Etoiles

We try out the grub at Emirate's Palace's latest dining spot for size. Here's the verdict 2 Reviews

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We may not yet have resorted to eating each other in these troubled times, but walking into the Emirates Palace on a Sunday night, it seems people don’t much fancy dining out either.

There’s something eerie about the place in this financial climate; sure it’s still opulent and grand, hunkered on the beach like a humongous terracotta turtle, but inside the staff are milling around like firemen on call, waiting to tend to something, anything… Perhaps that goes some way to explaining why they’re so overbearing. A warm welcome is nice – everyone likes that – but haranguing is not so much fun: no sooner have I had a mouthful of water and placed the glass back on the table than it has been refilled.

According to the hotel’s blurb, the place is popular among ‘Abu Dhabi’s trendy elite’, which, on this otherwise quiet night is a shame, because the only other notable visitor to Etoiles is a loud, cigar-waving expat who proves beyond all reasonable doubt that money does not buy class.

Thankfully, what Etoiles lacks elsewhere, it largely makes up for when it comes to food. On the waiter’s recommendation, I have the tuna tartare and seared tuna spring rolls served with Thai dipping sauce. They may look like pickled thumbs, but the strong, nasal flavours make up for this poor aesthetic.

Personally speaking, the less foie gras tastes like fat liver the better, and the seared portion that accompanies the roasted fillet of Aberdeen Angus achieves this admirably. Added to some potato rosti and topped with just enough bordelaise sauce, it mixes in the mouth as a sublime, hearty cocktail. The portion of beef is generous and succulent too, making this main meal genuinely filling.

All this leaves little room for the warm malva chocolate pudding, forest fruit compote and crème anglais, which is a shame because it is served soft and piping hot and, ordinarily, would not escape my maw so easily.

Given how good the food is, it’s perhaps a shame that Etoiles is pitching itself as a club, bar and restaurant at the same time – there’s something about the house music dribbling from the stereo that doesn’t quite compliment chef Dean Bovet’s fine cuisine.

The bill (for one)
Tuna Dhs85
Steak Dhs200
Chocolate pudding Dhs55
Total Dhs340

• Previous reviews
  • 22 December,2009- reviewed by Time Out Abu Dhabi staff
  • 30 December,2008- reviewed by Time Out Abu Dhabi staff

Time Out reviews restaurants anonymously and pays for meals. Of course, we cannot guarantee the accuracy or independence of user reviews.