Warehouse

One of the best value deals in town with some of the best food on offer and all you can drink mojitos 2 Reviews

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It’s difficult to tell what theme the Warehouse brunch is going for. When my date and I walked in, a hostess greeted us with an ice bucket full of multi-coloured test tubes, each holding a different flavour of mojito (the Warehouse brunch, or drunch, as they’ve inexplicably branded it, has more than 30 varieties).

‘So, it’s a… lab theme?’ My companion mused. But, test tubes aside, there didn’t seem to be anything else particularly science-y about the place. The press release said they’d be serving tapas, though the menu seemed much more Asian-inspired. While we couldn’t quite tell what overall theme Warehouse was striving for, we could detect, early on, that this was going to be a very good brunch. For starters, our test tube shots of berry, mint, chocolate, and banana mojito all made a refreshing way to take the edge off the heat. It was also a relief to see a non-buffet brunch. No, the menu was à la carte (though still all-you-can-eat). And, for Dhs266 including drinks, it was surely one of the best bargain brunches to be found, especially given that the quality of the food was a cut above the competition.

As this was an all-you-can-eat affair, my date and I went a little wild with the starters, ordering up a plate of crab spring rolls, which came with a delicately thin outer shell, sushi, and a brilliant pairing of minced salmon, mango chutney and passion fruit vinaigrette. My mains were almost as satisfying. Three cubes of pork belly were crisp with that addictive musty sweetness evident in hoisin sauce, but they were also slightly overcooked and dry. Still, they paired well with a side of wasabi mashed potatoes, which had the flavour but not the heat of the green, horseradish-like substance.

My date’s roasted hammour was juicy and succulent, and while the myriad sweet accoutrements (grilled banana and a currant sauce) delighted her sweet tooth, when I tasted the mix I found it could have used a little tartness or spice to give the dish some balance. We also split an order of beef tataki, which was made up of thin, perfectly pink slices of cold beef wrapped around cuts of radish and microgreens, then draped in a crisp soy and sake sauce.

There weren’t many options for dessert. In fact, there was one: the sweet bento box, which was a hit-and-miss affair. The box consisted of a thick, decadent chocolate pudding, a somewhat bland macaroon, a silken crème brûlée and, in an odd and incongruous return to the science theme, a plastic syringe with berry puree. Still, at the meal’s end, we were fully fed and fully satisfied, despite the odd off note. The brunch (sorry, drunch… groan) is fairly new at Warehouse and, as such, we can forgive the odd mistake. But for the price we’d still have to say it’s one of the best brunches in town.

• Previous reviews
  • 29 March,2009- reviewed by Daisy Carrington

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