Armani/Ristorante: Bright and flavourful

There's a new flavour at Armani Hotel's signature restaurant, Armani/Ristorante (the "/" is a trademark of the Italian designer, who uses them wherever possible — Armani/Dubai, Armani/Dolci, Armani/Hashi).

The Italian eatery has moved away from its earlier focus on Tuscan food and gone for an exploration of broader Italian cuisine, with a modern touch that reflects the hotel's hyper-contemporary style. Well, that's what the brochure says, anyway. How did it stack up for dinner?

First up — don't worry that the food will be as minimalist as the hotel's decor. While the hotel is cavernous and beige, the food is bright, flavourful and, yes, there's plenty of it on the plate. It's modern but not prissy — but then again, how could vivacious, bubbly Italian cuisine ever be boxed in?

Case in point is a pasta dish — tagliatelle with prawns, borlotti beans and marjoram extra virgin olive oil (Dh140). Pasta and seafood fans will love this dish — wide ribbons of (what appeared to be) home-made pasta, lightly bathed in a rich tomato-seafood sauce, with a twist on texture from the creamy beans. Where other restaurants might pile on the sauce and accoutrements, here chef Alessandro Salvatico has enough confidence in his flavours to know his al dente pasta doesn't need to drown in a good, tasty sauce. The giant grilled prawn perched on top completed the magic.

Four courses

Not all the pasta dishes were a rousing success — my plateful of casoncelli, ravioli filled with foie gras (Dh130), was underwhelming. While the ravioli were large and lined up like soldiers on my plate, I found the filling dry and lacking that luscious foie gras richness.

In Italian style, we went for four courses — starter, pasta, main and dessert, kicking off with a competent plate of carpaccio (Dh130), which was topped with beef tartare, delicious little mushrooms and a tongue-quiveringly good 24-month aged Parmesan cheese. Scallops also did well, seared and unusually topped with a pistachio crust. One member of my party, on a seafood kick, skipped the pasta course in favour of a velvety fish and shellfish soup (Dh130) poured over a bed of nutty pearl barley — nice to see the homely but tasty grain put to such good use.

The seafood selection at Ristorante is superb — and it includes the Italian classic, salt-crust-baked sea bass. We, however, went for the halibut (Dh210), that super-meaty flatfish, baked in herbs with another classic combination — potatoes, artichokes and black olives; while the skin was crisp and the fish perfectly cooked, some more of the sides would have been appreciated.

On my main too, the star ingredient was copious, and the sides small, but I wouldn't have been able to fit much more in, anyway. I chose the lamb, Dh230 (the menu lists dishes by their main ingredient, and adds just a few ingredients to it to develop it into a dish). Here it came two ways — the fillet is breaded, Milanese-style (very crisp, even though it had sat under a metal dome while I waited for my dining partners to return from the rather distant WC); the thick slices of loin are roasted pink (we weren't asked about doneness). It's meaty, filling and the cannellini beans on the side are a good accompaniment. The lamb, like the prawn pasta, is a good example of the cooking here, which is unfussy and focused on key ingredients, classic combinations and clean presentation.

Please, do no miss the dessert page. Short (just five dishes) but beautifully complex. Consider La Sfera (the Sphere), a pearescent globe of wafer-thin sugar, filled with a violet creme brulee, a vanilla cream and a blackcurrant sorbet. It's incredible, and worth every dirham (Dh100).

And a shout out to Ristorante's staff — the team are friendly yet super-professional.

Where: Armani/RistoranteArmani Hotel, Burj Khalifa

Call: 04-8883444

Decor: Curvy bistro

Atmosphere: Where beautiful people come to eat

Don't miss: The stunning desserts, prawn tagliatelle, lamb two ways

Armani/Ristorante is two years old

Join Chef Alessandro and the team for an exclusive menu of contemporary Italian delights to celebrate Armani/Ristorante's second anniversary.

Enjoy a memorable culinary journey with an inspired four-course menu.

Until Saturday, 7pm-11.30pm; Dh400 per person or Dh650 including paired vintages. For reservations, call 04-8883444 or e-mail: restaurant.reservations@armanihotels.com.