Ling Ling Dubai Near+Far rating: 8/10
Why book Ling Ling Dubai
‘Arrive early, leave late’ is the motto of Ling Ling Dubai – and that’s, unexpectedly, what we do, visiting on a Saturday night for dinner one year after the high-octane opening. As the most playful and flashy of Atlantis The Royal‘s seven star dining outlets, Ling Ling Dubai is the lively sister of Hakkasan (at Atlantis The Palm next door), bringing Tao Group’s Las Vegas energy to Dubai. The space occupies several floors looking out on the resort’s Cloud 22 sky pool and the ocean, encompassing terraces, dining areas, bars, and a secret club room – all guaranteeing a great night out. Ling Ling Dubai manages to deliver incredible high-quality cuisine with stunning city views and an insatiable vibe – plus the chance to continue the party into the small hours right on site. Guests can arrive early, have a drink on the terrace and head upstairs for dinner, full of contemporary Asian dishes, before moving to the vibey bar lounge, and finally, the Ultra Lounge opening -where you can stay until late, listening to electricity from Hip Hop to electronica. Dubai is Ling Ling’s fourth international outpost – joining Oslo, Marrakech and Mexico City.
The interiors
Colourful, dark, seductive and sumptuous with oriental touches – Ling Ling Dubai feels like a Las Vegas club restaurant, in a good way. There are plenty of white marble and gold touches, and the space is illuminated in a hot pink glow – a nod to Ling Ling’s neon pink emblem. There are plenty of green touches and ornate trees throughout – reminiscent of cherry blossoms – and a canopy of delicate floral displays appears on the ceiling. The main bar area is centred around a glossy marble bar with shiny bar seats and plush sofas with deep green velvet cushions. A real pull is the 180-degree panoramic view of the Atlantis the Royal resort looking onto Palm Jumeirah and the Dubai skyline – best seen from the window-side tables or out on the terrace.
The food and drink
Loing Ling Dubai offers the contemporary Asian cuisine the Tao Group and Hakkasan are known for, with a youthful and playful twist. The restaurant menu is vast and seriously impressive: small plates, salads, dim sum, robata, makizushi (the most commonly served sushi), sashimi and nigiri, noodles and rice and large plates – plus some extravagant ‘showstopping’ sharing platters of sushi and Kobe beef which are unequivocally Dubai and designed to impress. Nibbling on steamed edamame, we order a king crab and pomelo salad (AED220) – fresh and zingy – and the scallop crudo (AED140) – all to share, before sampling hot fishes like steaming crispy BBQ duck bao buns (AED120) and A5 wagyu skewers (AED185) – marbled and rich. Platters of sushi circulate the room, and while hard to resist, we save space for the largest plates – steaming platters of decadent noodles, fresh grills of meats and seafood, and inventive vegetarian dishes. Unctuous and glistening in sauce, the truffle Xo hand-cut noodles (AED155) serve as a delicious accompaniment to the Thai whole fried snapper – crispy, light and fresh with aromatic Thai flavours (AED695) – big enough to share between three alongside side dishes.
We wash courses down with a selection of cocktails, which, in Tao Grop style, are fresh, fruity, zingy and make use of house pours from a mixture of big-name brands and more artisanal liquors – such as Italicus bergamot and chili-infused benedictine. Cocktails are playfully insured by and named after destinations around the world, such as Dubai, Penang, Hong Kong, Japan, Korea and Taiwan. There’s a refreshingly inventive, and not sickly sweet, mocktail menu featuring ingredients like pear, rooibos team, miso caramel, egg white, matcha, coconut, yuzu and kaffir.
The vibe
Taoi Group prides itself on delivering incredible vibes, and Ling Ling Dubai is no different. Visiting on a Saturday night, every corner seems to be buzzing without feeling too packed, and the music is just loud enough – enough to table dance and build a vibe but still be able to talk to your tablemates. In the restaurant, the crows is elegant, grown up and dressy – with everyone from pretty young things to established couples and groups, while the bar packs a diverse and stylish crowd who hide away in cosy corners and perch at the glowing marble bar. At 11pm, the doors open to Ylra Lounge, an exclusive late-night hideaway accessed by a secret speak-easy-style corridor. Here, you can while away hours from Thursday to Sunday until 3am – with killer music, great cocktails and plenty of spots to both sit and dance.
Atlantis The Royal, Palm Jumeirah; linglingdubai.com, @linglingdubai
