Depending on who you stalk on socials, you might have seen images of these two sumos with the Burj Khalifa in the backdrop. This – is Tabu, a newly opened Japanese restaurant located in Business Bay, managed by Infini Concepts – the company behind Ce La Vi, amongst others. We went over on a Saturday afternoon to review the Noh Drama Brunch – mum and a girlfriend in tow. Summer with kids means pockets of kid-free time for hopefully a relaxed afternoon with good food and drinks 😉
Here’s, what to expect from Noh Drama Brunch.
Where exactly is Tabu?
Tabu is located on the 24th floor of the St Regis Downtown Dubai. Yes, you can valet your car. You don’t have to enter the St Regis lobby – there is a separate entrance for Tabu on Ground floor.
How is the venue like in Tabu?
Bold, bright colours. Blue leather-clad couches, maroon sofas. Striking patterned carpets which reminded me of Picasso paintings . Ps – I am not well-versed in art so please forgive me if this was a horrendous comparison.
If you are someone who likes to ‘colour-coordinate’ with the venue – come in whatsover pattern and styles your heart desires – you will fit right in. You might even disappear into the background.
Let’s talk about the food at brunch.
For this brunch – all food from their menu is served to table, to be shared.
Steamed edamame is brought at the beginning, so you can start nibbling away while admiring the venue, and the people (who doesn’t like to people watch?)
For cold starters – every plate has been meticulously prepared and beautifully presented. Put 3 girls at the table and you’ll see all of them taking photos half the time before eating, haha. Right from the seabass ceviche, to the maki rolls, wafu salad and salmon sashimi served with coconut and yuzu daikon ( so so pretty ).
By the time we finished the hot starters I was more or less ‘done for the day’, haha. We’re talking black cod croquettes, wagyu beef kushiyaki, prawn tempura and chicken yakitori (served on a mini yakitori grill).
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That’s a lot of food. And there’s mains as well?!
For mains – there was salmon, spicy miso chicken, sea bass and a wagyu beef claypot rice dish. Just a – lot – of – good – stuff. To highlight here – mum does not eat beef, so the team was very kind to prepare a separate bowl of shiitake and truffle mushroom rice for her. She loved it.
Any feedback to share?
Only thoughts that my (Japanese) friend and I have to share was this : Whilst the starters we absolutely loved – it is to be mentioned that they were all incredibly flavoursome (which is a good thing, of course). When the mains came, we did feel like our tastebuds had been slightly overpowered. By then, we felt that it would be nice to introduce something a little more simple to accompany the meat. The only thing on all 4 plates I felt I wanted more of, was the steamed bok choy. Everything else was just ‘wow’, haha. Maybe swap the sesame mashed potato with plain white jasmine rice, no need to pickle the cucumber that went with the spicy miso chicken, or just add a bit more steamed greens. Just our thoughts.
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And to end, of course – desserts all served with dry ice for that instagrammable moment. Why not, right?
Have a browse the Tabu Noh Drama Brunch menu here.
Is there Entertainment in the Brunch?
Over the duration of the afternoon, there were three different performers that came out. In theme with the restaurant decor – they were dressed in bright and colourful outfits (one was in a kimono, the other in… what do you call a bright pink jumpsuit with yellow hair?). Mum ended up dancing with on of the performers on stage – he was hilarious. There was also a drummer, setting the mood , and a DJ present throughout the entire brunch.
The highlight for us though – was actually a fellow guest who we swore was appointed by the restaurant to keep us entertained, haha. He got everyone dancing (mum, my friend and I included). The rest of the restaurant got into a train – love it when that happens.
Overall Thoughts
Do Noh Drama Brunch for a nice brunch – if you enjoy modern Japanese food with a touch of Peruvian in it. One to do if you appreciate well-put-together cocktails, tongue in cheek entertainment and a bit of a boogie. It’s not over the top and wild, it’s one of those high end brunches where you won’t get bored. Go with a group of friends who like some fun 😉
- Noh Drama Brunch
- Saturdays 12:30-4pm
- Tabu, St Regis Downtown Dubai
- Website
Disclaimer : We were guests of Tabu to review the Noh Drama Brunch.