The regular: Rhodes Mezzanine

Rhodes Mezzanine Grosvenor House restaurant has established itself as a Dubai favourite. We ask a regular why it is special. Discuss this article

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The place: Rhodes Mezzanine, Grosvenor House Dubai, 04 399 8888

The diner: Naomi Couper, 37, works for Neofac, a Swedish design company. Originally from Sri Lanka, she and her husband, Malcolm, moved to Dubai 10 years ago. The couple are big fans of fine dining. ‘Every Thursday my husband and I go to good restaurants,’ she says. ‘Last Thursday we went to Nobu, and later this week we’re going to go to Noble House and Tang; the in-laws are in town.’

The routine: ‘We always go for the tasting menu, because there are a lot of different flavours. Most of the time we can’t finish the 11 dishes that they serve; by the time we get to six or seven, we’re full. We always say, “Tonight, we’re going to finish the whole thing,” but we always fail miserably. This is where we go for special occasions. We came on Valentine’s Day, and had a really good meal, and ordered a very expensive bottle of wine, stupidly. It was Hensky, an Australian wine, and was Dhs2,000. The manager gave us the label to keep as a souvenir.‘The manager knows us and calls us for special events, like when Gary Rhodes is in town. We’ve met him twice: the first time for the launch and then again recently, when he was here for the one-year anniversary of the restaurant.’

The usual: ‘Because we usually go for the tasting menu, we’ve tried pretty much everything. I love the slow roast pork belly with lobster tortellini; it’s one of my favourite dishes. I also love the champagne, of course, and the iced passion fruit chiboust [pastry cream] to finish things off.’

Why she comes back: ‘The service is fantastic, and the staff are very knowledgeable about the food, and well trained. I’ve seen the same staff since I’ve started, which means they’re happy, which is reflected in the service. I also love the interior of the restaurant. I would love to make it my second living room, but I’d have to work really hard to get that money.’