Dubai Chef’s Table offers exclusive dining experience this Dubai Food Festival

Every night since 21 February, dignitaries from around the world and residents have been enjoying an exclusive dining experience offered by leading local and international chefs at Dubai Chef’s Table, a pop-up activation that was launched  during the latest edition of Dubai Food Festival.

The Dubai Chef’s Table is an illuminated glass-fronted air conditioned restaurant-type room located at the top of a high structure on Dubai’s busiest highway, the Sheikh  Zayed Road, providing a unique showcase of the world-class culinary experiences that Dubai has to offer.

Each night this unique outdoor dining venue,  which provides a fascinating bird’s eye view of the Sheikh Zayed Road,  caters to just ten guests at a time, offering a taste of the city’s different cuisines with at least three-course set menus specially created by the Festival’s top chefs, who also divulge the secrets and recipes behind their food to the lucky diners.   

Seats at the table can be won only through competitions run on various media channels making this experience quite exclusive in its nature.

Some of the best chefs and restaurants of Dubai Food Festival have participated in the Dubai’s Chef’s Table  including Chef Roland Puse from Coya, a restaurant that participated in Dubai Restaurant Week, and Chef Himanshu Saini from Tresind,both chefs who hosted Masterclasses as part of the Local Greats Series presented by Al Islami, Chef Tristan Farmer from Marina Social – a  restaurant which hosted an exclusive fine dining experience, as part of the festivals content and Chef Craig Wong from Etisalat Beach Canteen’s Ting Irie restaurant.

“It was a pleasure to host the Chef’s Table during the Dubai Food Festival, which was one of the most interesting concepts that we have ever been a part of,” said a spokesperson for Tresind. “It is so encouraging to see dignitaries relish your food concepts and appreciate your hard work, especially with such an eclectic mix of diners.”

Chef Roland of Coya added: “It is always a challenge for a chef to deliver the same standard outside of their own kitchen, but on that evening it was satisfying to see the smiles and positive compliments from the guests.”

Guests have also enjoyed delectable culinary creations, tips and tricks from celebrity chefs including popular British TV chef Andy Bates, MasterChef India winner Nikita Ghandi, MasterChef New Zealand winner Tim Read, and well-known restaurateur and TV chef Silvena Rowe.

Chef Nikita said: “For me, the Dubai Chef’s Table dinner experience was like cooking in the comfort of my own home kitchen, whilst for the guests it was like exclusively feasting under the roof of a unique fine-dining restaurant.”

Another highlight of Dubai Chef’s Table highlight was an evening hosted by 20 year-old Emirati chef sensation Bader Najeeb, fondly known by his fans as ‘Chef B’.

Commenting on the experience, Chef Bader said: “Inspired by Dubai Food Festival and how international and diverse the city’s culinary offering is, I tried to bring different cuisines together to prepare my set dinner.”

He added: “It was a beautiful experience to cook in such a unique space, and working under a time crunch added to my motivation to rise to the challenge and serve up special dishes on each and every plate.”

Chef Bader cooked up a delicious menu consisting of: refreshing Watermelon Salad; Angus Ribeye Burgers with Mashed Potato; and Orange-Saffron Curd Ice Cream Tart.

Some of the other dishes that were prepared at Dubai Chef’s Table included Amuse Bouche by Chef Nikita Gandhi consisting of savory mint panna cotta, spiced raw mango consommé, lemon basil seeds as well as a dessert of cottage cheese dumplings, passionfruit cream and pistachio candy.

Chef Tristan Farmer from Marina Social created a starter with seared yellow fin tuna, avocado puree, salted cucumber & wasabi and a main course of smoked Squab Pigeon, white onion, pearl barley, and peas a La française.

DFF 2016, which is organised by the Dubai Festivals and Retail Establishment (DFRE), an agency of the Department of Tourism and Commerce Marketing (DTCM),  runs until 12 March under the theme ’Celebrate Taste’.