Folly, mark deux…

Please note, images used are of the old Folly.

Earlier this year, Dubai’s gastronomes waved a teary goodbye to beloved Gates Hospitality icon, Folly.

Housed in the gilded labyrinth of Madinat Jumeirah, this refined restaurant and rooftop bar – with extraordinarily beautiful sundowner views – served up a sophisticated menu of modern culinary flair.

La Folly

In an open letter shared with Caterer Middle East, chief executive of Gates Hospitality – the parent company behind Folly – Naim Maadad accredited the closure to the evolving and maturing dining scene in Dubai. While recognising that both restaurants ‘set a benchmark’ for homegrown hospitality brands back in 2017 when they opened, he also acknowledged that, “what residents and visitors to Dubai may have wanted seven, five, or even two years ago, isn’t necessarily what they want today.”

But it’s not all bad news. In the letter, Maadad explained that Gates is still considering what the future of the brands could look like, adding that the group is ‘excited for what’s to come’ in the next chapter.

And now we know what that next chapter looks like. The next phase in the evolution of Folly.

Folly 2.0

Details on Folly Brasserie are still pretty thin on the ground, with more broad explanatort brushstrokes expected soon.

For now, we have confirmation of the location – Address Montgomerie Hotel, Emirates Hills. And that’s pretty much it.

We can speculate that it’s taking the place of the now-closed, The Orangery. We can reasonably assume that the descriptive addition of Brasserie means a (at least in part) European menu – in the French dining hall style, with a grand central bar.

But your guess is as good as ours. More news on this as we get it.

Images: What’s On archive