Armani/Hashi (Dubai, UAE) ★★☆☆☆

I have been looking forward to a special Christmas Eve dinner with the family but with all the children's policy in Dubai, it had made things a lot harder than I originally thought. Rather than something formal and pretentious, I thought let's do a real quiet and low-key dinner at Armani/Hashi instead.



I'm not sure if this fits the definition of low-key. Sitting on the terrace of Armani Hotel Dubai starring up at the towering architecture that points skyward into the dark with bone chilling wind blowing into our face. But that's how we're spending our Christmas Eve as a family.



Our night at Armani/Hashi started with the Dubai water fountain show with dancing water spraying left and right to the tone of classical, Arabic and modern music (finishing with Adele's Skyfall). We could watch it right from our seats which was quite a remarkable scene all together.



Unfortunately, the food here didn't live up to our lofty expectation. We ordered a noodle soup especially for our little one. It was an off-the-menu item and we had already communicated to our server that it was something for an infant so no pepper, herbs, spices or seafood in there. The broth (made with chicken stock), noodle and seaweed were all fine but it came unexpectedly with pieces of chicken karaage. They should have been a little more carefully when we said it's for an infant. Could have informed us when we were making the order.



Chutoro, or medium fatty tuna was decent with the usual melt-in-your-mouth texture but a little chewy with all these small tendons in the middle.



Assorted sushi - I have had a lot better sushi rolls in Hong Kong. Very average.



Sea urchin sushi - The only dish that I thought made the cut. The sea urchin was very nice and creamy.



Having been spoiled with some really good Japanese food all my life in Vancouver and then Hong Kong, I can't say I was happy with what was offered here, especially with the heavy price tag. The Dubai water fountain view did score a few extra points but it's going to take a lot more than that to lure us back.


Food Rating: 5/10
Price: $$$$
Address: Concourse Level, Armani Hotel Dubai, Mohamed bin Rashid Boulevard, Dubai, United Arab Emirates
Closest Metro Station: Buji Khalifa / Dubai Mall
Tel: +971 4-888-3666
Website: www.armanihoteldubai.com/en/dine/hashi