Dubai: Of late, Dubai has become a veritable warren of top notch Italian restaurants. It came as no surprise therefore when the city was chosen to host the fifth edition of recent Italian World Cuisine Summit held here earlier this month. Pity if you missed it because 15 Italian guest master chefs with a total of over 25 Michelin stars had specially flown in for the event to cast their culinary spell on food connoisseurs in town.
Fourteen top notch Dubai restaurants took part in the unique four-day celebration of Italian food, drink, lifestyle fashion and design. Among them was Le Meridien’s Casa Mia, which marked its 20th anniversary on November 13. When it comes to the pleasures of authentic Italian dining, I reckon it is truly a cut above the rest.
The service is impeccable without being intrusive and the food is exceptionally good.
From the moment I entered this stylist eatery in the hotel’s village terrace, we knew it would be a memorable experience.
Executive chef Maurizio Lazzarin and guest master chef Graziano Prest of Michelin star restaurant Tivoli let their hands do the talking as they took me to an unforgettable gastronomic journey.
From the antipasti section, they got me thin yellow tuna fin slices topped with lime dressing and oriental salad (Dh80) and a fried egg sitting on a spinach and cheese fondue bed with the much sought after white truffles on the side (Dh160). I am told about 50 kg of white truffes worth a staggering Dh1.2 million was brought in for the summit.
Next up was a Gnocchi de patate rosolati con seppie e bottarga roa (Dh100), a perfectly pan fried pasta dish with cuttlefish and Bottarga roe, a salted, cured fish roe that originates from Sardinia and Sicily and is famously known as a poor man’s caviar. The gnocchi (pronounced N’YAW-kee) are essentially potato dumplings. Not exclusive to Italy, they have long history in classic European cuisine and make for good pasta because of their light, pillowy texture. I quite liked it. A confit duck leg (Dh160) topped with a sprig of rosemary was also wolfed with equal relish.
I rounded the meal with Dessert Dolomiti (Dh45) a mound of white chocolate mousse with vertically mounted slices of meringue to recreate Alps mountains, pistachio for the grass and cocoa for the soil, all sprinkled with berries and flowers. Casa Mia has both indoor and outdoor seating options, but now that the weather is just about perfect for al fresco dining we suggest you take advantage out the restaurant’ outdoor patio area. And yes, make reservations in advance to avoid disappointments.
We bet after this review, a lot of people would be trooping out there over the weekend.
Dinner for two: Dh450 approximately
Location: Village Terrace, Le Meridien Airport Road, Garhoud
Call: 04-217 0000
We recommend: Deep-fried egg in corn crust, Potato gnocchi with cuttlefish
