Rivington Grill
New business lunch spot at Souk Al Bahar 34 Reviews
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Rivington Grill is an easy place to love. As I noted in my review of the restaurant when it first opened, it feels like it doesn’t actually exist in Dubai, that instead diners arrive through some secret portal linked up to London. The food has also consistently proved a cut above. Given that some mains can veer above the Dhs100 mark, I was excited by the prospect of a three-course business lunch for Dhs100 (or, prudently, a two-course lunch for Dhs80). Although I was a tad sceptical when I looked up the offerings online and found that the menu was limited to two options per course. This skittishness did not go away when I arrived to find the smells of their full range of options tempting me to just order of the regular menu.
With mild grumbles, my date and I abandoned the prospect of eating all those RV classics – fish and chips, sticky toffee pudding – for the venue’s less familiar and less sexy-sounding prix fixe options. Though while I didn’t crave the things I ordered, after eating them, I’m sure I will from now on. Scrambled eggs and salmon proved surprisingly blissful. The eggs were creamy, the smoked salmon subtle, sweet and seductively elusive (as soon as the slices entered my mouth, they evaporated). Such a seemingly simple dish, and yet, tastier than almost anything I’ve had in Dubai. How do they do it? Even the Caesar salad, which neither of us are usually fond of, was an elevated version of the original. The anchovies were big, fresh fillets rather than the oily, shrivelled canned variety.
But it was the mains that really made the lunch. My salmon cake was a tender patty of juicy salmon shards, topped in vibrant, green spinach (these guys know how to cook their veg) and a light cream sauce that enriched the dish rather than drowned it. A debate ensued as to which main was better. In fairness, my date’s game faggots made for some tough competition. The smoky balls were saturated with flavour, and the thick, rudely musty lentil mash underneath made for a rich (albeit heavy) meal.
One doesn’t need a full three courses at the Rivington Grill lunch, because the portions are huge. Then again, choosing which part to shun from the feast is tricky. On our visit (the menu changes weekly, so it’s hard to know what to expect), a lemon posset proved so tangy I inadvertently shouted out ‘wowzer!’. The concoction was a kind of lemon cream topped on a liquid lemon sherbet. It was an intense, zesty experience, but a good one, nonetheless. My date’s assorted ice cream, though seemingly boring, was delightful and fresh. The sad part of the meal came at the end, when we were faced with the prospect of leaving the bright, cheery interior for our office. Though the Rivington Grill business lunch might actually interfere with the workday (because you won’t want to leave), it otherwise makes an excellent escape.
The bill (for two)
1x Large Hildon water Dhs10
2x Business lunches Dhs200
Total (including service) Dhs210
Time Out Dubai, 14 June 2009
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