Surrounded by water and sand, when it comes to beachside bars, Dubai is in no shortage. The latest addition is Cove Beach and it is located within the Jumeirah Beach Hotel complex. Quickly becoming one of Dubai’s favorite night and day time beach escapades, the venue is unique in that it offers a restaurant, bar and beach lounge that can be experienced over dinner, drinks, partying and even sunbathing. We try it for ourselves.
The venue is stunning. Contemporary and minimalist in decor, the white edifice of Cove Beach is divided into several levels: an indoor and outdoor restaurant overlooking a small swimming pool, which seems more like a decorative element than an actual pool; a bar area that is perfect for sundowners and a beach with many sun loungers for a day on the sand. All areas boast stunning views of the Burj Al Arab and are close enough to each other that the enticing tunes from the resident live DJ can be heard throughout. I was particularly charmed by the ambiance of the main restaurant. With its black and white contemporary photography aligning the walls, high ceilings and tables placed with just enough space between them, the mood was swanky, cool and sexy. Akin to beachfront bars in Miami and Monaco, this was a place made for the hip crowd.
It was a Saturday night and the restaurant wasn’t full except for a long table dedicated to a birthday party. Taking in the scene and delighted by the view, we were soon disappointed by the service which seemed exceptionally slow for a restaurant that wasn’t fully booked. A friendly waiter soon made his way to our table and expressed his apologies, offered us a glass of wine and took our order. For starters, we chose Burrata with cherry tomatoes, rocket salad topped with pesto sauce;sautéed prawns with homemade guacamole, citrus fruit mayonnaise and mesclun salad and sautéed baby calamari with black olives, parsley and confit cherry tomatoes. The sautéed prawns and calamari were tasty enough, but seemed overdone by lots of condiments and didn’t offer the fresh taste that one would expect of such dishes. For my main course, I chose spaghetti tossed with calamari, cherry tomato, basil and cream sauce. Once again, the dish, like the other starters, had potential, but was soaked in cream so much so that I missed the tastes of the calamari. A lovely dessert of Tiramisu made our way along with green tea to finish the meal. Sweet, light and airy, the Tiramisu was done to perfection.
As we made our way out of the restaurant the birthday party had just begun and sounds of the DJ were in the air. We were almost moved to dance. A great place it is for a night of partying.
At present Cove Beach is a wonderful venue for a day at the beach while listening to catchy electronic sounds or sipping a few sundowners while admiring a breathtaking view of the Burj Al Arab, but if it wants to compete with the city’s other top notch restaurants on a premiere level, it needs to work on its menu. Return we definitely would for a day of sun, sand and a few drinks.
Cove Beach is located at Jumeirah Beach Hotel. Tel: 800 2683 www.covebeach
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