Rivington Grill

In keeping with the theme of finally catching up with friends after all the craziness of the last month, we had wonderful dinner out on Tuesday night with my good friend Angela. Angela's husband Derek is the new chef at the Rivington Grill in Souk Al Bahar and so we had been excited to go try it now that he's there (he helped open another restaurant called Caramel in the DIFC a couple months ago, which has amazing food, so we couldn't wait to see what he's been able to do at Rivington).

It is wonderful having a chef for a friend, and the food was absolutely amazing. Probably top three meals we've had in Dubai. The menu is mostly comprised of English pub fare and comfort food, and the drink menu was one of the best we've seen in Dubai. Unlike everywhere else that just has the boring standards for beer (Heineken, Foster's, Stella), Rivington had smaller English micro-brews and even an IPA. Jared was delighted. And, quite unexpectedly, Derek comped all the food and told us to order whatever we wanted. So Jared and I started by splitting Seared Scallops in an herb butter sauce and Steak Tartare (with yummy frites). Then I had a special -- the Steak and Ale Pie (I've become quite obsessed with steak pie as of late. It's a very British dish that I got turned onto at the Jebel Ali Club. Steak cooked in a delicious broth covered in puff pastry. What could be better?). Jared had the Sirloin Steak (cooked to perfection, with Bearnaise Sauce and Hand Cut Fries). For dessert we both had the amazing Sticky Toffee Pudding. All so good and we can't wait to go back and try it again!