TimeOut Abu Dhabi – April 24, 2019

timeoutabudhabi.com April 24 – 30 2019 23

A special

Tom Aikens on his new

Abu Dhabi restaurants,

collaborating with Gary

Rhodes and why he’s

not sold on chocolate-

covered scorpions.

By Harriet Shephard

AS THE HOTTEST new hotel in town, we’re

pretty sure most of you will be well aware

of the Abu Dhabi EDITION by now.

The hipster-friendly venue at Al Bateen

Marina boasts understated glamour, an

incredible three-tier bar and club, and perhaps

most importantly, three superb restaurants.

British celebrity chef Tom Aikens is the

brains behind the Oak Room, Alba Terrace and

Market at EDITION, and we were lucky enough

to catch up with the Londoner during his latest

visit to the capital.

How did you end up working here in Abu Dhabi?

The EDITION team Àrst asked me to come and

work here a couple of years ago. We then did

a lot of research into the restaurants here

and what seems to be working. We wanted

to do something a little bit different, but also

something that would Àt with the clientele.

It was important to me that all three

restaurants offered something very different,

and had different price points, too.

Oak Room has a very different vibe to the other

steakhouses here doesn’t it?

It’s a premium restaurant but we didn’t want

it to be Àne dining. So we decided to call it a

British rock’n’ roll steakhouse, just to keep

it cool and funky. Playing ’60s and ’70s pop

music kind of gives it an informal feel, too.

The majority of the steak restaurants here

serve wagyu beef. There’s nothing wrong with

that but we wanted to do something different.

So we have wagyu but we also have Japanese,

Irish, Spanish and American beef. We use

some classic British Áavours, too, dishes like

scallops with a mango chutney piccalilli and

oysters with a celery jelly.

“Out of all

the menus,

the most

research

went into

the one at

Market”

Why did you decide to hire a meat sommelier?

We wanted someone who was very

knowledgeable but also expressive and

creative as a chef. So that’s why we have

Charlie Grainger. He’s able to give guests a

bit of background on the beef they are eating,

explaining how it’s cut and what it tastes like.

I think that really sets the tone for a meal at

Oak Room nicely. He’s got the character and

personality for it as well.

How did you come up with the menu at Market?

People tend to think that healthy food is

boring, bland and tasteless, so I’ve tried to

make sure that it all looks great and tastes

amazing. I wanted to do a whole menu without

using any cream or butter, and for a chef who

has been using those ingredients throughout

his whole career, it was a big ask. But I just

wanted to see if I could do it, and I did. Out of

all the menus, the most research went into

the one at Market. Dishes like the poke bowls

just have so many ingredients in them. It was

a lot of fun, though, and I really enjoyed it.

And Alba Terrace is Mediterranean food?

Yes, Alba has a really nice and balanced menu

of salads, Àsh, meat, pasta and risottos. It’s a

really peaceful and informal place to eat. All

the restaurants are.

What do you think of the hotel itself?

I love the hotel. I saw it for the Àrst time three

years ago when it was just a concrete shell, so

I’ve really seen it grow. The style of the service

is very approachable and easy going, and

some of the other hotels here are so formal.

It’s a happy, friendly environment and the

lobby has a natural warmth to it.

Is working in Abu Dhabi very different to Dubai?

It has a slower pace, which I like, and it’s

more conservative. There’s such a huge

choice of restaurants in Dubai, so the

customers are perhaps more demanding

and a bit more Àckle.

Are you friends with any of the other British chefs

who work out here?

I see Jason Atherton a lot and I want to try and

do something with Gary Rhodes. He’s one of

the iconic British chefs and he was one of the

Àrst to come out to the Middle East.

Have you had chance to do any sightseeing here?

A bit, but my schedules are always busy so

it’s difÀcult. But I’ve been to the Louvre and

on a desert safari. It’s nice to do these kind of

things, and I always try to get out one evening.

You were the youngest chef to get two Michelin

stars, are you still quite ambitious?

Yes I’d say that I’ve still got the Àre. I like

travelling and going to other countries. That

way you get to meet interesting people, try

different foods and experience other cultures.

It can be quite tiring but there are far worse

things to complain about.

Where have you been recently?

I went to Mexico for the Àrst time recently and

as a chef I think it’s one of the best places to

go because the food is amazing. The produce

is incredible with such fresh limes and mind-

blowing avocados. The markets in Mexico

City were hilarious. Some of the Àsh was

refrigerated but all the meat was out on slabs

in the sunshine. There was also a vast array of

cockroaches, spiders and scorpions, all fried

or covered in chocolate. But I just couldn’t

bring myself to try one.

O The Abu Dhabi EDITION, Al Bateen Marina

(02 208 0000).

edition

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