Tasca by chef José Avillez: why first impressions count
We arrive a little early for a 7pm booking on a Friday at Tasca, Portuguese chef José Avillez’ first international restaurant at the Mandarin Oriental Jumeirah Dubai.
Our ‘welcome’ greeting from the hostess: Would you mind just waiting on the side over there? [points to some high tables by the open-plan kitchen.]
Me: No. We’re a little early [6.40pm] as we want to catch the sunset.
She then shows us to a table, but it’s indoors, not on the terrace, which I specifically highlight in the requests section of the online booking. So I ask for another table, of which there are plenty.
Hostess: We allocate those tables on a first come, first serve basis.
Me: Well we are here now and there are plenty of free tables.
I sense they are stressed, and as I spot some cocktail tables by the outdoor bar, I suggest we have a drink there until they are ready to give us a terrace table. Off we trot. I have to request the drinks list as we are ignored. We place our order, and drinks arrive promptly.
At 6.50pm, another hostess arrives: Can I show you to your table?
Me: But we’re having our drinks? Once we’re finished we will move to the table.
Hostess: OK – but we can only keep the table for 15 minutes as others will see and want it.
Me: That’s fine as our table reservation is for 7pm.
At 7pm the hostess returns to escort us to our al fresco table. Dreamy rooftop and infinity pool location aside, we have full view of a gang of boisterous bathers. When you know you’re gonna pay a premium, one expects a little decorum for dinner, n’est-ce pas?
So the start of our evening leaves a sour taste. If I wasn’t reviewing, I would have walked out. First impressions always count, and sadly Tasca does everything possible NOT to impress us on arrival – unlike Jose’s two Michelin star restaurant in Lisbon – Belcanto – which ticks every box and more over lunch nearly three years ago. Such a shame given Tasca’s modern Portuguese fare is delicious, and the location is eye-catching.
The menu is simply divided into ‘small bites’; ‘dishes to share’; ‘vegetarian’; and ridiculously overpriced ‘Tasca specials’. In discussion with our friendly waiter who knows his ingredients, we settle on two small bites, two shareable dishes and one side dish from the veggie section – but the portion sizes of the ‘dishes to share’ are teeny for one person, let alone two. If a restaurant’s menu is engineered for sharing, surely the portions should allow for just that? Not at Tasca though, where one has to order a minimum of seven to eight dishes between two (excluding dessert) to fill the tummy…which leads to a pricey bill. A descriptor of ‘petiscos’ (Portuguese tapas) might be more apt, whilst also briefing the staff to explain the small portions.
Homemade bread is served with some smoked butter, marinated Kalamata olives, and oddly, hummus. Tasca’s version replaces chickpeas with lupin beans, but the flavour remains unchanged. I would expect a more potent Portuguese twist on hummus from Jose’s team.
Thankfully, the Portuguese flavours come through with the rest of our dishes. Our two ‘bites’ from the menu are delectable – a couple of tempura cod cake ‘balls’, along with a sliver of a foie gras tartine topped with dried raspberries and Parmesan shavings. Both marry savoury and sweet flavours with plenty of texture.
A grilled scarlet shrimp more commonly known as giant carabineros is butterflied in a moreish butter and olive oil sauce. But with only one sole shrimp, there’s just not enough flesh for one, let alone two people. We find ourselves using our fingers to squeeze out as much as we can. No finger bowl is offered, which we have to request – only to be served with cold towels, which don’t quite do the job.
The tender brown meat of a piri piri chicken is char-grilled with a slight hint of smokiness. It arrives on a wooden board with a cone of chunky chips that would benefit from double frying. A piri piri mayo and a smoked avocado cream with some chilli oil are served as spicy dips. Not realising the chicken is served with chips, I had ordered a side of sweet potato and broccolini, which is served in a bowl oozing with a wonderfully smooth and decadent béarnaise sauce.
We’re still hungry though, so we order an additional dish. Octopus is chopped and roasted in the Portuguese ‘lagareiro’ cooking style with baby potatoes and lots of garlic – served in a small bowl. Delicious, but we need more.
We share the mandarin orange dessert – a ‘mandarin’ shell that our waiter encourages us to crack open ourselves to reveal mandarin ice cream. A sweet version of Heston Blumenthal’s famous chicken liver parfait, and much copied by many a chef, Jose can’t be attributed for innovation here, however it does make for a refreshing and delightful ending.
Tasca is busy, mainly with in-house hotel guests though, which contributes to a touristic atmosphere. Aside from our main waiter, the service continues to be shambolic. Different waiters bring out the dishes, some accompanied with explanations, others not. Our starter dishes are left on the side, which we have to ask to be cleared, as well as to request clean plates for our main courses. Despite ordering our desserts, another waiter returns to take our order. This continuous series of errors is unacceptable for a José Avillez restaurant that has been operational for six weeks at the time of dining, AND one that boasts a minimum price point of AED300 per person (without alcohol).
The redeeming factor of our dining experience is the excellent food. This brings me on to a regular challenge with dining out here. For licensed restaurants in Dubai to impress and encourage loyalty, the food needs to be good, of course, but the service needs to wow (more so than the food) for me to return. Otherwise, one might as well order delivery. At this price point in a luxurious hotel location, decent food alone is not enough to warrant a repeat visit. And for that, it’s an average three out of five FooDiva knife rating.
How do you prioritise food and service for high-end licensed restaurants?
A bientôt.
FooDiva. x
What a shame to be reading these comments re: service. I have been planning of a visit and to be frank, would have expected MUCH more at least in terms of service. I think I will give it more time and wait to see if they can work their magic with training etc. I would like my experience to be more memorable than this.
Thank you for sharing Samantha x
Hi Marissa. Jose Avillez himself responded privately to me within half an hour of this review going live, and has taken the feedback constructively, so I hope we will see an overhaul of their front of house operation soon. Yes give it a little more time 🙂