From the style of the north to the charm of the south Italy is famed for its excellent cuisine. Abu Dhabi has no shortage of restaurants promising to give you the taste of authentic Italy. Time Out selects five of the best.
Mezzaluna
Mezzaluna remains probably the best restaurant in the Emirates Palace. It’s take on traditional Italian borders on the lavish, with the finest oils, breads and chunks of parmesan deposited on your table as you peruse the menu. The wagyu bresaola is a stunningly good starter, a classy take on carpaccio with thin slices of dried wagyu beef laid out like a red carpet. Mains are arty but wholesome, with the beef tenderloin served with goat’s cheese-topped risotto, and the hammour with roast potatoes, ricola salad and tomatoes, both examples of fine Italian fare. There’s also plenty on offer for vegetarians here. Amid flames and much gusto, the sabayon is a stunning dessert prepared on a trolley next to your table. The wine list is impressive but expensive; however, you can get a fine rioja for a reasonable price.
Bice
The fact that anyone can whip up a bowl of penne means that it’s hard to really impress people with Italian food, but Bice has been doing that for years. And they’ve been doing it by putting Italians in the kitchen and letting them import the best ingredients.
The warm breads which lay in front of you are ridiculously good – and with three accompanying dips it’s a task not to fill up before the starters even arrive. When they do, the melon and Parma ham dish demonstrates a fine way to present simple fare. Likewise, the beef carpaccio is simple, light and fresh.
For mains, the gnocchetti in cheese sauce with walnuts is filling without feeling like a big bowl of pasta fondue, although at Dhs62 you’d expect things to be just right. Fettucine rosse, with prawns, peppers, tomatoes and asparagus is a little heavy and overloaded, but otherwise a big bold dish. Bice is the sort of place to wallow and take your time – particularly as you may not have a choice about the matter as the service can be pretty slow – but it’s still something worth waiting for, as on the basis of food and decor alone it’s one of the best Italian restaurants in the country.
Casa Verde
The views at Casa Verde of the verdant championship golf course are amazing, and the menu makes for a pleasant read – nothing too fancy; heart-warming soups, salads, seafood and meat entrees all feature. After nibbling on bread sticks and huge slabs of fresh bread soaked up with olive oil and balsamic vinegar, you can tee off with a generously portioned buffalo mozzarella and tomato salad with black olives. It’s simple but surprisingly moreish, so as to make scraping the plate a necessity. The fillet steak impresses both in terms of presentation and ensuing taste-bud explosion. It is served with a delicious pesto sauce and a healthy dollop of mashed potato – comfort food heaven.
Sadly, a well-below-par conchigliette pasta in pesto sauce really is an unexpectedly wretched main. But this is compensated for with some tasty puds. Hoover up the heavenly tiramisu, or, if you can’t fit a dessert in, satisfy your sweet tooth with a well-made coffee accompanied by two cheeky, but welcome, biscotti. Mezzaluna and Bice need not be quaking in their boots just yet but the fresh Italian food here (for the most part) is far superior to many restaurants in the capital, as is the service. Essentially, this is a quietly elegant, hidden gem that really is too good to leave just to the golfers.
Prego’s
This large, lively restaurant is one of Abu Dhabi’s favourites, and with good reason: it’s rare to have a bad meal here, and the staff are well trained enough to know that the customer is always right, already distinguishing it from most of the city’s other eateries. You will need to book a table, especially if you plan to sit out on the popular terrace, with its lounge seating and beach view. Perusing the extensive menu is a pleasure, if only for the opportunity to slowly munch your way through the rustic loaf, chunks of parmesan and dishes of tapenade and broad bean paste.
The well-judged menu leads from the platters of meats and antipasti through a decent selection of salads, into mains that range from the classic tortelloni (the pumpkin and sage one is an unctuous delight), spaghetti, ravioli and risotto to accomplished specialities such as osso bucco. Prego is worth also looking out for the special one-off menus that come up every so often, when a guest chef is in town. Desserts are fine, though not outstanding, but most diners never get that far in any case. The pleasantly-relaxed staff will leave you to linger happily over your post-prandial coffee, making this a perfect spot for a Thursday-night gossip.
Il Palazo
This is an unpretentious Italian restaurant serving decent food, where good-quality produce shines through. The atmosphere matches the laid-back, provincial decor, and the mains are chunky enough to have a stereo-typical Italian granny looking on appreciatively as you feed yourself up. All in all, Il Palazo is not a mind-blowing venue, but a decent enough neighbourhood restaurant. The friendly staff and homely cooking make it well worth a punt.
