 for a wine pairing, all to be enjoyed with the backdrop of Atlantis The Palm’s famed aquarium. Ossiano was the highest rated restaurant at the G&M Gala 2023, with a score of 17.5 and receiving two toques. It was also crowned restaurant of the year for the second year running, so this is one of the most exciting tasting menus in Dubai.
Ossiano, Atlantis The Palm, Palm Jumeirah, http://atlantis.com/dubai/restaurants/ossiano (04 426 2626).
Pierchic
This charming one-toque restaurant is set out to sea on a pier, with stellar views of Burj Al Arab Jumeirah. The menu, from chef Beatrice Segoni is an Italian offering, and there are two set menus to try. There’s a taste of Pierchic for AED650, a six-course tasting menu taking diners along the Italian coast, with dishes such as ravioli del plin, yellowtail tartare and beef tenderloin. Or there’s the Nelle Mani Di Beatrice menu, a six-course blind menu where diners are left in the hands of the capable chef. This one is AED850.
Pierchic, Jumeirah Al Qasr, Umm Suqeim, http://jumeirah.com (800 323 232).
Trèsind Studio
This menu comes from renowned chef Himanshu Saini and is one of the most famous tasting menu experiences in Dubai. It was recently awarded three toques by G&M, and crowned G&M’s home-grown restaurant of the year for the second time. The restaurant is found on Nakheel Mall rooftop and laid out like a theatre, with just a handful of tables facing the kitchen stage. Plates are exquisitely put together and flavours are expertly crafted, with dishes such as ghee-roast crab with burnt cinnamon, curry. The 17-course experience is AED850.
Trèsind Studio, Nakheel Mall, Palm Jumeirah, tresindstudio.com (058 895 1272).
TakaHisa
This high-end two-toque Japanese restaurant at Caesars Palace on Bluewaters Dubai takes diners on an omakase experience with menus from AED1,200. There are three set menus with dishes from the sushi master – chef Takashi Manekata, and wagyu master chef Hisao Ueda. Fish is flown in several times a week from the famous Toyosu Market in Japan, while there’s also A5 Kobe beef with a marbelling score on 12 – the highest grade possible.
TakaHisa, Caesars Palace Dubai, Bluewaters Island, (050 469 8888).