Tatel review: Restaurant backed by Ronaldo and Nadal brings Spanish fine dining to Dubai

Chef Maestro lives up to his name with slow-cooked beef ribs dish – and more – that’s hard to beat

The glazed slow-cooked beef short ribs, which take 18 hours in the oven, are served with rice. Phil Johnson / The National

The best beef short ribs I have ever tasted. That is my top takeaway from Tatel, the latest addition to Downtown Dubai’s burgeoning fine-dining circuit.

The restaurant opened at Hotel Boulevard, Autograph Collection last month and has hit the ground running, living up to its promise to serve up haute Spanish cuisine in an ambient 1920s-style venue. Co-founded by football, tennis and basketball superstars Cristiano Ronaldo, Rafael Nadal and Pau Gasol, the brand launched in Madrid in 2014 and has since expanded to Ibiza, Beverly Hills, Mexico City, Riyadh and Valencia.

It arrives in Dubai with a big reputation, one that has been growing around the world. Indeed, USA Today lists Tatel as a fine-dining establishment worth flying to. An hour-long drive from Abu Dhabi must be worth the effort, then, I conclude. And so my dining partner and I drive down Sheikh Zayed Road from the capital, arriving at Tatel intrigued to find out what all the fuss is about.

Where to sit and what to expect

After being greeted like celebrities at the grand double-door entrance, we are escorted inside to a marble-topped table for two. It is still bright outside so our eyes need to adjust as we enter a luxurious and charming interconnected space dimly lit by the soft glow of antique-style ceiling and table lamps.

Cobbled flooring, plush chairs, dark wood panelling and the rich, warm hues of maroon create an intimate, ambient atmosphere. The dining area has an open kitchen and there are private spaces available for a VIP service. Tatel also has a garden terrace that will be open in the cooler winter months and that frames Burj Khalifa as a picture-perfect backdrop.

Our immediate backdrop, though, is a small stage where a pop duet later begin a set, their warm, rhythmic sounds of Spain giving off Mediterranean beach resort vibes.

The menu

Jose, our charming waiter from the Dominican Republic, talks us through the options and offers to make recommendations. The menu has meat, vegetarian and seafood dishes, each prepared with Spanish-imported and local ingredients, he explains. We take up his suggestion of signature dishes to share for a quintessential Tatel experience.

Crusty warm bread and Spanish olive oil arrive first before we tuck in to Iberian Cecina croquettes (Dh70), beautifully served from a bed of hot stones. Crisp golden potato stuffed with cured beef and rich bechamel sauce stimulates memories for my taste buds of haggis and peppercorn sauce. The prawn (Dh70) and mushroom (Dh65) croquettes are equally delicious, while the Cecina de Leon Iberian cured beef (Dh125) is an excellent cold starter choice for those who – like me – appreciate the full flavour of traditional dry-aged Spanish jerky.

Sticking with signature dishes, our evening highlight comes next. Arroz Tatel con costilla de vacuno (Dh340) is a sharing platter of glazed slow-cooked beef short ribs served with rice. The marinated melt-in-the-mouth meat apparently takes 18 hours to cook in the oven, locking in the lip-smacking flavour. I’ve enjoyed ribs in more than a few locations, but nothing comes close to this. The sharing platter, however, leads to a passive-aggressive fork fight for the flaky and flavoursome final mouthful.

I win and concede some Jasper-grilled asparagus (Dh55) in return. It is an ideal side dish accompaniment to the sensational ribs. We are already more than satisfied, but Jose insists we try Tatel’s famous cheesecake, nuestra famosa tarta de queso (Dh65) for dessert.

Incredibly creamy with a crisp coating and gooey centre, the traditional Basque region speciality is quickly devoured even though we are already full to bursting.

A chat with the chef

Head chef Alejandro Maestro is a man who clearly lives up to his name in the kitchen. He arrived in Dubai after two years at Tatel’s Riyadh branch and five spent where it all began in Madrid before that.

Brimming with enthusiasm for this exciting new project in Dubai, chef Maestro isn’t giving away any secrets about his majestic ribs recipe but is delighted with my feedback. “We have done a deep search into the available produce to ensure we are sourcing the absolute best and bringing the real taste of Spain to Dubai,” he says.

Price point and contact information

Appetisers start at Dh60, mains start at Dh95 and desserts start at Dh50.

Tatel is open from 7pm to 1am from Sunday to Wednesday, and from 7pm to 2am from Thursday to Saturday. Reservations can be made by calling 04 215 2121 or visiting tatelrestaurants.com.

This review was conducted at the invitation of the restaurant