Review: Hunter and Barrel
We paid a visit to this popular steakhouse’s third venue in UAE…
When it comes to dining options in Mirdif, it may take a couple of head-scratching moments to come up with a decent-sized list. But with the opening of Hunter and Barrel, the decision on ‘Where to dine in Mirdif’ is made much easier.
It was summer when we had our lunch reservations at the award-winning steakhouse, so we had to dine indoors away from the heat. Not that we were complaining though – the restaurant’s interiors were absolutely beautiful. If you’ve dined at the restaurant’s other two branches in Vida Emirates Hills or in the capital at Yas Bay Waterfront, the space will look familiar, without looking repetitive.
Ink blue plush seatings, the chic bar and the unique ornaments dotted around the restaurant caught our eye and took up part of the conversation on and off during lunch.
The menu is elaborate but we eventually opted for the Hunter’s sharing platter (Dhs168) to start which comes with open-fire prawns, chicken wings, a three cheese dip and spicy calamari.
The dynamite prawn melted in our mouths and we relished the cheese dip with the hot bread. We also placed an order for the handcrafted burrata (Dhs75). It’s fresh and comes with a flavoursome dressing of aged pesto sauce and cherry tomatoes.
For mains, we ordered the flame-grilled chicken (Dhs105) . It comes marinated in lemon, herb and garlic with roasted potato wedges on the side. It’s well cooked and had grill markings which made for great aesthetics, but we were missing that overall flavour punch. Our next mains were the slow-cooked beef ribs (Dhs260) served with chunky chips. The meat fell off the bones which impressed, but we finished off with a mental note to opt for the fire-grilled steak for our next visit – the main reason the restaurant has a number of awards.
For dessert, we picked the chocolate mi-cuit (Dhs45) – a molten half-baked chocolate cake – with vanilla bean ice cream. After getting our instagrammable video of the chocolate cake oozing molten chocolate, we dug in. The different temperatures of the hot chocolate with the ice cream and different textures were just what we needed after our savoury journey thus far and each bite made our palates sing.
We thought dessert couldn’t get any better than this, but the baked pain perdu (Dhs50) proved us wrong. The dish comes with brioche bread and salted caramel sauce and vanilla ice cream. A great dessert that we would solely return to the restaurant for. The spongey bread had an almost cake-like texture and tasted heavenly with the caramel sauce and ice cream with hints of cinnamon.
For Mirdif dwellers, Hunter and Barrel is a brilliant addition to the dining scene in the residential area. Paired with its extensive beverage list, it will also make a great spot for drinks with family and friends. During the cooler months, we do hope to return taking up a table on the balcony to try that award-winning steak out.
Hunter and Barrel, Millennium Place, Mirdif Hills Ave, 78th Street, Dubai, Tel: (0)4 268 6488. hunterandbarrel.ae
Images: Hunter and Barrel