Steaks on fire at Fire & Ice

I've been on a truffle hunt recently. Not literally — although at this time of year, it's inevitable that my thoughts turn to Europe, where, amidst crisp autumn days, white truffle season is now at its peak. A morning spent at a Parisian outdoor market bursting with seasonal produce would be a blissful escape from the relentless sunshine here, especially if it was followed by a lunch featuring a plateful of heady, earth truffles shaved over a bowl of steaming pasta.

Yet here we are, still in the midst of what anywhere else would be called summer. But with the influx of some knowledgable chefs and decent suppliers, we can now enjoy some of the best produce in the world, including truffles. They've been popping up on menus around town, and when I heard that the Raffles' Fire & Ice restaurant had changed tack and become a steakhouse, a quick glance at the menu confirmed it had to be next on my list of must-do restaurants: they have black-truffle crushed potato.

Fire & Ice's menu has other attractions — in fact attraction seems to be the name of the game in a restaurant where starters are "initial flirtations", mains are an "affair" and it all ends with dessert, aka "the climax". By all accounts, Fire & Ice — with its dark brickwork and jumping flames — is a date venue.

It's the classics, sexed up, but they do occasionally need a little work. But what relationship doesn't? So the guacamole, described on the menu as "a mountain" (which I hoped it would be at Dh55 a pop) needs a little more TLC: it's more of a small bowlful, and contained far too much lemon juice.

Opposites attract

A far more successful flirtation came in the form of scallops — plump and seared, served with crisp-melting piles of duck confit on the side. The salty, fatty duck meat and crunchy skin was the perfect foil for the sea-sweet scallop, which always benefits from a pairing with something meaty. Opposites attract, as they say.

The main attraction, of course, is the steaks — and their accompanying truffle potato. There are plenty of options steakwise, although I'm still not seeing any of those tasty, chewy hanger steaks anywhere — can someone get onto that, please? For a change, we went for the ribeye on the bone and a steak tartare. The tartare was minutely chopped and perfectly seasoned. And the chips — which since they are described as non-vegetarian, must be cooked in duck fat — are sublime.

The rib eye was also wonderful, fulfilling the adage that meat next to the bone always tastes sweeter. It's char-grilled for extra flavour and satisfyingly meaty. Team it with a fragrant bearnaise sauce, and go ahead and squish the chips in the saucy juices.

I'm sure by now you're all wondering how my blind date with the truffled potatoes went. Let me just say that simplicity can never be overrated. How can a dish with one of the world's most expensive ingredients be simple, you ask? Well, it only has three ingredients: boiled, floury potato, only barely mashed so there's plenty of fluffy, chunky texture, wads and wads of butter, and a liberal shaving of unmistakable, pungent, almost cheese-like truffle. That's it. Love at first bite.

Some people have a passionate obsession with truffles, others with dessert. I'm from the former group, and suffer an almost debilitating indecisiveness when faced with dessert options. Luckily, Fire & Ice lets you pick three mini versions of their desserts for a composite plate. The hit was, without a doubt, the steamed treacle pudding — not too sweet and just the right side of cloying.

Fire & Ice

• Where: Raffles, Dubai: 04-324 8888.
• Must-have: Seared scallops, ribeye steak, crushed potato with black truffle.
• Décor: New-York-style exposed brickwork.
• Ambiance: The live jazz band keeps it smooth and relaxed
• Rating: Four forks
• Total bill: Dh690 for two, not including beverages.