Dinner for Six at Vines - Dubai Creek Golf Club
Vines is a supper bar that has recently been refreshed with a tasteful modern style. White leather & glass make for a clean, fresh look and comfortable, relaxed ambience, moving on from its “other hat” as a pre-dinner bar for Aquarium restaurant, developing a persona all of its own. We went along to trial the Route 66 menu; a unique and innovative concept with some surprising twists along the way.
Route 66 is a tapas menu headlining Sushi & Maki, Oysters Fine de Claire, Catch of the Sea, Chef’s Vegetarian Journey and Carnivore Pit Stop. The name is derived from the price:
AED66pp for unlimited dishes brought to your table. Diners can select one particular category or take a culinary journey through the whole range of dishes. We followed the advice of restaurant manager, Thea Camillera, and opted for the
“Destination Combo”; sampling everything. There is an additional bonus when dining for six; a complimentary bottle of bubbly to share, and I had the perfect accompaniment to it all – five girl friends to share it with. Wall to wall windows on three sides afford a panoramic view of
The Creek, which would be an attractive back drop at any time, but is particularly pretty at night with lights twinkling. Looking out over the city, conversation turned to all the things “we used to do”; at only 13 years in Dubai, I was the newbie in this group!
Our first dishes were a range of delicious fresh sushi, which even the non-sushi fans enjoyed, followed by oysters. I have to confess I passed mine on but an enthusiast more than happily stepped in; oysters are not a food you can feel ambivalent about. For all the dishes, presentation was quirky and interesting. The Thai salmon cakes served next arrived in small glasses spiked by a pipette of Thai dressing for you to further inject to taste. More dishes followed and we all enjoyed sampling such a wide range of small portions. Particular favourites were the chicken satay with sweet chilli sauce, the beef skewers which had an unusual taste – five spice I think, but I forgot to ask – and the very light, hammour tempura. More and more came to the table, and we eventually had to call time; defeated! One final surprise was in store; a trio of sorbets – mixed fruit, cucumber and coconut cream. Delicious. By the time we got to coffee and chocolates, volcanic ash and the complexities of being stranded were long forgotten, and we’d each resolved to make home dinner parties more interesting.
An excellent place to catch up with friends, with music pleasant but not intrusive, the slow, rambling nature of the menu is perfect for a relaxing evening. Parking is never an issue of course, and access is easy across the floating bridge. We were all agreed; 5* quality without the 5*price tag. Maybe we’ll take the men next time...
