Aprons & Hammers is not your average restaurant. For a start, it is located on a converted dhow, meaning that our evening began with a sunset meander up a long jetty inside Dubai International Marine Club. There's nothing like a salty sea breeze for working up an appetite. Inside, it's all rather cozy and relaxed with plenty of wood panelling, fishing nets dangling from the ceiling, chopping boards and those all-important hammers decorating the tables. Although there is a separate list of seafood-dominated main courses (fillet of the day, fish and chips, marinara pasta, etc), it's hard to ignore the list of crustaceans under the "What We Do Best" heading. This includes prawns, mussels, crab and lobster, served in small or large portions with a selection of sauce accompaniments. We decided to take the menu at its word and ordered prawns, mussels and crab along with a variety of sauces and side orders of fries and coleslaw. Before all that, we shared a portion of crunchy, lightly breaded calamari and a dish of steamed clams. These were great: small, chewy and briny, spiked with lemon juice, a lick of garlic and a dusting of chopped parsley. No sooner had we finished the last one, then three large pots piled high with prawns, mussels and crab, all steaming hot and garnished with wedges of lemon, descended on the table. There is no standing on ceremony or swapping of plates or cutlery between courses here; it's all about getting involved and enjoying the experience. We donned our aprons, brandished our hammers and set about doing just that. Cracking open the crab claws and extracting meat from their bodies is certainly fun, but unfortunately, the small crabs had been overcooked and as a result, the meat was rather mushy. Not terrible by any means, but just a little disappointing after putting in the effort to extract the flesh. The prawns, on the other hand, were excellent: large, supple and meaty, charred on the outside and succulent in the centre. They tasted equally good eaten alone or dipped into a piquant garlic and chilli-soused olive oil dressing. The lemon-butter sauce was also nice: rich and glossy with a welcome citrus tang, and the coleslaw was creamy and crunchy, just as it should be. The only real let-down of the whole meal were the mussels, which tasted, rather scarily, as though they had been left to sit, uncooked, in their own juices for far too long. Mussels are supposed to taste of the sea: fresh and salty. These had a very pungent, off-putting flavour and were best avoided. Although friendly and well meaning, the service was pretty slap-dash and could do with an injection of energy. Given that the restaurant wasn't busy, we waited far longer than necessary for our order to be taken and despite asking two different waiters, my friend's request for extra lemon wedges and mayonnaise took so long to arrive that we'd finished eating by the time they did. That said, I would definitely return. In a city filled with expensive restaurants with fine dining aspirations (which often fail to deliver on their promises), this unpretentious seafood shack is a very welcome addition.
GMT 08:34 2017 Saturday ,30 December
Cheesed off: Italian regions highly strung over mozzarellaGMT 07:53 2017 Sunday ,03 December
Naples pizza twirling seeks nod as UNESCO 'intangible'GMT 15:38 2017 Thursday ,30 November
Japan and China dominate list of world's top restaurantsGMT 16:04 2017 Saturday ,25 November
Effort under way to save historic McDonald's "Store No. 1"GMT 11:32 2017 Wednesday ,15 November
Enjoy a Timeless Festive Celebration at The St. Regis Saadiyat Island Resort, Abu DhabiGMT 18:43 2017 Sunday ,29 October
Sands gambles on new London-themed resort in MacauGMT 06:07 2017 Wednesday ,25 October
McDonald's profits jump as it eyes more home deliveryGMT 23:29 2017 Monday ,16 October
Lisbon's first Syrian restaurant a welcome sign for refugeesMaintained and developed by Arabs Today Group SAL.
All rights reserved to Arab Today Media Group 2021 ©
Maintained and developed by Arabs Today Group SAL.
All rights reserved to Arab Today Media Group 2021 ©
Send your comments
Your comment as a visitor