Dubai: If you are a seafood lover and looking for an exotic dining experience to kick-start 2017, then Samak Night at Boulevard Kitchen in Manzil Downtown Hotel on Thursdays is worth a try.
Offering an array of seafood, which you can either have grilled or deep fried, it’s a haven for anyone who loves a fresh catch.
My colleague and I started our culinary journey with Harmony - a refreshing mixed fruit mocktail and a passion fruit lemonade before tucking into deep fried and crunchy calamari along with spicy potatoes. Lip-smacking and tangy, it’s probably the best way to start.
When it came to the main course, the restaurant offered a variety of options ranging from sea bass and hammour and red snapper to shrimps, lobster and calamari besides the usual suspects like king fish, Sultan Ibrahim, sherry, sea bream, red mullet and zubaidi.
However, the one to go for is the lobster –– grilled to perfection and sure to tease your tastebuds. Shrimps, sea bass, sea bream and Sultan Ibrahim also come highly recommended. The freshness of all the catches will complement both deep-fried and grilled preparations. Served with the main course were saffron and lentil rice, du puy lentil, sautéed broccoli and beans.
Another item which deserves special mention is the ‘curry of the week’: an Indian style curry made with calamari, shrimps and cod with scented coconut leaf. A tad spicy and tangy, with the coconut flavour permeating the dish, it will definitely please any curry lover.
Coming to desserts, the choices were few, but the uniqueness and superb taste more than made up for the lack of variety. The caramelised bananas were glazed with citrus scented syrup and was something I had never tried before, but would surely like to have again. But what I liked most was the deep fried strawberry ice cream with sweet red beans. The crunchy crust was filled with strawberry flavoured ice cream and was surely the best way to end the meal.
Details:
Meal for two: Dh410
Venue: Manzil Downtown Dubai
Contact: 04-428 5888
Timings: 6.30am-11am, 12pm-12am
Ratings
Ambience – 5 star
Food – 4 star
Price – 4 star
Overall – 5 star
We recommend: Fried calamari, grilled lobster and deep fried ice cream
