Brass Monkey

A brilliant bowling bar for big kids on Bluewaters Island in Dubai

These days in Dubai, a city where entertainment venues are ferrying-in giant chrome animal statues by helicopter, and fitting swings with Burj Khalifa views, you’ve got to go hard to capture people’s attention. And to keep those eyes on you for any meaningful length of time, there needs to be substance behind that sleight-of-hand. That explains why we were cautiously excited by the noise surrounding the opening of Bluewaters’ latest adult-aimed attraction, Brass Monkey, a licensed bar and restaurant that casually packs a 12lane bowling alley and over 60 retro arcade games into its double-floor space.

It’s a neon-lit, wildly handsome interior, filled with eye-catching details. Look up in the ground floor’s bar and you’ll find a clutch of bowling pin chandeliers. That neatly brings us to the bowling alley. This feature is no gimmick. At 12 lanes, it’s the biggest of its sort in Dubai and a clear demonstration of aspirations that go beyond the aesthetic. The minds behind the concept want you to come here for an experience.

At level-two, there’s more gaming afoot. A trio of pool tables, basketball free-throw units, a VR racing simulator and the glowing screens of some of the finest examples of button-bashing, slot-feeding action in arcade history. The hall of familiar pixels includes Pac-Man, Street Fighter II, TMNT, Mortal Kombat and Space Invaders. You play by juicing up a pay-as-you-go card, which you can keep for future visits.

There’s a wide variety of drinks options and two food menus – Bushido and Americana. The former is set up as an homage to Tokyo-style noodle bars and deals in modern pan-Asian staples such as ramen, charred miso salmon and green curry mussels.

Americana has more of an international feel. There are tacos, sliders, kebabs, salads and pizzas. We dove deep into the selection and were impressed by what was served. Our highlights were the buttery lobster rolls, the deep umami vibes from the vegan pizza and no-fuss Angus beef slider.

The verdict? It’s got so much game, we’re giving it a straight-up ‘ape-plus’ both for effort and execution.

aBluewaters Island, Sun to Tue 2pm to 1am, Wed and Thur 2pm to 3am, Fri noon to 3am, Sat noon to 1am. Tel: (052) 7755317. @brassmonkeysocial