Food Blog | Nobu Dubai | Atlantis | Dubai
Nobu Dubai is absolutely fantastic. Fantastic to the point that you can suddenly pick out weak points in other highly rated restaurants - and that’s why I had to make it a point to make a blog post about it (normally, I would tend to avoid restaurants that have a high volume of customers).
Update: Nobu Dubai has since moved over to The Royal Bridge Suite Atlantis (this review reflects the older Nobu Dubai)
Context: Came here for birthday dinner with my family (4 pax). This is the first time I’ve tried a Nobu Omakase. I also believe this is the first week they’re serving up a new Dubai Omakase menu (I’m guessing they rotate it seasonally to keep it fresh)
Where it Is
It is located at Atlantis Dubai - I would recommend using the valet service here because otherwise, parking can be tricky because this is an area (Atlantis Dubai) frequented by a high volume of tourists and locals.
Address: Nobu Dubai - Ground Level, The Avenues, Atlantis - Dubai
Operating Hours
Daily: 6pm - 11pm
What it Costs
The total bill for the 4 of us came up for AED2,735. We got 4 Omakases where we shared the dishes - 2 of which are the Special Omakase (their global Omakase special menu) and 2 of which are the Dubai Omakase (the specialty menu created by the Dubai team. Regarding pricing, I would say that if it is your first time at any Nobu, I think the special omakase is a bit more worth the money, but if you have tried the omakase at another branch, I would recommend trying the Dubai omakase.
The breakdown for our bill was like such:
2x Signature Omakase - AED575
2x Dubai Omakase - AED775
1x Stilli Water - AED35
Total: AED2,735
If you’d like to take a look at the full menu, you can click on this link right over here!
How it Tastes
Fantastic! I’ll be going through each one of their courses together - because both the Signature and Dubai Omakase are 7 course Omakases.
Left two: Salmon with Miso Taco (Classic Omakase), Right two: Lobster with chimichurri in a nori taco (Dubai Omakase)
The starter for both is a taco - albeit each one with different ingredients. The Classic Omakase starts off with a salmon with miso taco and the Dubai Omakase starts off with a lobster and chimichurri. You’re meant to get one taco with each omakase ordered. The salmon and miso taco is the yellow taco and the lobster taco is the one with the black taco shell (nori / seaweed). I had the lobster taco and I actually really like the taco shell. The nori is a good mix of crispy, flavourful and surprisingly, it wasn’t even that fragile. The fillings are also very flavourful and help start off the meal with a bang.
Just a quick note about the rest of the dishes, there may be cases where I mixup which one belongs in the Classic and which one belongs in the Dubai Omakase, but I believe they are mostly correct.
Yellowtail (Hamachi) Carpaccio (Classic Omakase)
Mackerel Carpaccio (Dubai Omakase)
The next dish is something like a carpaccio. For the classic, you have a Yellowtail (Hamachi) Carpaccio. The dish is really rich in flavour and the textures are great. The Dubai Omakase serves up a Mackerel Carpaccio - and I would say that it is equally delicious - with the garnish on the top just adding to the flavour profile.
Edamame (Complimentary)
One thing that I will say about the service is that it is absolutely fantastic (and I will add more right at the end). We had barely waited 5 minutes - and were not in a hurry, nor were we feeling the food was taking a while - and they actually gave us a portion of edamame to share at this point. It’s something so minor - and price-wise, almost negligible, but it gave us something to nibble on and be happy about.
Sushi Course (Classic Omakase)
The next course is the sushi course - arguably everyone’s favourite course! The Classic Omakase serves up more classic sushi dishes such as salmon, tuna, shrimp, and mackerel nigiri. There is also a mini sushi cup that was pretty interesting - this is the case for both the classsic and Dubai omakases. My simple review of this course is that the sushi tastes great (as you would expect) and I would recommend getting the Classic Omakase if you’re a sushi savant (you want the more traditional/popular forms of sushi).
Sushi Course (Dubai Omakase)
The Dubai Omakase serves up more unconventional fish / meat as part of their sushi course. For example, they have a wagyu jalapeno sushi - which is one of favourite pieces of sushi altogether because the wagyu is really tasty and cooked well, combined with even more flavour from the jalapeno.
I love fried food, so I will always appreciate when an Omakase also includes a course dedicated to some fantastic fried food. But note, I might mix up which dish was meant for which Omakase - but I believe these are correct.
Rock Shrimp with Creamy Spicy Sauce (Classic Omakase)
For the Classic Omakase, they served up rock shrimp with a creamy spicy sauce. Interestingly, it looks like they even put the recipe up on their website! A very classic dish with a perfect balance of crunch and flavour. It’s a really simple dish, but I think it makes the Omakase very complete - has raw fish, carpaccio, fried food, fish, meat, dessert. A mix of all sorts of different dishes to try the best Nobu has to offer.
Soft Shell Crab with Ponzu Sauce (Dubai Omakase)
The Dubai Omakase has a soft shell crab with ponzu. I think the ponzu sauce is a really good complement to the crispiness of the soft shell crab. It adds that sweet element that really elevates the dish! This is a dish that really feels as though it has so many elements to it.
Nobu Signature Alaskan Black Cod with Miso (Classic Omakase)
Next up, the fish dishes! The Classic Omakase consists of their signature Alaskan Black Cod with Miso. What can I say, that fish is so delicate and delicious. The miso is so luxuriously coating that black cod and it really is SUPER DELICIOUS. You can really see why it is a signature dish at Nobu.
Red Mullet with Garlic and Coriander Dressing (Dubai Omakase)
The red mullet with garlic and coriander dressing is the choice of fish for the Dubai Omakase. I would say that this dish pales a bit in comparison to the black cod, but it has it’s own charm as well. Despite that, I think this is the most forgettable dish of the night (although that really isn’t saying much because everything else was so darn delicious).
And for the last course before dessert, both Omakase served beef!
Beef Tenderloin with Peruvian Chilli (Classic Omakase)
In this case, I would say that I’m a bigger fan of the course served in the Dubai Omakase. But first, the Classic dish: Beef Tenderloin with Peruvian Chilli. It’s a pity that my photos came out a bit dark for this, but they really chop it up and make it bite sized - making this dish really easy to share - and so that you don’t have to wrangle your way into cutting it. It’s really good, I just think that the Dubai Omakase’s offering is better.
A4 Wagyu Beef (Dubai Omakase)
The Dubai Omakase beef course consists of A4 Wagyu Beef - and I think that should give an idea of why I thought it was delicious. Cooked fantastically well, and with an out of the world sauce accompanying the beef. So much umami filled components to this dish and you just get a spectacular beef dish.
Nobu Dubai Birthday Dessert (with their Black Sesame Desert Behind)
I’m genuinely not sure which dessert was for which, because there were 3 desserts - plus one complementary dessert for my birthday. Before I start with the desserts, I have to say that their birthday candle / celebration component is very classy, very simple - and I like that. It isn’t over the top, where you have a birthday song in the background, it’s basically 2 or 3 staff presenting the dessert - you don’t have the whole restaurant staring over at you! Which is something that I personally prefer.
Chocolate Fondant with Matcha Ice Cream
Mochi & Chocolate (We took the chocolate home!)
The other desserts are a mochi, with chocolate from a Swiss chocolatier that you can take home, a chocolate fondant with matcha ice cream, and a black sesame dessert (I apologise, as I didn’t take a picture of this directly, but you can see it in the background of the birthday dessert). All very fantastic desserts. One thing I noted is that their ice cream is seriously good. The type that doesn’t melt and has so much flavour. I really liked the chocolate fondant with matcha ice cream - but that’s probably down to me loving chocolate and matcha. The mochi was pretty good as well.
Star Rating
9.5/10. Seriously, the food is so good that I really have no complaints. The service really makes me think about other restaurants and how they are lacking. Joy (our server) was fantastic and gave us a fantastic dinner experience. And this culminates in the highest rating on my blog so far. You’re paying a decent chunk for dinner here, but you actually get a fantastic experience to the point that it is more than worth what you’re paying.