There over 9,500 restaurants and diners in Dubai, some new, some established and some that were around for a bit, closed for a while and reopened later with a fresh look. Ba Restaurant and Lounge at the Fairmont The Palm is exactly that. The high end restaurant recently reopened after being closed for some time, and has maintained it’s place as one of the city's most regarded restaurants, ranked in the top 50 restaurants in Dubai on TripAdviser and number 1 from close to 400 Chinese restaurants.
The new look restaurant is chic and elegant, with a welcoming lounge and bar area and a spaced out dining area for around 70 people, that gives each table its own intimate space. The menu offers a great choice of Chinese dishes, but also varies it up a bit more with a selection of Japanese and Thai dishes.
Our starter we opted for tiger prawn tempura and the highly recommended steamed buns, one of duck, kimchi and sweet onion sauce and the other of braised beef, chili mayo and spicy slaw. The prawns was generous for 2 to share, with a thin and crispy tempura batter coating some of the meatiest tiger prawns we have tasted. The buns stood out even more, they were light and fluffy and each with a good filling, giving the full flavours of the meats and the spicy slaw with the beef was a great complement.
For main course we went for the signature Kung Pao chicken and the honey baked cod. The combination of tender pieces of chicken, with crunchy cashews and a gentle kick from the chili, made sure the dish was full of flavour and it was clear to see why this is one of the most popular dishes at Ba. The chunks of white meat of the cod were perfectly coated in a nice sticky layer of honey adding a subtle sweet taste to the dish.
The sides of steamed jasmine rice and stir fried vegetables were great with both dishes and were more than enough for 2 people.
If you have room for desert, the ideal way to end the meal is the yuzu citrus tart with yuzu sorbet. Light, citrusy and very refreshing.
The stand out in the new look Ba are it’s very relaxed and welcoming atmosphere and the varied and affordable dishes on the menu, while maintaining the luxury feel. Expect to pay around Dhs 250 per person without drinks for 3 courses. For reservations call 04-4573457.