There’s a colonial charm to dining at The Address Montgomerie that makes dining at any of its restaurants a rather nice experience. This could certainly be said of Academy, which was as much bar as it was restaurant, but nonetheless a nice place to sit down for simple fare in an old-school clubhouse environment.

Why then it was deemed necessary to change the handsome interior for a more modern, characterless, minimalist design, I don’t know. This isn’t to say Links doesn’t look good (it does), but it just looks like any other venue.

What Links does still have going for it, however, is its patio, which looks onto the Montgomerie’s driving range and the impressive skyline of Dubai Marina set against the grass and stucco of expensive Emirates Hills villas in the foreground.

As well as featuring requisite golf clubhouse fare – club sandwiches, burgers, steak and salads – the menu boasts some interesting, healthy options such as grilled octopus with roast red pepper and white beans, tuna tartare with capers and gherkins, and goat’s cheese with roast beetroot and radicchio for starter, while mains involve plenty of fish dishes, as
well as a spot of pasta and grilled chicken – something for everyone.

I opened my account with the chicken, orange, pumpkin and moong (a kind of pulse) salad with coconut and coriander. Disappointingly, it was nowhere near as exciting as it should have been since key ingredients such as the orange, pumpkin and coconut weren’t substantial enough to give the salad the wicked edge it deserved.

The same could be said of my main – the butternut squash, goat’s cheese and spinach pie looked the part on paper, but in reality failed to deliver. The pastry was well made – the right contrast of soft and crispy – but it encased an indiscernible puree of pumpkin and creamy goat’s cheese, which didn’t pack the punch I so longed to be knocked out by.

Two scoops of nice but otherwise unmemorable ice cream marked the end of my meal, which wasn’t bad by any stretch of the imagination, just rather flat. I daresay Links will spice up a bit as people catch onto its curry night and other weekly promotions, but otherwise it serves a purpose as a golf club restaurant, though it doesn’t have the allure to get me back to Emirates Hills just to eat there again.

The bill (for two)
1x Fresh orange Dhs22
1x Moong salad Dhs40
1x Butternut pie Dhs60
1x Ice cream Dhs35
Total (excluding service) Dhs157