Great Food and Stunning Views: Atrangi by Ritu Dalmia Is One Place You Don’t Want To Miss In Dubai
The sunroom of Atrangi | Photo provided by Atrangi
We review the restaurant that any Indian mother, grandmother, and great-grandmother would approve of
Nestled in Jumeirah Al Qasr is Atrangi, an Indian restaurant with a new twist, where when you leave you’ll feel like you left your Indian grandmother’s home- and even if you aren’t Indian and don’t have an Indian grandmother, you’ll feel like you have one by the time you leave. This is the ethos and inspiration behind Chef Ritu Dalmia in creating Atrangi. The idea is that guests feel like they have visited regional Indian communities, getting a sense of the Indian culture through regional spices, ancient grains, and superfoods. So not only will you leave full and content, you’ll leave feeling healthy and not bloated.
Chef Ritu Dalmia | Photo provided by Atrangi
But before getting into the food, can we talk about the ambience of getting to the restaurant? When you visit, you’ll arrive to the Jumeirah Al Qasr Hotel, located off of King Salman Bin Abdulaziz Al Saud Street. As you walk through the hotel you’ll be taken away with the quintessential Emirati ambience and design inside the lobby. Make your way down to the ground level and take an abra boat to Atrangi. The boat ride is like being in Venice, offering exotic views of Jumeirah Al Qasr’s villas, date palm trees, and Emirati mudbrick architecture.
As you enter the restaurant you’ll notice the design. This is Dalmia’s first Dubai restaurant. She has six restaurants in India and three in Italy. If you dine at Atrangi for lunch, sit in the sunroom. There are views of the water and palm trees, which adds a unique dining experience. If you look around, you’ll notice images of women from the illustration of a woman on the service plate, to the images of mature Indian women on the walls and drink coasters. This is the literal idea of being in your mother or grandmother’s dining room, that the restaurant exudes.
If you’re not familiar with Indian food, or even if you are, the best way to dine is with the tasting menu, with items under the new Menu III that launched on May 19th. The dishes in this menu set are all about memory, simplicity, and community. Dalmia dove deep into their historic meanings, adapting dishes from handwritten manuscripts. Other dishes are taken from the chef’s catering menus in India. Wide-ranging describes the menu, a culmination of culinary know-how from Atrangi Dubai and producers across the subcontinent.
“This menu has been a real labor of love — we’ve gone deep into regional kitchens, old family notes, and handwritten manuscripts to find dishes that deserve a wider audience,” says Dalmia in the new menu’s announcement notes. “It’s not just about what’s new or trendy, but what feels honest, nostalgic, and full of soul. Menu III reflects our roots, our community, and the joy of sharing food with meaning.”
Through a series of courses (4 starting courses), one main, and a dessert, your server will choose which dish suits best. Their small plates included the Daab Malai Chingri, a Bengali dish with mustard oil, marinated tender coconut, and fried vermicelli. Next the Naga Pickle Beef comes from the Nagaland part of India, an area known for their food preservation where they dry, smoke, and pickle their meats. The Pickeled Doodhi Smoked Dahi inspired from cooking in Kerala, an area in south India is made with bottle gourd, nut crumble, and smoked yoghurt. And the Bombay Batata Pao takes inspiration from the sandwiches that Bombay is known for.
There is a dedicated menu to cocktails divided into: fruity, floral, smoky, and spiced. The Ghee Old Fashioned is a good place to start that includes clarified butter washed bourbon, jaggery, house bitters and cinnamon. While the Rose Marianna is a sweet touch brought together with sparkling wine, peach and rose syrup, macerated strawberry, and cotton candy.
Take note of the design of the restaurant from the green design etched onto the tables, to the foliage inside, the weaved raffia on the chairs, and how it meshes with the water outside. It’s truly a magical place to dine, and in addition to the great food served is the ambience. Save room for dessert. We suggest if you can’t finish the mains, then have it boxed up and take it home so you have room for the sweet treat your server will choose for you. There are six dessert options, and the one chosen for us was Jhangori. Made with millet kheer ice cream, honey chip, and millet popcorn, it’s a nice fusion of sweet and salty. Millet is known for its health benefits for the heart and nervous system.
Part of Menu III, Jhangori is the perfect dessert with sweet and salty notes | Photo credit: SEELE
Chef Dalmia is a woman of vision and entrepreneurial prowess. Recognized by the Indian government for her business skills in Delhi, she champions people and mentors chefs and young people, and speaks out on issues important to her. The fact that she has so many restaurants, and is known for her events, global conferences, and weddings through her Diva Catering is a testament to the force that she is.
If you live in Dubai or are headed there soon, you must visit Atrangi for its rich flavors and the scenic views it takes to get there. One thing is for sure, we know we’ll be back.
Atrangi is open Monday to Sunday – Lunch: 12.00 PM – 15.00 PM, Dinner: 19.00 PM – 23.30 PM | Instagram- atrangi.dubai | Facebook- atrangidubai
