The city is solidifying its newfound reputation as a global culinary capital, with restaurant debuts by another half-dozen international superstars.
(Bloomberg) — A new batch of international celebrity chefs will move into Dubai, bringing stars from Asia, Australia and Europe to the Middle East.
Kerzner International, the hotelier behind Atlantis the Royal, announced it would open restaurants from Anne-Sophie Pic, Tetsuya Wakuda, Mehmet Gürs and others to its new megaproject, One Za’abeel, on the northern end of Dubai.
The development, which will include two luxury hotels, residences and office space, is visually distinguished by its cantilevered structure — a long, horizontal arm 100 meters (328 feet) in the air that connects the two buildings. In that bridge-like space will be a food hall, nightlife and several restaurants with sweeping views of the city, all opening by the end of the year.
Kerzner, which has long made its name on five-star resorts rather than Michelin-starred restaurants, has been betting big on high-profile culinary talent, mostly imported from abroad, as Dubai makes its mark as a global foodie destination. Drive down the country’s main highway, for instance, and it’s hard to miss a giant billboard promoting Kerzner’s new Atlantis the Royal hotel. But instead of featuring its 90 pools, sunset views or even food, the ad shows portraits of eight celebrity chefs with places to eat at the hotel, including Nobu Matsuhisa, Heston Blumenthal and José Andrés.
One Za’abeel is about a 15-minute drive (depending on traffic) from the city’s financial center known as DIFC, and it’s on the opposite end of the city from the man-made Palm Jumeirah islands. But it will be a destination unto itself, for both locals and tourists. Besides its condos, which are currently listed for upwards of 4 million dirhams ($1.1 million), the towers will include a new One&Only hotel — the city’s third — and Siro, Kerzner’s new, fitness-focused resort brand.
Think of the culinary concept, called the Link, as a high-end food hall with separate restaurant spaces. It will contain venues from Spain’s Paco Morales and Bangkok-based restaurant partners Bo Songvisava and Dylan Jones, whose superstar status was cemented on the fifth season of Chef’s Table. The headliner, however, will be Anne-Sophie Pic, who rose to global acclaim at the three-Michelin-star Maison Pic in Valence, France. Once called the best female chef in the world, she will contribute an outpost of her London flagship, La Dame de Pic. As with many of the chefs, it will be Pic’s first venture in the Middle East.
(Corrects height of cantilever in third paragraph.)
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