Abu Dhabi: Koi at The Collection, St. Regis Saadiyat Island is an intimately warm and casually chic restaurant that appeases your taste buds as much as your senses.
Right from the fire and water theme at the entrance to the Zen-inducing ambience inside, the emphasis is on the senses.
The decor is minimalist — a combination of wood and grey colours. Furniture is unimposing with clean straight cuts. The cocktail lounge is separated from the dining area with a bamboo and tree curtain. All in all, it is impressive how a ‘close to nature’ sentiment has been woven into this contemporary restaurant that draws inspiration from its high-profile chains in Los Angeles, New York, Las Vegas and Bangkok.
Located at Abu Dhabi’s top-notch destination at Saadiyat, Koi’s flagship outlet in the Middle East rightly fits the bill as a lifestyle eatery. Reigning in the temptation to take a cosy couch indoors, my companion and I opted for the outdoor seats. The weather was chilly so we rightly started off with a salad featuring warm baby spinach and mushrooms with ponzu dressing (Dh61). It is tasty and enjoyable, and will tick all the boxes for a healthy dish.
Going to the next step, it was difficult to choose from Koi’s signature dishes. Each one of the contemporary Japanese dishes in the menu is tempting. However, the chatty and friendly restaurant manager came to our rescue and helped us navigate through the menu. Koi Crispy Rice topped with spicy tuna (Dh77) and Creamy Rock Shrimp Tempura (92), he said are must-tries. I found the crispy rice a bit greasy but the spicy tuna suited my palate.
The star dish surely was the Shrimp Tempura. The shrimp was soft and the batter was lightly fried. The cream was kept to bare minimum but it was full of flavour.
We gave in to the manager’s persistence to try out another popular Koi signature dish, Salmon Carpaccio (Dh94). It was a delightful choice featuring wafer thin salmon floating in citrus juice and topped with truffles and herbs.
An abiding fan of lobster, my friend relished the Mini Lobster Tacos (Dh132). Though the fried shell was a bit greasy, the filling with mango salsa and Yuzu Guacamole (creamy avocado filling) was way too delicious.
There was much more to sample including Sushi and Sashimi varieties and other main dishes. But we opted for dessert. A warm, gooey Chocolate Cake served with a scoop of vanilla ice cream, and a huge Chocolate Dessert topped with brownies, sliced banana, macaroons and chocolate sauce brought our scrumptious lunch to a glorious end.
Details:
Meal for two: Dh200-Dh350
Timings: 6.30pm to 1am from Saturday to Wednesday, and 6.30pm to 2am on Thursdays and Fridays.
Call: 02-678 3334
