If you love opulence and grandeur\u2026you\u2019re probably already a big fan of the Burj Al Arab. I mean what\u2019s not to like about staying in a room which comes complete with a gold iPad, eating in a restaurant that doubles up as an aquarium or drinking at a bar that has gold walls, gold in the name and indeed gold leaf in the cocktails (yes you, Gold On 27).<\/p>\n
What more could you ask from a 7-star hotel that already commands it\u2019s own manmade island?. How about a little extension? And by little we mean the utterly huge\u00a0\u2018Terrace\u2019 big enough\u00a0to accommodate a freshwater pool, a saltwater pool, a beach, cabanas and fusion restaurant \u2018Scape\u2019.\u00a0<\/p>\n
And it\u2019s Scape that we were there to get a taste of, selling itself as a mixture of Californian cuisine with a Mediterranean and Asian mix (that\u2019s a lot of my favourite food words in one sentence).\u00a0<\/p>\n
Are all those tastes as good in action as they sound on paper\u2026or is it an erm,\u00a0recipe for disaster? Ever the willing guinea pigs when it comes to eating free food at world class hotels, we thought we\u2019d give it a whirl.<\/p>\n
The setting is breathtaking…<\/h3>\n
Just when you thought you\u2019d seen everything, along comes The Terrace. A giant extension at the foot of the Burj Al Arab, with a huge\u00a0freshwater pool, a saltwater infinity pool, numerous jacuzzi pools, the best service around and of course the aforementioned restaurant. All in white and beautiful blue hues that carry through to the interior of Scape itself. The minimalist interior continues into the outdoor seating area, so wherever you sit – you’ll be able to chill out and concentrate on your food…and drink.<\/p>\n Even before you get to the\u00a0starters there’s a ‘While You Decide’ section on the menu \u2013 a sure sign this was a menu for us! Choose from fried or steamed Edamame in chilli sauce\u00a0(AED 25) or the\u00a0Padron Peppers in chorizo sauce (AED 35), then\u00a0sit back and enjoy them while you choose\u00a0your first course…with the added delight\u00a0of the\u00a0delicious, complimentary\u00a0brioche style bread and butter.\u00a0<\/p>\n When it came to starters we chose from the ‘Sea-Raw’ section and opted for the super fresh and tasty\u00a0Mahi Mahi Ceviche which comes with a delicate sauce\u00a0(and actually pretty large and\u00a0very filling) mango, red chilli, capsicum, red onion and papaya salad (AED 80). We also gave the\u00a0Scallop Tiradito a go. The scallops are melt in the mouth\u00a0soft and come with a mild\u00a0but tasty\u00a0tiger milk, red radish, apple and salmon roe accompaniment\u00a0\u00a0(AED 95).<\/p>\n Mahi mahi ceviche<\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n The mains are split into four sections:\u00a0‘from the oven’, ‘salads’, ‘sea-cooked’ and ‘land’…and we can promise you’ll want something from each! Luckily we were halfway full from our starters and pre-starters so\u00a0decided to just stick to one main each (who are we kidding…we were keeping room for dessert).<\/p>\n First up was the Grilled Poussin (AED 165) from the ‘land’ section, the succulent chicken was subtle in taste and perfectly cooked, we chose the Pave Potato (AED 35) as a side, which was a creamy\u00a0potato gratin with a crusty tomato and herb topping, and\u00a0deliciously indulgent. We also ordered\u00a0the Baja Style\u00a0Fish Tacos (AED 75), ordered ‘from the oven’. Three\u00a0lightly battered\u00a0fish fingers, served on delicately soft tacos with pico de gallo, sour cream and everyone’s favourite green stuff,\u00a0avocado.<\/p>\n The list of sweets is as difficult to choose from as the mains so we asked our lovely waitress Akeela to do the honours…and she didn’t disappoint. First, was the Salted-Caramel Sundae (AED 65), everything about this pile of candy popcorn, chocolate brownie and caramel ice cream screamed EAT\u00a0ME\u00a0NOW! Sweet\u00a0but moorish, we made it to the bottom of the bowl pretty quickly. In contrast to this messy heap of goodness was\u00a0the Mascarpone Cheesecake (AED\u00a065), a beautiful and tidy little package sitting next to a seasonal compote. It wasn’t just pretty it was the surprise winner of our ‘best dish award’. Shaped like a donut, once you cut in and take a bite the taste is fresh and light but still creamy and\u00a0full of flavour…it’s a must try if you visit.<\/p>\n Overall Scape was an extremely pleasant experience, the best thing is that it’s pretty reasonably priced…especially considering that it’s the Burj Al Arab, with\u00a0bottles of wine starting at around AED 350. The staff are beyond friendly and helpful and the setting makes you feel like you’re on a mini break.<\/p>\n Scape Restaurant & Bar is open for lunch from 12:30pm to 3:30pm, dinner from 6pm to 11pm and Shisha from 12pm. Bookings are essential, do so by\u00a0e-mailing:\u00a0BAARestaurants@jumeirah.com<\/a> or call +971 4 301 7600<\/p>\n For more details visit the website\u00a0here<\/a>.<\/p>\n![\"1](\"https:\/\/cloud.lovindubai.com\/images\/uploads\/2016\/09\/_blogWide\/1-11.jpg?mtime=20160918132110\")
<\/figure>\n![\"1](\"https:\/\/cloud.lovindubai.com\/images\/uploads\/2016\/09\/_blogWide\/1-16.jpg?mtime=20160918132124\")
<\/figure>\n![\"Screen](\"https:\/\/cloud.lovindubai.com\/images\/uploads\/2016\/09\/_blogWide\/Screen-Shot-2016-09-18-at-15.22.36.png?mtime=20160918152503\")
<\/figure>\n![\"Screen](\"https:\/\/cloud.lovindubai.com\/images\/uploads\/2016\/09\/_blogWide\/Screen-Shot-2016-09-18-at-15.22.56.png?mtime=20160918152539\")
<\/figure>\nIndulge in not just\u00a0starters but some\u00a0cheeky\u00a0pre-starters too…<\/h3>\n
![\"1](\"https:\/\/cloud.lovindubai.com\/images\/uploads\/2016\/09\/_blogWide\/1-3.jpg?mtime=20160918132157\")
![\"1](\"https:\/\/cloud.lovindubai.com\/images\/uploads\/2016\/09\/_blogWide\/1-1.jpg?mtime=20160918132149\")
<\/figure>\nBe prepared to want every single main on the menu…<\/h3>\n
![\"1](\"https:\/\/cloud.lovindubai.com\/images\/uploads\/2016\/09\/_blogWide\/1-6.jpg?mtime=20160918132251\")
<\/figure>\n![\"1](\"https:\/\/cloud.lovindubai.com\/images\/uploads\/2016\/09\/_blogWide\/1-5.jpg?mtime=20160918132308\")
<\/figure>\nThe desserts are almost too\u00a0pretty to eat…almost<\/h3>\n
![\"1](\"https:\/\/cloud.lovindubai.com\/images\/uploads\/2016\/09\/_blogWide\/1-10.jpg?mtime=20160918132436\")
<\/figure>\n![\"1](\"https:\/\/cloud.lovindubai.com\/images\/uploads\/2016\/09\/_blogWide\/1-8.jpg?mtime=20160918132521\")
<\/figure>\nThe details…<\/h3>\n