Eataly: get some Italian in Dubai

Dubai is known for its rather pretentious dining and clubbing scene. There is of course nothing wrong with partaking in this I have enjoyed dinner at Nobu before and going to Cavalli and People by Crystal, amongst others. There are though times when you want to sit back a bit, wear jeans and share a joke with the kitchen chefs. I adore kitchen chefs and find then rather amiable. On a recent Dubai Mall shopping excursion with my friend we happened upon Eataly. From the outside it is quite eye catching with its large, open and bright store front. Upon stepping inside you see the scale of this place. It is a mix of grocers with a café, gelateria, chocolate counter, restaurant and other delightful stations. The glass enclosed room where they make the fresh mozzarella is a thing of beauty.

Smoked Turkey Piadina with the lovely chefs in the background

Simple yet delicious tomato spaghetti

In addition to the site down dining there is also a bar which one can sit at and watch the chefs at work in the hot station. Once we were seated we were brought our menus as well as a serving of bread with olive oil and balsamic vinegar for dipping the bread in. Delish! Wanting something simple, warm and with carbs, as we had been shopping, we settled on a simple tomato spaghetti and a smoked turkey piadina. As a started we tried their fresh made mozzarella. Over all we had a wonderful experience the food was fresh and tasty and the mozzarella in particular gets a massive thumbs up, no matter how geeky it looks. I even took the other half of the piadina home with me as it was a large portion. The next day I heated it in my Panini press and it was delicious. Sitting at the bar was a fantastic idea as we were able to watch all the other lovely dishes be prepared and it gave us some ideas for another home made dinner get together.


Eataly can definitely be recommended as a casual date night or a less hectic mall meal. The fact that you can combine it with some of your grocery shopping is a bonus. Of course you can also pop in for an ice cream or an espresso at the coffee counter. Check it out and let me know what you think.