When Alan Yau opened Hakkasan on Hanway Place, London, in 2001, he ushered in an entirely new way of talking about Chinese cuisine in the UK. The design of the place was by Christian Liaigre and was characterized by a carved wooden cage with a mysterious aura, intended to create a sense of intimacy. The restaurant offered a type of Cantonese food meticulously prepared in an ambiance entirely unique to the city.
In 2003, Hakkasan in Hanway Place became the first Chinese restaurant in Britain to receive a Michelin star. From the basement of West End, London, this brand has grown into one that operates in some of the world’s most prestigious locations today. In Dubai, Atlantis The Palm is home to one of its most celebrated establishments.
Arriving in Dubai
Hakkasan Dubai launched operations at Jumeirah Emirates Towers as Hakkasan’s sixth international outlet and the second in the United Arab Emirates, after Hakkasan Abu Dhabi, which opened in June 2010. Once again, the design of the restaurant was entrusted to the Paris-based interior design firm Gilles & Boissier, which has developed the visual concept for all Hakkasan international outlets.
It offers 152 seats in the main dining room and two private dining rooms, separated by carved wooden lattice screens constructed from American red oak. The centerpiece of the room is a stainless-steel-and-glass bar measuring 16 meters in length. Dark wood furniture complements the signature lighting of Ling Ling Lounge’s backlit blue glass, along with the white lattice screens.
The Food: Cantonese at Its Most Considered
Hakkasan Dubai is currently led by Executive Chef Andy Toh, whose kitchen brings what the Atlantis website describes as “a Michelin-starred approach to Cantonese cuisine, where authentic recipes meet contemporary technique.” The menu balances signature Hakkasan dishes available at every location worldwide with an “Only At” collection created specifically for Dubai.
One of the special dishes at Dubai Hakkasan is the lychee lobster and yuzu pearl. The dish illustrates the trend of combining exquisite seafood with delicate citrus in the kitchen. The Michelin Guide suggests the Assam seafood toban if one wants some spiciness in their meal. There is also the four-hour-roasted silver cod in champagne and honey, which has always been a traditional dish at Hakkasan. Another traditional dish is crispy duck salad, which has been ordered repeatedly from all around the world.
The current menu of the Dubai restaurant includes wagyu beef cooked in spices for four hours in a wok and smoked with Jasmine tea leaves. Sea bass caught in accordance with the MSC Fisheries Standard is served with organic honey from the UAE, sourced from Sidr trees growing in the mountains. Special A5 Saroma wagyu beef from Hokkaido’s Saroma is served in a wok with hot tangerine sauce. Hakkasan’s transparency in sourcing ingredients is another feature appreciated by the Michelin Guide’s inspectors.
An Awards Record Built Over a Decade
However, Hakkasan Dubai has consistently retained its Michelin star status in the Michelin Guide’s Dubai Edition since its opening. It has won accolades, including Best Chinese Restaurant in Dubai from Time Out on many occasions, Best Restaurant in Dubai from Black Hat’s Guide, and Restaurant of the Year in Dubai from BBC Good Food. It has also won the award of Best Designed Wine List in the World of Fine Wine’s Middle East and Africa Region.
According to the Michelin Guide, “this place offers everything you need for a good night out, being darkly lit, having excellent service, music, and lattice screens giving extra privacy.” This combination of great food in an environment that transforms from a refined dining experience to an electrifying atmosphere is what makes Hakkasan unique, and this has been consistently achieved by Hakkasan Dubai.
The Evening Builds
One of the unique aspects of Hakkasan Dubai, compared with other fine-dining locations, is its unwillingness to stop evolving as the night unfolds. The restaurant begins with a dinner service in which the first dishes are prepared with the same precision and expertise one would expect from a Michelin-starred restaurant, and eventually the entire night takes on its own rhythm and energy. The cocktail selection here is treated with the same respect as the cuisine, using fresh seasonal ingredients in each drink and employing impeccable technique.
Hakkasan Dubai is three different things all at once: a restaurant, a beautiful venue, and a fun place. This is what distinguishes the venue in a city that has very high standards for all three.
