BRASSERIE BOULUD In a city teeming with celebrity chef restaurants, will Brasserie Boulud cut the mustard?

alm Jumeirah has Bottura and Back; Dubai Marina has Rhodes and Colagreco; and Bluewaters has Ramsay. So how did Healthcare City just score one of Dubai’s biggest dining coups?

French-born chef Daniel

Boulud is best known for his two-Michelin-starred New York restaurant, Daniel, and a slew of brasseries as far afield as London, Singapore and Washington DC.

For his first foray into Dubai, he’s opened Brasserie Boulud in the glitzy new Sofitel Dubai The Obelisk in Umm Hurair 2, right next to Wafi Mall.

While the menu speaks to Boulud’s European sensibilities, the dining room is pure New York. Mirrored ceilings, tessellated marble floors, burgundy banquettes and grand columns offer a gentle nod to the 1920s, with a snaking chandelier that stretches the length of the restaurant.

An open kitchen takes centre stage, where chefs move methodically about the space, slicing charcuterie, kneading pasta dough, and searing meat over leaping flames. Boulud is in town for opening week, and he’s in his element here, popping

Pbetween stations to taste this, test that, before turning to wave at diners. We’ve been invited along for the second night, but there’s no sense that the restaurant is finding its feet. Professionalism reigns, from the waitstaff to the kitchenhands, no doubt inspired by the grace and good nature of Boulud, who gently steers rather than commandeers the ship.

There’s an effortless grace to the menu, too, which combines Boulud’s mastery of French and Italian cuisines with American largesse and the odd Arabic inflection.

The hamachi starter (Dhs80) is pure class. Thinly sliced amberjack is artfully decorated with curls of shaved fennel, soft-set quail eggs, olives, tomatoes, green beans and earthy artichoke crisps.

A jar of duck rillettes (Dhs85) is layered with shaved duck breast, pickled eschalot, sweet onion chutney and pomegranate seeds. Piled onto chargrilled bread, it’s soulful French cooking with polish.

Of the mains, the sole Grenobloise is a standout – three lightly floured fish fillets are doused in a luscious brown butter, lemon and caper sauce, with silken cauliflower puree and tiny florets of romanesco.

It’s exceptional, to be sure, but the Dhs315 price tag may be hard for some to swallow. It seems particularly pricey when you consider that much of the menu is surprisingly (by Dubai standards) affordable, with most mains sitting between Dhs135 and Dhs175.

Our final dish is a flawless chocolate fondant (Dhs55), topped with coconut ice cream to lighten the pudding’s intensity. It’s big enough – and rich enough – to share, especially as a complimentary plate of madeleines arrives soon after.

For all the glamour of the dining room and precision of the staff, this is food with body and soul. You’ll want to come back to eat the Dhs95 burger at the bar. You’ll want to go all out for date night with seafood platters and wagyu steaks. You’ll only wish it was just around the corner…

Sofitel Dubai The Obelisk, Umm Hurair 2, Dubai. Mon to Thu 6pm to midnight, Fri and Sat 6pm to 1.30am. Tel: (04) 2814020. sofitel-dubai-theobelisk.com