Katsuya by Starck, located in the heart of Madinat Jumeirah, at Al-Naseem Hotel, successfully marries master sushi chef Katsuya Uechi’s fresh take on Japanese classics with design icon Philippe Starck’s sleek and sultry interiors.
As you enter the restaurant you are welcomed by the magnificent setting, with straight lines and compartments due to the fact that the restaurant is conceived to look like a bento box. As the weather is cooling down, you can enjoy your dinner on the lovely terrace offering a view over the resort’s lagoon. The service is exceptionally friendly and very attentive.
To kick things off, we recommend the already famous Burning Mandarin which lives up to its name and reputation – burning, spicy, surprising, and well-presented: we couldn’t ask for more.
The menu offers a wide variety of mouth-watering starters such as the crispy brussels sprouts with balsamic soy and toasted almonds and the seaweed sunumono – mixed seaweed in a sweet vinegar dressing, the moreish creamy rock shrimp – crispy bite-size rock shrimp tossed in a creamy spicy sauce and the cucumber sunumono.
In particular, we’d like to talk about the brussels sprouts. Never great fans we decide to take the plunge and do not regret it at all. The inventive dish is crispy, tasty, spicy: the perfect mix to discover these vegetables and actually enjoy them for the first time.
For mains, we try two of the restaurant’s specialities with a couple of sides. Highlights include the Miso Marinated Black Cod which is really a must-try dish! A very tender fish, well-presented, with unexpected and unparalleled flavour due to the sweet miso and the special taste of baked black cod. We are also very taken by the Wagyu Filet with Foie Gras – exquisite medallions of foie gras served on top of tender Wagyu beef, a really interesting and unique combination of two particular flavours. For those who love Japanese beef and Foie Gras, it is a must-have dish. The sides are also delicious – Robata beef asparagus, and Wasabi mashed potatoes – traditional Japanese flavours, always a delight.
Mains are followed by delicious mochis for dessert – traditional rice-wrapped ice cream with seasonal fruits – we particularly recommend the strawberry and green tea flavour, a personal favourite.
Katsuya offers a very pleasant dining experience with food of the most unexpected, unique and exquisite flavours – proof that you can enjoy a delicious dinner in a Japanese restaurant serving revisited traditional food without being limited to sushi.
Katsuya is a design and culinary success in every way team Luxe Diary will be back!
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