The Foundry — Restaurant in Abu Dhabi

I have been to The Foundry twice this year!

A LA CARTE DINNER The first time was in early in the year when they had 50% off the entire food bill Friday to Wednesday for orders placed before 7pm. On that visit: My husband and I shared the scallops starter, Chateaubriand main with sides of asparagus, mushrooms, served with chimichurri sauce and pepper sauce. I love how the meal included a complimentary aperitif and a selection of two desserts off the dessert trolley. We had the lemon meringue and Opera cake.

THURSDAY BRUNCH We were so impressed we returned with family in May to try the Thursday Steak Feast - 265 AED soft drinks package per person, (Entertainer applied at 2-4-1) The brunch is table service and not buffet style (unlike other brunches). We are given a menu featuring Starters, Mains and a Dessert. We were told we could order an unlimited amount of whatever we wanted. We ate through the menu but skipped the soup of the day.

The food was served individually and not “family style” in the middle.

We had the: 🍴Shucked oysters - very nice, came with many different accomplishments 🍴Beetroot salad - one of my favourites of the night 🍴Salmon cake - very nice, it was a little different to other ones I’ve had, more like a quiche consistency inside 🍴Wagyu beef carpaccio - everyone said it was good. I only tried a tiny bit. 🍴Steaks: we wanted to try all the different types so we were served 4 slices of each and they were presented in order of the men - Sth Africa, Argentina, Australia, NZ 🍴Hamour and mussels - I didn’t taste this but family did it was a consistency of what would be in a fish pie 🍴Mushroom & truffle risotto - 10/10. It was made the consistency I think is perfect and has a beautiful balance of cheese and truffle. (I loved this and if I hadn’t had a second serving of Australian steak ☺️ or eaten nearly everything else 😬 I would have had a second helping of this.) 🍴Dessert platter - a slice that tasted like apple crumble pie, a chocolate some that tasted like Jaffa cake, a little cheesecake and a scoop of ice cream. Delicious. 🥛 Drinks - we tried various juices and mocktails and they were all great. I think my favourite mocktails was one that tasted like sparkling apple juice (I am a fan of appletiser) . Service - similar to our first experience, service was incredible. Easy 10/10.

I made our reservation via a simple email which was confirmed. I did ask if we could be seated in a certain area which they were able to accommodate on the night. Michelle was our server and ‘Jayathan’ (I cannot remember spelling, so sorry 😞 ), the restaurant manager were both brilliant. They were both attentive but not intrusive. The amazing service did add to our...

My husband and I visited on a Friday after reading about the restaurant serving "upmarket" and "outstanding" steaks (as described by various sites). It was empty when we arrived at about 8.30pm. The crew was pleasant, helpful and attentive and the place was nice enough.

Although we were the only diners there at that time, the waiting staff seemingly failed to communicate with the kitchen crew about the pace of serving up the food as while we were still going through starters, the main courses were served. The waiters scurried back to the kitchen with the main courses and reappeared later after we finished with starters.

The plates on which the steaks were served were stone-cold and not because of the minutes ticking away while we were still eating our starters but because they were not kept warm prior to service. So it felt like canteen-plated food, not like a proper steak house.

The tenderloin steak my husband ordered was served as ordered (medium rare) but my sirloin steak was overdone (more well done than medium). Not good.

Overall it fell short of expectations, with the service/timing problem particularly inexplicable and the quality of the steak inconsistent.

2nd visit one week after: The management team (F&B team) took our feedback seriously and contacted us by phone to discuss it further to assure us that our first experience was not of their usual standard. We decided to visit the restaurant one week later and try again. We ordered steaks again and this time everything was very good. The dishes arrived with sufficient time between them, the waiting staff checked before firing the steaks, and when they arrived they were just as they should have been - good quality and the temperature as ordered (one medium and one medium rare). Mr Naseer was very professional and we came away feeling good about The Foundry and believing our experience on our first visit was indeed not the norm. Our confidence has been restored and we plan to return to the restaurant in the...

My husband is a picky eater when it comes to his steaks. In as much, we try every steakhouse around Abu Dhabi. He ordered a medium rare and his steak came as Medium well. The steaks, included mine needed more seasoning. The mashed potato was nothing special, as well as the side salad. The ice cream dessert was TOO sour and was EXTREMELY TOO sweet.

The service however was spot on, the waiter was kind, attentive and professional.

The speed of service was okay given that the restaurant was having sushi night.

I always ask my husband on how he liked his steak. He’s not the confrontational type but given that we paid 400 aed for everything, I know he deserved to enjoy his steak which he didn’t. Will we come back? Yes - We’d love to try again and give them a chance.

So what did my husband rated his steak? It was a 7/10 compared to his fave steak at Marco Pierre at 12/10 ☺️ or his Bentley and Texas Roadhouse steak at 9.5-10/10.

Kudos to the crew and the ambiance of the restaurant.

PS: We loved the bread as well. Would love to give them a 3.5 but had to rate them as a 3 for now. Might change the review the next time we...