Inside Sean Connolly at Dubai Opera. Photo by Ashleigh Stewart
Inside Sean Connolly at Dubai Opera. Photo by Ashleigh Stewart
Inside Sean Connolly at Dubai Opera. Photo by Ashleigh Stewart
Inside Sean Connolly at Dubai Opera. Photo by Ashleigh Stewart

Restaurant review: Sean Connolly at Dubai Opera


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Pizza.

It’s not something you’d envisage tucking in to, dressed in your best garb before a show at one of the city’s most prestigious venues, but thanks to the brand-new wood-fired pizza oven in Dubai Opera, it’s now certainly a reality. That pizza oven also happens to be housed within Sean Connolly at Dubai Opera, the Downtown Dubai landmark’s first restaurant.

The award-winning chef and foster father of the Antipodean culinary scene hosted The National for a glimpse on what's on offer come September 1, when the eatery throws open its doors.

The Yorkshire-born chef, who is now based in Australia, is on hand for the opening, and is eager to show off his new masterpiece, which has been over a year in the making.

But first: pizza.

Connolly’s concept isn’t the highbrow, fine-dining concept you’d expect of its location. The setting certainly evokes an air of just-don’t-show-me-the-price-list, but Connolly is quick to insist that this is no ostentatious dining experience. While he shirks the word “affordable”, not just because the price list hasn’t been finalised yet, he says he is trying to price the restaurant in a way that those in the surrounding apartments can pop in for dinner, too.

This is where the pizza comes in. In 90 seconds, you’ve got yourself a piping hot slice of pie — which could soon be available during intermission. They’re “working on that”, Connolly tells us.

Wood fired garlic and onion pizza, served with ricotta, honey and pine nuts. Photo by Ashleigh Stewart
Wood fired garlic and onion pizza, served with ricotta, honey and pine nuts. Photo by Ashleigh Stewart

This is the “approachable” restaurant they had created, he said — where you can come for a bite of pizza and a Pinot, or splash out on oysters and a slab of A-grade steak.

Not one for an edible gas here or an experiment in molecular gastronomy there, Connolly labels his cooking as “homestyle”, with a bit more depth.

“You don’t want to come out for a list of canapés. It’s literally just hearty food,” he says.

But let’s not forget the main draw.

Connolly is self-confessed “mad” on oysters — he serves up to 75,000 a month in his outposts Down Under — so mad, in fact, that’s he’s modelled his restaurant after one.

The colour scheme brings in plenty of greys and mossy greens, reflecting the exterior of the bivalve, and pinks and creams for the interior.

The restaurant itself is an expansive, glittering setting — adorned with sea-themed art installations and views out over the twinkling lights of Downtown Dubai. The outdoor terrace looks set to be New Year’s Eve’s most sought-after table setting.

Indoors, the sweeping 1,115-square-metre space seats about 340 guests among tables and banquettes, and has two bar counters, a chef’s table, private dining room, and plenty of nooks for intimacy.

His star-studded staff are almost like a who’s who of Dubai’s most celebrated restaurants; we note at least a couple of former friendly faces from The Lighthouse and La Serre. But he’s also brought several of his own men across with him; the head chef and general manager are both Kiwi imports.

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But Connolly is a man who found fame thanks to his simple, yet consummate protein-driven offerings, so obviously the steak and seafood is what we’ve come for.

Connolly’s mantra of fresh produce and clean flavours comes to light in his small dishes; think ceviche of scallop, steak tartare and prawn sashimi, with local products worked in to a strawberry, tomato, watermelon and lemon labneh salad — and, most importantly, not a waft of dry ice in sight.

In Dubai, it’s rare to happen upon a plate without intricate decoration or inedible gimmick, yet it’s not even a concept worth discussing with Connolly.

Australian grain-fed T-bone; a star attraction of the main course line-up. Courtesy Ashleigh Stewart
Australian grain-fed T-bone; a star attraction of the main course line-up. Courtesy Ashleigh Stewart

“What you’ll find with my food is there’s very little [nonsense]. We don’t put edible flowers or any herbs on there that don’t deserve to be on there for a particular reason.

“The less we do the better it tastes.”

Main courses come in the form of slow-cooked New Zealand lamb with raspberry vinaigrette and star anise — the latter being a favoured ingredient for Connolly — duck-fat chips, and a monstrous grain-fed Australian T-bone; two throwbacks to the environments where his culinary prowess has thrived. A final accompaniment is a family tribute: “Grandma’s carrots, cooked within an inch of their life — five minutes later and they'll be soup.”

Connolly is a man who doesn't mince his words — not quite at the Gordon Ramsay end of the spectrum, but he's definitely no Pete Evans either. He’s his own celebrity chef, and is as laid-back and passionate as they come, with a mean comedic streak. He’s as happy discussing the Chardonnay vinaigrette as he is his latest must-views on Netflix, and won’t hesitate to recommend the Mighty Boosh to a keen ear.

With an Australian flag stitched on to the left arm of his chef’s jacket, it’s clear how much Connolly wants to bring an essence of his adopted home to Dubai. He insists he won’t be a “fly-in, fly-out chef”, and is spending a month here for the opening, before returning at least once a month for the first six months,

He may not know exactly how to describe the food on offer, but he seemed to like a term coined by a dinner guest commenting on its simplicity and smoothness.

“Yes, jazz food! Can we hashtag that? It's jazz food now.”

Company profile

Name: Oulo.com

Founder: Kamal Nazha

Based: Dubai

Founded: 2020

Number of employees: 5

Sector: Technology

Funding: $450,000

Key facilities
  • Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
  • Premier League-standard football pitch
  • 400m Olympic running track
  • NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
  • 600-seat auditorium
  • Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
  • An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
  • Specialist robotics and science laboratories
  • AR and VR-enabled learning centres
  • Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
Lexus LX700h specs

Engine: 3.4-litre twin-turbo V6 plus supplementary electric motor

Power: 464hp at 5,200rpm

Torque: 790Nm from 2,000-3,600rpm

Transmission: 10-speed auto

Fuel consumption: 11.7L/100km

On sale: Now

Price: From Dh590,000

The five pillars of Islam

1. Fasting 

2. Prayer 

3. Hajj 

4. Shahada 

5. Zakat 

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%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EDirector%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3ELiz%20Garbus%26nbsp%3B%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EStars%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Duke%20and%20Duchess%20of%20Sussex%0D%3Cbr%3E%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ERating%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E3%2F5%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Mamo 

 Year it started: 2019 Founders: Imad Gharazeddine, Asim Janjua

 Based: Dubai, UAE

 Number of employees: 28

 Sector: Financial services

 Investment: $9.5m

 Funding stage: Pre-Series A Investors: Global Ventures, GFC, 4DX Ventures, AlRajhi Partners, Olive Tree Capital, and prominent Silicon Valley investors. 

 
The specs

Engine: 5.0-litre supercharged V8

Transmission: Eight-speed auto

Power: 575bhp

Torque: 700Nm

Price: Dh554,000

On sale: now

Company Profile

Founders: Tamara Hachem and Yazid Erman
Based: Dubai
Launched: September 2019
Sector: health technology
Stage: seed
Investors: Oman Technology Fund, angel investor and grants from Sharjah's Sheraa and Ma'an Abu Dhabi

The Word for Woman is Wilderness
Abi Andrews, Serpent’s Tail

Defence review at a glance

• Increase defence spending to 2.5% of GDP by 2027 but given “turbulent times it may be necessary to go faster”

• Prioritise a shift towards working with AI and autonomous systems

• Invest in the resilience of military space systems.

• Number of active reserves should be increased by 20%

• More F-35 fighter jets required in the next decade

• New “hybrid Navy” with AUKUS submarines and autonomous vessels

SPAIN SQUAD

Goalkeepers Simon (Athletic Bilbao), De Gea (Manchester United), Sanchez (Brighton)

Defenders Gaya (Valencia), Alba (Barcelona), P Torres (Villarreal), Laporte (Manchester City), Garcia (Manchester City), D Llorente (Leeds), Azpilicueta (Chelsea)

Midfielders Busquets (Barcelona), Rodri (Manchester City), Pedri (Barcelona), Thiago (Liverpool), Koke (Atletico Madrid), Ruiz (Napoli), M Llorente (Atletico Madrid)

Forwards: Olmo (RB Leipzig), Oyarzabal (Real Sociedad), Morata (Juventus), Moreno (Villarreal), F Torres (Manchester City), Traore (Wolves), Sarabia (PSG)

The biog

Name: Younis Al Balooshi

Nationality: Emirati

Education: Doctorate degree in forensic medicine at the University of Bonn

Hobbies: Drawing and reading books about graphic design

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Fourth-round clashes for British players

- Andy Murray (1) v Benoit Paire, Centre Court (not before 4pm)

- Johanna Konta (6) v Caroline Garcia (21), Court 1 (4pm)

Founders: Abdulmajeed Alsukhan, Turki Bin Zarah and Abdulmohsen Albabtain.

Based: Riyadh

Offices: UAE, Vietnam and Germany

Founded: September, 2020

Number of employees: 70

Sector: FinTech, online payment solutions

Funding to date: $116m in two funding rounds  

Investors: Checkout.com, Impact46, Vision Ventures, Wealth Well, Seedra, Khwarizmi, Hala Ventures, Nama Ventures and family offices

The specs

Engine: 1.6-litre 4-cyl turbo

Power: 217hp at 5,750rpm

Torque: 300Nm at 1,900rpm

Transmission: eight-speed auto

Price: from Dh130,000

On sale: now

Sole survivors
  • Cecelia Crocker was on board Northwest Airlines Flight 255 in 1987 when it crashed in Detroit, killing 154 people, including her parents and brother. The plane had hit a light pole on take off
  • George Lamson Jr, from Minnesota, was on a Galaxy Airlines flight that crashed in Reno in 1985, killing 68 people. His entire seat was launched out of the plane
  • Bahia Bakari, then 12, survived when a Yemenia Airways flight crashed near the Comoros in 2009, killing 152. She was found clinging to wreckage after floating in the ocean for 13 hours.
  • Jim Polehinke was the co-pilot and sole survivor of a 2006 Comair flight that crashed in Lexington, Kentucky, killing 49.

Leap of Faith

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Test

Director: S Sashikanth

Cast: Nayanthara, Siddharth, Meera Jasmine, R Madhavan

Star rating: 2/5