In its first year of opening, Fairmont The Palm is looking to impress with its maiden iftar menu, and for freshness and, most especially, Arabic desserts, it is a true treasure.

Run from the hotel’s Flow Kitchen, the buffet-style iftar specialises in food from Gulf countries, but it also has plenty of cuisine from Asia and Europe.

“We tried to give everyone a traditional experience,” said John Cordeaux, executive chef.

“In particular the pastries are very small with fine details and are made with a lot of skill and dexterity.” But more, much more, of those sweets later!

The inviting food stations are set against the warmth of the flame-fired manakeesh station, a saj and a live shawarma stations (veal shawarma makes a welcome change). There are 16 cold starters on offer including a wide range of mezze from Lebanon and Syria. For starters, the pea and goat cheese soup was a winning combination; light and flavoursome.

Senior Arabic chef Rober Salloum brings his Syrian expertise and he delights particularly in the cheese station where soft feta rolls are served with olives and sesame seeds and complemented with fig jam, quince and eggplant and pumpkin preserves. “It’s Turkish and Syrian style,” he explained.

There’s a fresh juice station with local juices such as tamarind and jellab, where dates, grape molasses and rose water work their potent magic.

Ten main courses include chicken mouskhan, samak tajen, lamb majboos, a wonderful potato gratin with fennel and a tasty and crisp lamb in oyster sauce dish that gives a nod to the opening of the hotel’s Chinese restaurant, Ba, in September. An Emirati-style ouzi is centrepiece here and was of particular interest to diners.

But now to those desserts! The classic dessert counter offers fresh mango gateau, strawberry-lemon tart, triple chocolate cake and Arabic rice pudding (as well as homemade ice cream, pancakes and a wide fresh fruit selection).

But the Arabic sweets are a true feast for the senses. Chef Anas Al Khiami, chef de partie, Arabic Pastry, brings the amazingly intricate and beautiful sweets he first learned to craft in his father’s pastry shop in Damascus to Dubai.

Piled high are plates of everything from katayef with cream, walnut or strawberries, halawet al jibn, znoud al sett, basbousa and balah al sham, to my new favourite eat, chocolate baklava (one is not enough!), tamreya, aish al saraya, awamat and more. Seventeen different sweets of which you will want to taste each and every one. Come prepared!

Our only gripe was the rather short time frame to enjoy the service, to eat and to linger! Not much time to mull over a coffee... or go back for more chocolate baklava.

Where: Flow Kitchen, Fairmont, The Palm.

Price: Dh175 per person, includes juices and water. Dh10 from each iftar goes towards a choice of three local charities (you choose!)

Timing: From sunset to 8.30pm.