{"id":2000,"date":"2016-12-20T00:39:13","date_gmt":"2016-12-20T00:39:13","guid":{"rendered":""},"modified":"2016-12-20T00:39:13","modified_gmt":"2016-12-20T00:39:13","slug":"is-it-an-enigma","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lovin.co\/dubai\/en\/lifestyle\/reviews\/posh\/is-it-an-enigma\/","title":{"rendered":"Is it an Enigma?"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Enigma restaurant is exactly as the name suggests;\u00a0inexplicable and puzzling, but\u00a0in the most fascinating and wonderfully fun sort of way. The word ‘enigma’ comes from latin origins,\u00a0meaning\u00a0to speak in riddles…and you feel those words resonate as you tuck into one bizzarre and beautiful course after another.\u00a0<\/p>\n

This not your run of the mill venue,\u00a0from the cuisine to the concept of the meal, it has a depth\u00a0of confusion that will leave you with much to ponder. Enigma attempts to explore your senses and tell a story through gastronomy…and succeeds.<\/p>\n

The first chef:\u00a0Quique Dacosta and The Untold Story<\/h3>\n

Enigma has a different head chef every four months, each with a new dinner concept. It opened in January of this year with 3-star Michelin chef Quique Dacosta. His concept is called,\u00a0‘The Vanguard, The Untold Story’. Each season, there are 54 evenings of the same experience, until it\u2019s time for the next one. Your journey starts with the dinner reservation, after which\u00a0you receive\u00a0a video, which is\u00a0your introduction to\u00a0the experience.<\/p>\n

Chef Dacosta said:\u00a0“Many of us chefs will go through Enigma, each one of us with our own style and story to tell. Each one of us will leave a mark in the same place and on the palette of many Dubai residents and visitors seeking out unique experiences in the city.”<\/p>\n

Quique Dacosta<\/h4>\n<\/p>\n

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A post shared by Enigma, Palazzo Versace Dubai (@enigmadxb)<\/a> on

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The Vanguard<\/h3>\n

Quique Dacosta has created a story called The Vanguard, each\u00a0dish\u00a0stems from a moment in his life in his native Spain. Like a retrospective exhibition of his career, but told through food rather than paintings. This is how our story unfolded…<\/p>\n

The arrival…<\/h3>\n

We entered into a\u00a0small room with low ceilings, there were\u00a0no\u00a0more than a dozen tables in the dimly lit room. There was nothing on our\u00a0square wooden table;\u00a0no cutlery, no napkins, nothing. A DJ\u00a0played electronic music in the centre of the room, however he almost blended into the walls.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

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A post shared by Palazzo Versace Dubai (@palazzoversacedubai)<\/a> on

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The starters<\/h3>\n

Different waiters\u00a0swarmed over our table,\u00a0bringing a range\u00a0of starters, all of which were edible despite their appearance. There was\u00a0smoke coming from\u00a0the ‘charcoal’ which was\u00a0sitting\u00a0delicately on top of a small personal grill…We were encouraged to pick it up and eat it with our fingers. A plate of stones was next on the menu;\u00a0one was a rich chocolate and cheese delight, but\u00a0we had to be sure to choose the right one…and though the seaweed was edible, the rocks it sat upon were not.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Seaweed<\/h4>\n

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Stones<\/h4>\n

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Charcoal<\/h4>\n

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Is it actually charcoal?<\/h4>\n<\/p>\n

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A post shared by Richard FitzGerald (@fitzyrichard)<\/a> on

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Can we actually eat this rose?<\/h4>\n<\/p>\n

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A post shared by Casey (@cfitzfitz)<\/a> on

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The main courses…<\/h3>\n

The forest was presented\u00a0engulfed in a\u00a0white mist. The dish itself was a mixture of vegetables,\u00a0as if you were eating them from the ground itself. There was a seafood dish with hidden squid, and another with prawns that looked like an art canvas. There\u00a0was a delectable elderflower\u00a0foie gras dish with fresh brioche, a dish originally created by the chef 15 years ago, but\u00a0which he has\u00a0barely changed since.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Finally,\u00a0a rice and duck dish.\u00a0The\u00a0‘ash’ (black and white truffle) shaved\u00a0on top was\u00a0to represent\u00a0a\u00a0memory for Dacosta of the\u00a0burnt rice fields near his home\u00a0growing up. Each dish told a similar story and was\u00a0presented in it’s\u00a0own unique and truly memorable way.<\/p>\n

The forest<\/h4>\n

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Art on a plate<\/h4>\n

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Squid under a stone<\/h4>\n

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Foie gras<\/h4>\n

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Rice &\u00a0Duck<\/h4>\n

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This is how the forest was presented…<\/h4>\n<\/p>\n

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A post shared by Yunus Emre Ayd\u0131n (@yunus__emre__aydin)<\/a> on

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Making the rice<\/h4>\n<\/p>\n

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The dessert…<\/h3>\n

We were served\u00a0two dishes;\u00a0one lemon and egg yolk dessert, a hard shell on the outside and soft creamy lemon flavour on the inside \u2013\u00a0the balance of acidity and sweetness here was light on the palette, much needed after so many courses. The second\u00a0dessert was a\u00a0tiny chocolate delight; we were recommend to take this on the terrace outside with some coffees. It was\u00a0shaped\u00a0like an\u00a0acorn fallen\u00a0from a tree;\u00a0made with rich Valrhona chocolate and vanilla,\u00a0it was an exquisite\u00a0mouthful to end our ‘vanguard’ journey.\u00a0<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

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A post shared by Enigma, Palazzo Versace Dubai (@enigmadxb)<\/a> on

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The departure<\/h3>\n

As a parting gift, we were given an illustration of the evening, each of the symbols in the drawing representing a different element of the journey.<\/p>\n

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What\u2019s next<\/h3>\n

The next chef will start\u00a0on the 12th of April, and\u00a0has been announced as Nordic chef\u00a0Bj\u00f6rn Frantz\u00e9n.\u00a0<\/p>\n

The cost of the evening is a set price. AED 750\u00a0weekdays per person, and AED 850 for weekends.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

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A post shared by Enigma, Palazzo Versace Dubai (@enigmadxb)<\/a> on

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Palazzo Versace<\/h3>\n

It\u2019s impossible to write about Enigma without talking about it\u2019s location. Situated in the new Palazzo Versace in Dubai Creek, it is an\u00a0extremely lavish spot. The architecture is reminiscent of a\u00a015th century Roman palace. These photos barely do it justice…<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

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Now read:\u00a0Hakkasan Terrace: an urban sanctuary in the heart of Dubai<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Enigma restaurant is exactly as the name suggests;\u00a0inexplicable and puzzling, but\u00a0in the most fascinating and wonderfully fun sort of way. The word ‘enigma’ comes from latin origins,\u00a0meaning\u00a0to speak in riddles…and you feel those words resonate as you tuck into one bizzarre and beautiful course after another.\u00a0 This not your run of the mill venue,\u00a0from the … ","protected":false},"author":451,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[56,67],"tags":[],"acf":{"legacy_image":"https:\/\/cloud.lovindubai.com\/images\/uploads\/2016\/03\/_relatedEntryImage2x\/Screenshot-2016-03-15-21.05.43.png?mtime=20160315210605","legacy_full_image":"https:\/\/cloud.lovindubai.com\/images\/uploads\/2016\/03\/_featuredImage\/Screenshot-2016-03-15-21.05.43.png?mtime=20160315210605 880w","legacy_meta_tags":"Is it an Enigma? - Lovin Dubai<\/title><meta name=\"description\" content=\"Enigma restaurant is exactly as the name suggests; inexplicable and puzzling, but in the most fascinating and wonderfully fun sort of way. The word &#039;enigma&#039; comes from latin origins, meaning to speak in riddles.\">\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/lovindubai.com\/reviews\/posh\/is-it-an-enigma\">\n<!-- <link rel=\"amphtml\" href=\"https:\/\/lovindubai.com\/reviews\/posh\/is-it-an-enigma\/amp\">\n --><meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Is it an Enigma?\">\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\">\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/lovindubai.com\/reviews\/posh\/is-it-an-enigma\">\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"We check out Palazzo Versace's weird and wonderful eatery\">\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/cloud.lovindubai.com\/images\/uploads\/2016\/03\/Screenshot-2016-03-15-21.05.43.png?mtime=20160315210605\">\n<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1164\">\n<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"966\">\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"photo\">\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"lovindubai\">\n<meta name=\"twitter:title\" content=\"Is it an Enigma?\">\n<meta name=\"twitter:creator\" content=\"fitzyrichard\">\n<meta name=\"twitter:description\" content=\" Enigma restaurant is exactly as the name suggests; inexplicable and puzzling, but in the most fascinating and wonderfully fun sort of way. The word 'enigma' comes from latin origins, meaning to speak in riddles.\n\">\n<meta name=\"twitter:url\" content=\"https:\/\/lovindubai.com\/reviews\/posh\/is-it-an-enigma\">\n<meta name=\"twitter:image\" content=\"https:\/\/cloud.lovindubai.com\/images\/uploads\/2016\/03\/Screenshot-2016-03-15-21.05.43.png?mtime=20160315210605\">\n"},"image_feature":null,"author_name":"Rich","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/lovin.co\/dubai\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2000"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/lovin.co\/dubai\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/lovin.co\/dubai\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lovin.co\/dubai\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/451"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lovin.co\/dubai\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2000"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/lovin.co\/dubai\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2000\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/lovin.co\/dubai\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2000"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lovin.co\/dubai\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2000"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lovin.co\/dubai\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2000"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}