There is no menu – the chef selects all of your dishes…

It’s an exciting time for lovers of Japanese cuisine in Dubai. Just last week, celebrity chef Masaharu Morimoto opened his first Dubai restaurant in the Renaissance Downtown Hotel. And an authentic kaiseki restaurant recently opened in Dubai Opera.

Here’s another one to add to your foodie bucket list, fellow Japan fans. A tiny restaurant called Hōseki – which means “gemstone” in Japanese – is now open at the Bulgari Resort Dubai on Jumeira Bay.

How small? Well, it only has nine seats, so you can expect an exclusive experience (there is also a private dining room which hosts up to 12 guests). The restaurant is located on the fourth floor of the hotel, and you’ll arrive at a special area called the tokonoma.

Japanese hostesses dressed in traditional kimono will welcome you here, and guide you to the open counter, which looks like it has some pretty sensational views.

Hōseki is also unique in that it doesn’t have a menu – instead, Chef Masahiro Sugiyama offers a two-hour omakase experience, which translates to “I’ll leave it up to you”. Using seasonal ingredients imported direct from Japan, Chef Sugiyama selects all the dishes for you, taking guests on a one-of-a-kind culinary journey.

The restaurant is open for lunch and dinner five days a week (it closes on Sundays and Mondays), and as you can expect, reservations are required for this little gem.

Hōseki, Bulgari Resort Dubai, Jumeira Bay. Tuesday to Saturday, 12.30pm to 3.30pm, 6.30pm to midnight. Tel: (04) 777 5307. More info on website.

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