La dolce vita, or the sweet life, is an Italian recipe perfected over centuries.
While the ingredients used differ from person to person, there are overarching tastes that are abided by most: making time to do nothing, chatting with loved ones at length and doing so, preferably, over good food.
In Dubai’s flourishing Palm West Beach, there’s a newcomer putting this ethos firmly on the menu. Loren Ristorante is earning plaudits and The National went along to find out why.
Where to sit, what to expect
During our early March visit, the restaurant is making the most of the coastal breeze that flows gently through the city. The venue is on the first floor of The Club, directly behind Fairmont The Palm, and straddles an indoor-outdoor setting. There’s a semi-open kitchen, meaning you can see the chefs, but any shouting is stifled by the glass wall that separates them from diners, plus a seafood counter displaying different catches of the day and a cabinet where meats are being dry aged.
When we enter, we’re greeted like old friends by staff. There are quaint tables, large ones perfect for banquets, booths and everything in between, plus spots on the gorgeous terrace. The interior is beautiful, with a distinct Amalfi Coast feel — all whites and Italian marble, while the palm frond fans that waft on brass mechanisms above will be familiar to anyone who’s visited the original Raffles in Singapore (without the monkey nut shells crunching under shoes, sadly). The floor-to-ceiling folding doors welcome the outdoors in with open arms, serving up sumptuous views of the ocean and the yachts bobbing in the nearby harbour as sounds of a jazz saxophonist from a nearby bar flow in.
There’s an, dare I say, “authentic” European feel about the place and it’s packed, so book ahead.
The menu
It’s classic Italian, of course, with a playful undertone. And, there’s plenty of it, which typically sparks fears of chefs trying to do too much instead of focusing on finessing a few. However, once dishes start flowing out, any reservations are immediately quashed.
Many of the dishes are finished tableside, for a touch of theatre, and celebrate some of the finest ingredients around — oysters, caviar, truffle Wagyu, lobster et al. We entrust staff to serve a selection of the chef’s favourites, meaning less time scrutinising the busy menu and more time spent with eyes closed basking in the breeze.
The fiori di zucca al tartufo, or stuffed courgette flowers; piadina Loren, or house pizza; and manzo in tartare, or beef tartare, get the evening under way.
The first is stuffed with ricotta, truffles and green pea puree before being coated and deep fried — it's like posh arancini elevated by simple elegance. The pizza is anything but conventional Italian. The base is flatter than a cracker and 10 times crispier, the tomato base is replaced by avocado puree and the salami has made way for tuna carpaccio. It’s finished with rocket and diced tomatoes, and it blows away any misconceptions about the cuisine being policed by fuddy-duddy traditionalists — I can practically hear my nonna crying into her bruschetta from here as she insists it’s the only food that should be crispy. That and biscotti.
Continuing the inventive reboot, the beef tartare is served on a board with four humble burger buns and sauces — for diners to build their own decadent burgers. They’re engaging, utterly delicious and the best version of recipe tweaks, and if one day McDonald’s roll out the McTartare I’ll be first in line.
Our first main goes international and blends Scottish salmon, chickpea puree, teeny diced pickled vegetables and a few teaspoons of beetroot risotto (although they’re actually pasta). The tortelli Loren, meanwhile, are well-executed pasta parcels stuffed with burrata and pistachio and finished with a creamy lemon sauce.
The puddings are fun, if not plentiful. Our waiter confesses he’s a diehard dessert diner and picks his favourites for us.
The tiramisu is a deep bowl of pillowy soft cream and sponge, finished with cocoa powder and a cream-stuffed chocolate cigar. The vanilla panna cotta is accompanied by a strawberry mousse encased in a shell in the shape of the fruit itself, as is the lemon equivalent, which must be cut off a tree the waiter brings over with a giant pair of scissors. The Loren No5 is a soaked brioche bun made to be turned into ice cream sandwiches.
And the pistachio gelato is better than what you’ll find in Noto, the birthplace of the ubiquitous Sicilian dessert. No debate. It’s a fine way to end an evening — although four desserts after an Italian feast gives new meaning to the sweet life, after all.
Standout dish
As much as there's the technical ability to deftly make pasta, cleverness with the tartare or decadence with many ingredients here, it's the simple things that encapsulate la dolce vita. And, with that in mind, a bowl of the knockout pistachio ice cream on the terrace (while the good weather lasts) at sunset is unbeatable.
Price point and contact information
Antipasti range from Dh40 to Dh140; pastas and salads range from Dh65 to Dh155; mains range from Dh145 to Dh950 and desserts range from Dh25 to Dh140.
Loren is open Sunday to Thursday, noon to midnight; Friday and Saturday noon to 1am. Reservations can be made by contacting 04 557 8293 or visiting lorenristorantedubai.com.
This review was conducted at the invitation of the restaurant
