Unlicensed to thrill at Lana Lusa
Lana Lusa is a new homegrown Dubai restaurant from the team behind La Cantine du Faubourg and Ninive, paying serious homage to the Portuguese owner, Jessica Viveiro. Set in Jumeirah’s Wasl 51 complex, this little corner of Portugal is hidden by a verdant terrace that transports diners to the intimate, family-run restaurants of the Bairro Alto in Lisbon. The interior is laden with Portuguese artefacts, reflecting the genuine love and care instilled into the venue.
A busy district like Al Wasl is never easy for parking, but once we do, we are welcomed warmly and graciously before being escorted to our seats on the garden terrace. My sweet tooth spots the pastry counter that Lana Lusa is renowned for (think pasteis de nata) and we agree to save plenty of room to try these out. Almost immediately, we are aware of the music which is as soft and subtle as the golden décor that holds an open plan kitchen. A quick check via Shazam confirms the authentic Portuguese Fado melodies, adding the perfect background to our cosy meal. Lana Lusa also features live music on Thursday, Friday and Saturday evenings.
Lana Lusa is unlicensed, but with a range of mocktails and non alcoholic wines. The Lusa Spritz and the Spanish Espora sparkling wine made a refreshing change to typical non-boozy choices and complement our food selection. Rather predictably, only imported English water is available at AED29 a bottle. Imported Portuguese would be acceptable, but surely a missed chance for a homegrown concept to showcase local water.
The menu is brimming with big dishes and real flavours best shared across the table. Finally, a restaurant that can genuinely serve à la minute, as we order from the strongest part of the menu – the hot and cold starters designed to be shared. Polvo marinado com tomate e coentros is a cute dish presenting soft, marinated octopus in ceramic sardine tins, alongside lightly grilled bread. It really is the most pleasing of dishes and definitely an upmarket version of sardines on toast. Gambas com alho is well worth saving some of the toast for, to mop up the gorgeously acidic juices that the prawns lie in. Our final starter – croquetes de carne – a veal and beef croquette lifted by a subtle peri peri mayo. I would quite happily reorder the octopus and prawns, but I know that I need room for pastries.
Arroz de tamboril is the headline dish of the main courses and it’s not hard to see why. Generous chunks of braised monkfish are buried in a clay pot full of rice, peppers, onion and tomatoes. This is an incredibly moreish dish, and monkfish is perfect to add body to a dish that could be lacking texture otherwise. Why is it that dishes like these (think boullaibaise, orzo and risotto) that are originally designed to feed the poor are the ones that taste the best? Classic Portuguese home cooking that leaves you happy and full. My dining companion is a Lisbon regular and he immediately chooses the bacalhau à Brás, nodding with pleasure at how similar this salted cod with potatoes and eggs is to the Portuguese signature dish.
Dessert time and here we make a minor mistake. We should have ordered purely from the pastry counter but are seduced by the offerings on the menu. Vienetta with hot chocolate sauce is exactly that and while tasty, is slightly uninspiring. However, the inspirational – but French classic – La Poire belle Hélène is a dish that I know well, yet the presentation here is different. An enormous knickerbocker glory-style tower of vanilla ice cream covers slices of pear, dipped in chocolate sauce, and topped with sliced almonds. An almighty sentence to describe an almighty dessert. “I am not eating all of this” are the last words I utter before I do, indeed, polish it off. I would prefer a more refined version, but this is definitely a naughty dessert worth trying.
After so many fulfilling and filling starters and mains, I am completely stuffed, but I know that I cannot leave without trying the infamous pasteis de nata, the humble custard tart – priced at AED12. Slightly burnt with a dusting of cinnamon, I could easily eat ten of these rich, soft, sugary, buttery tarts. As Lana Lusa is open all day for breakfast and lunch, I will return to enjoy solely tarts and coffee on the sunny terrace. Note – true to my word, I visit the following day for pasteis de nata.
Overall, Lana Lusa is a welcome addition to the Dubai restaurant scene, and certainly that of Al Wasl’s. Humble food cooked well, and an authentic interior are clear strengths. Supplemented by friendly and discreet service, comfortable atmosphere and a prime location, Lana Lusa is definitely worth a visit. Based on the standard three courses each for the purpose of the review (even though we order more), the price point is just under a value-for-money AED200 per person. A bit of extra help choosing the dishes as we definitely over-ordered; local water; and a stronger nod to Portuguese desserts are the only minor improvements I would recommend. For that, it’s an excellent four out of five FooDiva knife rating.
As this is the first restaurant that I have reviewed for FooDiva without an alcohol licence, I was intrigued as to how much I would enjoy it. Safe to say, the menu at Lana Lusa certainly gives me a thrill. What other unlicensed, homegrown gems am I missing out on?
Matt Broderick
Who is guest reviewer Matt? A father and husband with an obsession for French wine and food, he loves nothing more than trying new restaurants and dishes with his wife and friends. Travel plans are always made around food and he can remember what he was doing on any given day by recalling the meal that he ate. His favourite chefs at the moment are Burcu Eralp, Will Stanyer and Tommy Banks. You can follow him on Instagram @finediningmatt
You missed the most delicious item on the menu! I crave the Prego – a warm beef sandwich that is perfect any time of day. You need to return to try this…
Hey Natasha. Samantha here. I popped by myself last weekend. Didn’t order the prego, but gorged on plenty of other delicious carby dishes. It’s one of those menus that encourages you to return to try other dishes. Cannot wait for my next visit 🙂
I don’t agree with the review of Lana Lusa, the food was definitely not good with hardly any offerings for vegetarians. I think you need more guest reviewers from different walks and parts of the world who may not be so generous in their reviews…
A question did not the DM ask restaurants and hotels to provide tap if the guest asked for it?
Thanks for taking the time to comment. Can I ask what you didn’t enjoy about the food? I am not sure what Lana Lusa’s position is on dietary requirements – but what I will say is that not every restaurant likes to cater to vegetarian/ vegan requests. Did you feed that back to the team at the time?
There has been much public discussion on making local or tap filtered water at restaurants mandatory, but, as far as am aware, nothing has been enforced yet.
If you have been following FooDiva for a while, I think you will find that Matt is always fair and constructive in his feedback, and in some cases has even been accused of being too critical. All we can do is report on the experience at that particular time. Lack of consistency can sometimes be an issue with restaurants, in particular in the early opening period, so perhaps it didn’t fare as well for you. Like with restaurants and their menus, we too as publishers and writers cannot be all things to all people.
Have a wonderful weekend 🙂