Dining in Dubai

The next morning we slept in till 9, then made breakfast at a relaxed pace. We hopped on the metro around 11am and made the long journey to the famous seven star Burj al Arab. The Burj is the second tallest hotel in the world standing at 321 meters. The four tallest hotels all happen to be in Dubai (big surprise)!

Their metro system is amazing since the city is huge. With fourteen lane highways and skyscrapers masking the sky in all they grandness, you can easily fall in love with the vast and cleanliness of the Emirates. We got off the metro, just off the highway and since no taxis were to be found, we began the 30 minute walk to the hotel. The heat is excruciating. It is 32 degrees here with humidity that makes your shirt stick to your back and sweat runs down your face! I can’t imagine being here in the summer.

We arrived at the Burj, full of giddy excitement for our lunch reservation.
We had to pass the guard and give our names as no one enters without paying something! You are only allowed in if you’re a guest, you pay for a tour or you have a restaurant reservation. They run a tight ship (or sail)! Up close, the hotel is very pretty, but not as large as you might expect. Once inside, we were offered rose water for our hands as we watched a quick fountain show before heading up to the 27th floor (the restaurant that sticks out of the Burj in the top pic). The lobby was amazing filled with freshly cut roses and beautiful red and yellow designs.

Overlooking the man-made palm islands and the beach, we had a spectacular view of the city, if not for the haze that hung in the sky. We sat down and chose the four course meal option and prepared to eat! The restaurant is exactly as it is shown online. Green and blue tinted ceiling panels light the ceiling and compliment the white table cloths and metallic blue and green upholstered chairs.

We had read online that the food in the AL Muntaha was not the best, so we were prepared for the cruise ship style “dine dining” with the stunning view. We started with the chef’s complimentary prawn tempura with tangy green sauce and freshly baked bread basket with two types of butter and chipotle mayo. First course was prawn sushi with soft seaweed and sweet sauce, the second course, octopus soup (for me) and lamb meatballs (for Joe). We tasted each other’s dishes and ended up doing a swap! The third and main course was rib eye steak with diced fruits and veggies followed by wasabi cakes stuffed with cream and complimented by pear sorbet topped with a gold leaf. I personally don’t feel like the gold leaf is necessary to make a personal feel special, but I would assume it does it for some people! We capped off dessert with complimentary chocolates as we rolled out of the restaurant. The service was outstanding and never ending; they refused to let me pour myself water from our $10 bottle! It was definitely a seven star experience and a really fun time!

We finished the afternoon/evening at the mall of emirates, which delivers shopping from every continent. We recognized many stores from home including Sephora, Banana Republic, Gap, Levi’s, etc. We fell in love with the Wal-Mart like store that sold everything under the sun from food, to camping equipment and even contained a section to purchase the holy Qur’an. We found though that prices and selection at home are definitely better, although I couldn’t resist a stop in Sephora!!

We were planning to go indoor skiing at the mall, but once we had a look through the glass windows, we decided to pass for the price and effort involved. Instead, we enjoyed a drink and watched from above. It seemed very small and kind of cheesy, considering we have world famous mountains just outside Vancouver. We headed back to the hotel for an early night and some American television!