Peppercrab — Restaurant in Dubai

I always look forward to a meal at the Grand Hyatt, if only for the wonderful outdoor scenery at their restaurants. There’s no shortage of brunch options here, and having heard that the Peppercrab and Sushi restaurants have combined to provide this one, I certainly felt it was worth a visit.

The ambience was nice and relaxed, with a live musician. This brunch is perfectly suited for those who like a chilled out, ‘sensible volume’ vibe during their dining experience.

All items were buffet style, except for the crab of which there were selected choices that came to your table in a variety of sauces.

In this particular buffet, the sushi options were really high quality, with salmon, tuna and hamachi (yellowtail) looking rather appealing in the nigiri section, as well as a selection of rolls. What was also pleasantly surprising and worth mentioning was the availability of fresh wasabi which they can grind for you on the spot. Whilst it’s only a minor component of the sushi experience, fresh wasabi is incomparably better to the wasabi paste that graces its way onto most sushi tables. So points scored here.

The crab was also tasty, and came with a sweet bun. I do love the taste of crab meat but with the crabs being so small and having to use the variety of tools to extract it, the effort/reward may not be worth it for some.

In terms of the other dishes, there were variety of Asian options including a gado gado salad, various curries and also roast duck. None of them were particularly noteworthy, with only a rather delightful spicy Aubergine in chilli being the highlight, along with decent Singapore fried noodles, and nice Satays. There was plenty of choice so that was a plus, it’s just that the rich aromas and tastes of Asian food were very much toned down; this was particularly evident in the Laksa soup noodles which were decidedly bland.

The desserts themselves were also adequate, with a selection of fruit, mocha and cakes, with the highlight being the shaved ice dessert.

Overall, I was impressed with the sushi which certainly is better than what you’d get at most buffets, and the ambience was nice, although the mains were a bit of a let-down.

Service was friendly throughout. Apologies for the lack of focus on the photos, the lighting was a touch dim and my phone was...

Everything about this place is excellent. Though I have to admit, I am not here often. It has been a tradition for the past (almost 10 years) every Eid (Eid and Fitr and Eid Al Adha), myself and my wife would dine here on the first day on Eid.. No kids, just us. A private moment. Not sure when and why this tradition started but it has been the same for as long as I can remember.

Anyway, off to the food.

One of our highlights when we visited Singapore was their crab, pepper crab and chili crab. Ever since we are back, we tried many places but non was even close to what we had in Singapore with the exception of this place.

Their pepper crab is exquisite. Perfect. Takes you back to Singapore. Cooked perfectly.

I know it is a 5 star dining place, but to really enjoy the crab, eat with your hand. Do not tell them to de-shell it .. Be original and eat it with your hand . Dont worry you will be able to clean it at the end.

Anyway, For close to 10 years we have been ordering the same thing.. We start with the prawn crackers (which free) then we place an order of one Pepper crab + one seafood mixed friend rice. We leave the rice for the end. Once we are done with the crabs, we mix the pepper sauce with the rice and end the meal there.

Anyway, it has been a long review but this place is one of my favorite places in Dubai.. If you want a proper crab, this is your place.

You will...

The hotel is far from Dubai's downtown but closer to the Int'l Airport. Taxi is a little expensive, but you can reach any point of interest using the tube (subway). Rooms are plenty of space, richly decorated and perfectly quiet (soundproofing is pretty nice)!! The staff is incredibly polite and always provide you the best solution. The complex has more than 8 restaurants and the main lobby has a real forest with river and some small falls. There are many activities in the external pools which are amazing! There are also a very well equipped gym, steam rooms (sauna), and a climatized pool with jacuzzi. I really, really, really love my short, business stay at this hotel, but I certainly will return for vacation to better enjoy this...