EAT

MONTAUK BOUTIQUE CAFÉ AND RESTAURANT

A taste of Long Island arrives in Al Bateen

uch like the cheery

Mpilgrimages that well-heeled New Yorkers take to the tip of Long Island, Montauk Boutique Café and Restaurant in Abu Dhabi has the feel of a seaside retreat conveniently located in the city.

Known for its breakfasts, the café’s menu and timings are adapted for Ramadan. Nevertheless, we arrived for a late lunch or early dinner – whatever you want to call it – and discovered a gem of a spot.

The décor is breezy, beachy and bohemian, and the menu is just what you’d be looking for if you were sitting in the sun, by the sea and desperately seeking a refreshing and light meal. Even if you rarely take note of décor, you’ll notice the artistry here. Thoughtful details prevail in everything from the comfy furniture to the menu illustration and artwork to even the ever-present Covid-19 dividers that, here, somehow don’t feel that invasive.

The salads are fantastic. We were swift to dig right into the sumptuous burrata salad’s (Dhs89) complementing orange slices and basil dressing. Though it’s everything you already love in a burrata, it’s even more thanks in part to its flavour foils, and a darling eyedropper’s generous drizzle of a balsamic reduction. You may even find yourself munching the last sprouty garnishes just to let the flavour profile linger.

The spicy lemon butter tiger prawns (Dhs75) and Montauk black Angus sliders (Dhs80) also didn’t disappoint. Though not spicy in any way to which we’re accustomed, the tender prawns were bathed in sauce that was subtle with the right amount of spice so as not to trample over the seafood’s salinity. What’s becoming the usual charcoal bun didn’t feel kitsch like it does elsewhere. The ‘zingy sauce’, as it’s called on the menu, was harmonising, if a bit too mayonnaise ladened, and the unusual addition of the soujuk (a dry, spicy sausage) added a smack of a certain something that was simply nice and good.

VERDICT: Like a cherished memory of a beachside spot where you stop after a long drive, Montauk will either start or finish your day on just the right note. The food is artistic without trying. The only way this spot could be better would be if it were by the sea and we’re on holiday enjoying it – other than that, it’s flawless. a Montauk Boutique Café and Restaurant; Al Khaleej Al Arabi Street, Al Bateen, Abu Dhabi, Normal hours are 8am to 11pm. Ramadan hours are 3pm to 3am. Tel: (02) 546 6255 @montaukabudhabi

RATING

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Rumours, facts and reveals

A look at new, confirmed, and possible dining outlets coming to Abu Dhabi

FACT: MAZAJ BAB AL BAHR

The new restaurant in Fairmont Bab Al Bahr specialises in dishing up delicacies from the library of Lebanese-Mediterranean cuisine, flame-grilled with flair. Signature dishes include kebabs, manakish, kunaffa, baklava and aromatic hot and cold mezze. Redevelopment plans have placed an important focus on the alfresco section of the restaurant. The beach garden area has space for 149 guests, in a chic wood-framed network of cabana-like structures. The restaurant’s celebration of refined traditional craftsmanship quite literally begins at the door – the main entrance is framed by an ornate 3.3 metre-high, three-century-old gateway. The impressive antique theme continues throughout the interior. q @mazajbabalbahr

REVEAL: SIDDHARTA BUDDHA BAR ABU DHABI

Capital Motion, the team behind Siddharta Lounge Abu Dhabi by Buddha Bar, says that it’ll be a “dazzling rooftop playground complete with a Mediterranean menu, clever mixology, jaw-dropping views and state-of-art concept events.” Big statement. But judging by the success of its counterpart in Dubai, it should live up to the hype. We’ve also heard rumblings of two more exciting Buddha Bar concepts making their way to Yas Bay. More to come on WhatsOn.ae.

RUMOUR: CAFE DEL MAR

The original Balearic apres-rave hub, Cafe Del Mar, is the stuff of Ibizan legend. During its 40-year non-stop party manifesto, it launched an uncountable number of ‘chilled house’ playlists, hosted almost every DJ hall-of-famer, and established itself as an essential strand of the tapestry of the Ibiza music phenomenon. New Cafe Del Mar venues have sprung up in Phuket, Tenerife, mainland Spain, and there’s even one offering warm welcomes and fond farewells at Ibiza Airport. Back in 2015, there was a UAE location penciled in for Dubai, which sadly never got the greenlight, but our neighbour’s loss is likely our gain. The word on the grapevine is that its next Cafe Del Mar adventure will be right here in the capital, at the new Yas Bay development.

MEET THE CHEF

IDIN ASMITHA

Executive Chef at Anantara Eastern Mangroves

I was 12 years old when I first joined my mother in the kitchen

preparing chicken porridge. That’s when I found my passion. Even now when I cook porridge, the memory of it makes me smile.

My home country is Indonesia.

I have been living in the Middle East for 20 years.

I work a 14-hour day. It all starts with the daily morning briefing, coordinating the activities of the cooks. During the day, I frequently visit the kitchens for inspection and oversee the operations to ensure food quality and presentation.

My greatest achievement was

back in 2007 during Ramadan. I was the head chef in one of the five-star hotels in Dubai. At the time, I worked up to 18 hours a day together with a team of 15 chefs serving 5,000 covers a day per outlet. It resulted in a recordbreaking Dhs10million food revenue that month.

My last three-course supper meal would start with carrot and

ginger soup. For mains, I’d enjoy a simple beef and broccoli stir fry with steamed rice, and I’d finish my last ever meal with crème brulee.

a Anantara Eastern Mangroves Abu Dhabi Hotel. Tel: (0)23659110. anantara.com

IFTAR SPOTLIGHT

Market at EDITION

A unique iftar by Tom Aikens in partnership with local culinary talent Mohamad Orfali

For our Muslim friends, iftar is a special moment to break their fast at sunset. For non-Muslims, it marks a wonderful opportunity to embrace the culture here by partaking in iftar, too. And, if you like culinary surprises, the cooking collab at the Abu Dhabi Edition between Michelinstarred chef Tom Aikens and local chef Mohamad Orfali will wow you.

Other hotel buffets can leave you with a sense of deja-vu that you will not have here. This buffet is attractive and not so gauche as to pile up mountains of food that may go uneaten. The live stations prepare only what’s ordered in keeping with Market’s dedication to sustainability.

True to his Michelin stars, Aikens delivers a superstar dish in the za’atar spice rubbed chicken breast. Zesty yet juicy, the addition of za’atar can gum up the works but not with this chicken dish; it was triumphant. You can barely refer to the bulghur bed upon which the chicken rested as a ‘side dish’. Its citrus seasoning glinted through the delicate grains, allowing this supporting dish to be so much more than the sum of its parts.

Mohamad Orfali offered what he calls a ‘Come with me to Aleppo’ beef kebabs with sour cherry ketchup alongside his ‘Roots of My Backyard Forest’ slow-roasted baby carrots served atop walnut muhammara and yoghurt sauce. He had us at the poetic names, but the carrot starter was surprisingly the stunner.

The masterstroke of this iftar is the entire dessert buffet, specifically the Edition’s Arabian ice cream and gelato selection. You may not ordinarily save room for dessert, but here you must. Choose between flavours like toffee popcorn, smoked apple, watermelon and chilli, beetroot and rose and coconut sorbet. Standouts were the popcorn, beetroot and watermelon and chilli sorbet. If you can’t decide, you don’t have to commit to just one, they offer a platter of small bites of every flavour if you ask.

VERDICT: Leave it to the Edition to bring us iftar that we won’t soon forget. Iftar at Edition. Daily throughout Ramadan, Sunset to 8.30pm, Dhs198. Tel: (0)2 208. @AbuDhabiEdition