Jara by Martín Berasategui — Restaurant in Dubai

I’d been looking forward to this visit, and and let me say … it’s exactly the kind of place you want in your back pocket when you’re planning an evening with a few close friends or hoping to impress someone special. For a view without the noisy crowd, try Sunday evenings around 7 PM to watch the city shift from day to night … it’s quietly stunning. 😍

Service was lovely: warm smiles, polished, and genuinely welcoming from entrance to table. I really enjoyed the way our main server presented herself throughout the whole dining experience. ⭐️

The food? A delight. Martín Berasategui’s croquettes were crisp, hot, and beautifully presented. We tried the mixed mushrooms and Spanish squid … I’m already planning to return for the other flavors. The MB salad surprised me in a good way. The fried shrimp lifted it entirely … my tip is to taste it first without, then with the shrimp to really appreciate the difference. The Txangurro Donostiarra (spider crab stew) was rich and full of that classic, salty Basque depth … though it came late in the meal and we were slightly too full to savor it properly. Anchovy fans should try the Marriage for a salty hit.

One miss for me was the Vegetable Tempura with Romesco. At AED 80, it felt uninspired 🤔… a small plate of basic deep-fried veggies that didn’t match the creativity of the other dishes.

If you want the true Basque experience, don’t skip the charcoal-grilled fish of the day and ask for the Martín Berasategui-style Potato Purée. 👍🏻👍🏻

I respect that they make desserts in limited quantities … assuming to reduce waste. The Basque Cheesecake is great if you’re okay with blue cheese notes, while the MB Torrija was soft, balanced, and not overly sweet.

Cocktails were fun: the El Tomato, a clarified twist on a Canadian Caesar 👍🏻 right up my alley, while the Jara Paloma was a touch too boozy for my taste, while Martin’s Cooler was pleasant but didn’t...

The service was impeccable, the view fantastic and the food delicious. This is how a romantic dinner should be. We got one of the best tables in the house, outside on the balcony looking over the Marina. The service was so good, perfect timing and no rushing. They waited for the really nice cocktails to finish to bring the first starter. The starter was a tomato tartar and definitely my favorite dish until dessert, it tasted like steak tartar but it wasn't, incredible. The other starters we had was grilled mussels, octopus and crab grilled meat, I honestly found them all a bit bland, but I assume that's basque kitchen, all was really nice with some salt and pepper added, Next up was Spanish dry aged steak. The sommelier ran to have a different bottle of wine on the table as the steak was arriving. Both bottles he helped select were fabulous. The steak was perfectly done, the basque chimichuri sauce is 100 times better than regular sauce. Then came the desert... I have no idea what and how, but that was one of the most delicious things I've had in a long time. It tasted like a blend of a croissant and a creme brulee, with this crunchy layer of sugar and some ice cream, ooh finger licking good. I actually was so full already but just had to clear that plate. Well done and congratulations for the staff and chefs in the kitchen. You made our...

Lovely setting especially the terrace great views and very friendly service . However not good value . Had reason to complain about the quantity of the ribeye . When you are charging per 1 Kilo cut you should make sure it’s 1 Kilo not as I suspected 600 grams . Now normally I would say a 1kilo cut of ribeye would easily serve 3 hungry people. The serving was barely enough for 1 person. The manager was apologetic and handled our complaint exceptionally well by offering an additional steak, desserts and drinks on the house. However an establishment like this should not get it so badly wrong - Saturday evening and the restaurant was 10% occupied says it all. My other reason to complain is that the chef Martin Berasategui who I am sure is a fantastic Spanish chef can not supply the best Spanish ingredients . There was only one offering of Spanish beef labelled ‘premium Spanish’ . I know that Spain produces fantastic Basque and Galician beef but as with all these Hotel restaurants you only get what the hotel suppliers want you to eat and where they have more margin . So the beef except one offering all comes from Australia . Nothing wrong with Australian beef but when you visit a restaurant that shouts its Spanish cooking why is the Spanish produce so minimal on the menus I just wish these fantastic chefs would stop selling there soul to the big...