The Meat Company, Madinat Jumeirah, Dubai

The Meat Company, Madinat Jumeirah, Dubai

Friday 12 October, 2007

Known as the Meat & Wine Co every where else, this meat lovers paradise is called The Meat Company in Dubai. Why? It's a dry city (sort of). Located within the Madinat Jumeirah complex, the Meat Co is situated on the sea front of the Souk Madinat Jumeirah. This restaurant offers one of the most spectacular views of the Arabian Gulf and in particular the famous landmark of the Burj Al Arab Hotel - if you are sitting outside.

We were still a little jet lagged so wanted to dine somewhere close by. We caught an abra - kind of like a Venetian gondola from our villa to the souk - what a great way to get around. The souk is an Arabian bazaar of shops, market stalls and food and we decided to dine at the Meat Co on recommendation.

Known for their steaks, the Meat Co describe them as, "The success of our product lies in the preparation of our meat. Preparing and serving succulent steaks that make your mouth water and keep you coming back for more, is what The Meat Co does best. Only the finest South African A Grade and Certified Australian Angus Beef (CAAB) is selected, wet-aged to perfection, and then expertly prepared and basted in The Meat Co’s “unique trade secret basting” - to produce a succulent, tender cut that is full of flavour every time."

We arrived without a reservation on Friday night - bad move. I had actually emailed them from Australia to make a reservation but I had never heard back from them so was prepared to use the old line....we have a reservation under the name of_____. Walking up the entrance we were bowled over by the amount of people out and about. Then is become clear that the reason was because Ramadan had ended and it was EID - the festival to celebrate the end of fasting.

Thankfully we could secure a table inside as long as we were done by 9pm - OK then. This actually suited us fine as we were getting very tired anyway. On entry you walk down a few stairs and see the open kitchen in all its glory. The bar is framed with a green glass and then a large see through wine cellar that is impressive. The furniture is dark brown wood and the chairs are chocolate coloured leather - it's warm & invited with bright coloured artwork dotted throughout. We were seated in a corner which didn't disguise the buzz of the place. Staff moved quickly around the tables and had a real sense of purpose.

We ordered Salt & pepper calamari to share upfront - tender pieces of deep-fried calamari scored and marinated with spices, served on a bed of sliced cucumber, topped with mixed peppers. This was nice and between 3 of us meant we scored about 3 pieces each.

For mains we had to order the steak - the super aged meat. We all ordered the 300g Certified Australian Angus Beef rib eye with their renowned house basting, served with chips. To compliment this we also ordered a rocket & aged parmesan salad - rocket leaves tossed with balsamic and olive oil dressing, semi dried tomatoes and shaved parmesan.

The steaks arrived with much fanfare and it was very obvious that if you weren't a meat lover this place would be wasted on you! For our first night in Dubai this was a lovely introduction. The Meat Co is a relaxed, informal place with the focus on good, hearty steaks.

The Meat Company - Madinat Jumeirah, Dubai - +971 4 368 6040

http://www.themeatco.com/dubai/madinat_jumeirah/