There are few sensible reasons to venture outdoors during a Dubai summer. Dining, however, is one of them.
On one particularly balmy evening, we headed to J1 Beach, which continues to quietly cement itself as Dubai’s most compelling collection of beach clubs and serious restaurants. It’s a destination that understands the difference between expensive and exceptional. This visit also happened to coincide with World Caviar Day — a celebration I confess had somehow escaped my diary until now.
It did, however, remind me of my neighbour back in the tiny Northumberland village of Glanton, whose enduring claim to fame is being, as far as anyone can establish, still the village’s No. 1 caviar dealer. It’s the sort of distinction only a village of a hundred people could produce with complete sincerity.
Back to Sakhalin, Dubai. Inside, an impressive display of crushed ice showcases the day’s catch like a jeweller exhibiting diamonds, while an energetic open kitchen hums reassuringly in the background. The soundtrack deserves its own round of applause too. Mercifully, it sits at a volume that still permits the increasingly endangered art of conversation.
Then I saw some enormous crabs. You don’t so much notice them as become aware that they are quietly judging you from their tank. Monumental specimens from Kamchatka, each one looking capable of negotiating its own release.
As it was World Caviar Day, the festivities began immediately. We were greeted by what can only be described as a roaming caviar sommelier — or perhaps a pharmaceutical representative for the extremely wealthy — complete with a polished silver caviar bucket strapped around his waist. With the precision of a Swiss pharmacist dispensing medicine, he expertly layered generous spoonfuls of caviar onto delicate blinis with crème fraîche. It was utterly unnecessary. Which, of course, made it utterly wonderful.
The parade of dishes that followed celebrated top-notch ingredients rather than culinary gymnastics. Precision-cut cucumber arrived crowned with generous helpings of caviar. Then came an outstanding tuna otoro, gloriously rich without becoming heavy, followed by beautifully fresh oysters lifted by an addictive shiso dressing that demanded every drop be mopped up.
Eventually, the Kamchatka crab I’d spied on arrival evening made its entrance. Sweet, delicate and worth the anticipation.
A bowl of rigatoni, brightened with lemon zest and finished with another indulgent flourish of caviar, demonstrated that simplicity remains one of the hardest things to execute well.
Dessert offered welcome relief from the richness. Seasonal Uzbek fruits, surprisingly fragrant Abu Dhabi raspberries and an exceptional peach mochi — “it’s peach season,” chef Aleksei Vershinin reminded us — brought everything to a graceful close. My wife was particularly taken with the miniature chocolate crab accompanying the petits fours, insisting it was almost too charming to eat. Almost.
Sakhalin isn’t simply another fashionable address on Dubai’s dining circuit. It is a restaurant built around first-class produce, confident cooking and understated luxury. As the temperatures become more forgiving, its terraces overlooking J1 Beach will again become some of the city’s most coveted tables.
Hero dish:
Kamchatka King Crab — Sweet, delicate and worth the prolonged eye contact from across the tank. The otoro tuna ran it remarkably close – 9.5/10
The senses:
An elegant room with gleaming seafood displays, an open kitchen that hums, and music set at the radical notion of conversation level. – 8/10
Menu curation:
A confident celebration of exceptional ingredients. Russian and Japanese influences meet Mediterranean restraint, with caviar woven through the menu as seasoning. – 9/10
Service:
Warm, polished and effortlessly professional. The roaming caviar steward deserves a category of his own. – 9/10
Source: Khaleej Times