Our dear friend had organised a get-together last night – “The City Grill” she had told me. I asked her during dinner where did the recommendation come from – and the answer was simply ‘The Entertainer’ – haha. Just like me – every single time 😉 It was a summer offer – 1 main course + 1 drink, get 1 main course + 1 drink free.

I got to Al Habtoor City around 8pm last night, and then realised I haven’t been in this property for a long, long time. Ladies nights at Champagne Lounge was the last visit, possibly? Found myself a bit lost and after asking for directions, got to Zoco on the 1st floor of ‘The Atrium.’ Perfect timing for a dinner get-together at City Grill as it was ladies nights at Zoco on Mondays as well. PS – They do a mean margharita 😉

One drink in, the rest of the crew arrived and we all headed towards the City Grill next door. Dimly lit, leather-clad chairs, a few tables occupied with what I tend to call ‘grown-ups’ nowadays – this had fine dining written all over it. A very ‘different’ night to my usual dinner-with-the-kids scene 😉

We browsed through the menu and I then realised I haven’t been to a steakhouse for years. The last one we went to is no longer operating, sadly. It’s not that I don’t like steak – rather the opposite – we cook it once a week and can never justify paying 200AED for a 200g of steak that just needs 2 minutes each side and a dash of black pepper. “Once in awhile” I told myself – a good meal with good friends is worth the price anytime 😉

I settled on the City Grill Surf and Turf – 260AED for South African rump steak and three jumbo prawns – not too bad when you remind yourself it’s a 241 too 😉 A few of us on the table chose the same. A glass of red please, I told the staff.

The meals all came to the table not too long after. A selection of sides were chosen – steakhouse fries, side salad, creamed spinach, grilled asparagus and mashed potatoes (25aed each). I looked at my plate and realised that potato wedges came with the meal (placed separately), and was mildly annoyed why our server had not informed this to me when we were deciding on the extra sides. Should’ve.

How was my rump? I had asked for medium-well, and it was more towards the “well”-end of the spectrum. Tasty nonetheless, though on the saltier side. Again, our server should have also explained that the Surf & Turf steak came already seasoned. The crew would have possibly held back with ordering all the many (6!) sauces onto the table (Note : 15aed each) The prawns however, were a winner for me. 

As the night went on, we finished all our meals and were absolutely stuffed. It was a lot of meat, and a lot of sides 🙂 I was happy with my red house wine as well.

The initial bill sent to the table was incorrect, and was promptly fixed. Bill for 6 came up to 2250AED, and with the 241 deal – ended up being 1280AED. That’s approximately 215AED per person for a good steak, a lot of sides, and a glass of wine. That’s, a good deal.

We headed off to Zoco afterwards to finish off the evening with a couple more complimentary margharitas 🙂 Hurray to public holidays and not having to get into work the next day.

Would I recommend this to friends? This is a yes – and only if you enjoy steak. I would hope that the staff advise patrons on what will be on their dish, should they start ordering sides that are the same. Ie, if my plate came with wedges and I asked for steakhouse fries – let me know that I may be doubling up on carbs!  The Entertainer deal is a good one to try out The City Grill. Do it on a Monday so you can do pre and post-drinks at Zoco.

Note : This is not a sponsored post. We paid for our meals at The City Grill.