Restaurant review: Circo at the Intercontinental Abu Dhabi

The only element, indeed, that Circo needs to work on is its clientele and the ringmasters themselves.

On the casa de campo pizza, right, mango contrasted with mint and meat. Courtesy InterContinental Abu Dhabi

With its head chef picked from a television talent contest and a name that translates as “circus”, you might expect the Inter­Continental’s new Italian restaurant, Circo, to come replete with gimmicks at every turn.

Lord knows, the space had been crying out for a bit of pep – Circo’s compatriot predecessor Boccaccio felt about as vital and modern as a pair of bell-bottom trousers at a time when several fresh rivals in the city were serving up the culinary equivalent of a sharp Milanese suit.

What the latest venture from New York’s Maccioni Group – the people behind Le Cirque – manages to do, however, is inject character without going overboard on the bells and whistles.

The decor, for instance, is certainly quirky, full of hanging, translucent light shades in primary colours and quiet flamboyant touches such as bulbous floor-to-ceiling “cages”. The colourful wall of mask-like monkey faces next to the entrance is likely to feature in a few future selfies, too. In short, it’s arresting but not a freak show.

That tempered charisma extends to the menu. Lasagnetta might not seem the most inspired pick, but this isn’t just any-old lasagne – the lasagnetta di polenta featured baked layers of polenta with slow-cooked duck ragu and Gorgonzola. When we enquire whether it would be suitably sized for a first course, the waitress correctly noted that the dish is relatively small, but her cupped hands in the approximate shape of our starter couldn’t convey how dense it was – it was akin to eating a lasagne cake. That is a compliment, by the way.

My dining partner kept things lighter with involtini di bresaola (rolls of bresaola). The thinly sliced dried beef was stuffed with a tasty trio of goat’s cheese, ricotta and walnut, surrounded by a sparing selection of balsamic-glazed pears, additional candied walnuts and marinated yellow carrots. Not bad value for Dh75.

In a splendid display of never learning from my own overeating mistakes, the weighty lasagnetta didn’t deter my intrigue about the pizza selection.

We decided to compare notes between the classics selection and Circo’s specialities, ordering one from each side of the menu: a fairly traditional Toscana (tomato, mozzarella, wild mushrooms, beef sausage, ricotta and fresh chilli) versus a less-standard casa de campo (tomato, mozzarella, mango, chicken chorizo and mint pesto).

The former performed as you’d hope, with a crispy thin base – just the way my dining partner liked it. The latter was more of a conversation starter, with triangles of fruit contrasting sharply with the minty and meaty flavours. It was an acquired taste, perhaps, but I didn’t regret my comparative adventure for a mouthful (although I did have to request half be boxed up, so stuffed was I from the previous course).

Dolci time is rarely a chore and the Italian desserts were no different. The fantasia al cioccolato Valrhona (you probably don’t need to fire up Google Translate for that one) was beautifully presented, arriving with more elements than the periodic table – chiefly, a mini jam jar of trifle-ish panna cotta, a micro chocolate-lava cupcake and, top of the taste-bud test, chocolate ravioli squares.

The zuccotto al miele was nearly as notable: a deep-red, frozen cake decorated with, among other embellishments, honey, meringue swirls and raspberries.

The only elements that Circo needs to work on are its clientele and the ringmasters. The restaurant was quiet, with only a smattering of inquisitive diners, while the service veered from friendly to downright useless.

Still, once the customers start to roll up, roll up – yeah, sorry – Circo has the potential to be one of the jauntiest Italian spots in the city, and at a price that will suit most pockets, too.

• A meal for two at Circo, InterContinental Abu Dhabi costs Dh525. For more information, call 02 666 6888. Reviewed meals are paid for by The National and conducted incognito