Taste Of Dubai Menu Tasting At Asado | Part 2 Of My Gluttonous Double Munching!

February 25, 2013 / 14 Comments

‘I SHALL SURVIVE TO EAT’!’ I have just survived an evening of rapid back-to-back menu-tasting of two restaurants in The Palace Downtown – all in one single evening(!) when I had the opportunity to take a sneak peep and taste the menu offered by two of their flagship restaurants – Thiptara and Asado. This was their menu offering for Taste of Dubai that is taking place from 14-16th of March in the Dubai Media City Amphitheatre.

My first halt had been the Thai restaurant in the The Palace Downtown – Thiptara. That was Part 1 of my gluttonous double munching! After finishing at Thiptara, I dashed off to Asado, the Argentinian restaurant in The Palace, to taste what they had to offer in the Taste of Dubai. This is where the Part 2 of my Double Munching begins!

The Asado menu has been designed by Chef Norberto, the Executive Sous Chef of The Palace Downtown. Nominated as the Chef of the Year by Caterer Middle East Awards 2010, he’s also worked at a three-star Michelin restaurant in San Sebastian. Naturally, the expectations from him is sky-high.

Starting with the Salad – Ensalada de Quinoa Organica de Los Andes or the Organic Quinoa Salad from Los Andes (above). Quinoa, now considered a Superfood, is very high in nutritional content and has been an important staple in the Andean cultures for many years. It is only recently that it’s increasingly becoming popular worldwide. I like Quinoa and am always faltering while making it at home. So munching on a fantastic Quinoa preparation, I started on my guilt-free food munching for the second half of the evening (hopefully, washing away some guilt of my indulgence in the first half). The Starters also comprised of Choripan con Salsa Criolla or the Beef Sausage Sandwich with Criolla Sauce. The Chorizos or the Beef Sausages were home-made, I was told. In Asado too, each dish was complemented by a wine chosen by Sarah, who I have already had the pleasure of meeting, long long back, when she had led us on our evening of Wine tasting in the Asado Wine Club.

The Main Course comprised of Bife Angosto con Ensalada Mixta (above) – a slow cooked Argentinean Sirloin that was accompanied by a mixed Salad. I love my steaks, but most of the times I’m bickering once they reach my plate. And this is why I trust only a few places where I find my-kind-of-perfect steaks (I loved my Wagyu in Al Maha, and also my other steak experiences in the Tribes restaurant and Butcher Shop & Grill, both in MOE). Asado has always served brilliant steaks – soft, juicy and grilled to perfection with a wide variety of sauces. This time too, it was no different.

The next dish is a signature one from the restaurant – Cabrito Asado con Papa Morada de los Andes (above) or the Baby Goat. In Asado, the meat is either grilled on the Parrilla (barbeque) or Al Asador (open fire). The Baby Goat is slow-roasted in an open charcoal fire pit, almost in the middle of the restaurant and is a sight only for the brave-hearted! The meat inside tasted very tender, though the skin outside was a bit crispy and hard. This was served with Purple Potatos from Los Andes.

For me, no good meal can be complete without a sweet sign-off, specially for a true-blue Bengali like me. And our meal at Asado was signed off with two brilliant desserts. The first one – Helado cacero de Malbec y Dulce de Leche (above left), was a killer. A dessert made with home-made Malbec and Dulce de Leche Ice Cream, it was served amidst a huge smoke emanating from dry ice. The taste was spectacular, so was the taste. The purple Malbec grapes make most of Argentina’s best known wines. So, it was an interesting Argentinian twist to the dessert, I should say. The second dessert was Flan De Dulce de Leche (above right) or the classic Dulce de Leche Creme Caramel. Dulce de leche, meaning candy of milk or milk jelly in Spanish, is a rich and creamy sauce, similar in flavor to Caramel. It is very commonly used in most of the desserts of many South American countries, including Argentina. So tasting a good dessert made in the old-school traditional style of Dulche de Leche, while sitting in a good Argentinian restaurant in Dubai – there can be no better way to end an evening, that till now, had been satisfying and delicious!

Asado

Argentinian fine-dining restaurant in The Palace DownTown

Tel: +971 4 888 3444 or email dine@theaddress.com
For more info, visit Facebook: The Palace Downtown; Twitter: @PalaceDowntown or the restaurant Page: Asado

Taste of Dubai: The Palace Downtown Dubai will highlight the signature tastes of Thailand and Argentina through its flagship restaurants, Thiptara and Asado, at the Taste of Dubai Festival 2013, to be held from March 14 to 16. All items on the menu will be priced between AED 15/ – AED 30/. Chef Noberto, the Executive Sous Chef of The Palace, will host a session at the Philips Chefs’ Theatre on Saturday, March 16, at 8pm. Visitors stand a chance to win Barbeque classes with Chef Norberto, for eight people from Asado and dinner for four at the Chef’s Table at Thiptara. You can also register at the Thiptara and Asado’s stalls at Taste of Dubai.

In this episode of food munching too, I was accompanied by Sarah – The Hedonista (@the_hedonista), Samantha – the FooDiva (@FooDivaWorld), Jasmine of Pear Tree Diaries (@peartreediaries), Saba Wahid of Culinary Delights by Saba Wahid (@saba_wahid), Nina of Acoustic Chef (@CookNPlayGeetar) and Jerry (@bugipogi).

Good wine accompanying good food, rustic wooden decor amidst dimly lit chandeliers, a secret hidden cellar as well as a huge open one – Asado is one of my favourites when it comes to dining out in Dubai. Another thing that sets Asado apart, is the enthusiastic and knowledgeable staff. Asado actually makes an ideal place for a very formal official lunch/dinner and can turn itself into the most romantic place (specially the section that overlooks the fountains and the lake) or a good fun place to hang around with friends with live music, good food and a vibrant ambiance. But experiences like these are not always easy on the wallet. Hence, most of us look forward to the Taste of Dubai. It gives an opportunity to the Dubai diners to taste what some of the finest dining outlets in Dubai have to offer, at very reasonable prices. So, do pick on Asado’s offering at the Taste of Dubai in March – I have already revealed the Menu here!

Unblogging it all… Ishita

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Disclaimer: I was invited for Asado’s special Menu-tasting for the Taste of Dubai 2013. The visuals of the Chef, the Sirloin and the Creme Caramel belong to The Palace Downtown. While you enjoy reading a post with a lot of visuals, please don’t use them as some of them may have been taken from our personal albums, just to make your reading experience more pleasurable. You can see more pictures of my travel and food journey here.