Located at the heart of the FIVE Palm Jumeirah, trendy Maiden Shanghai is not only renowned for its quality modern Chinese cuisine, it also boasts stunning views across the Marina, a fully-equipped karaoke room, lively bar and a number of popular private dining spaces. The restaurant draws in a fun crowd of Dubai’s party seekers particularly on Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays when there are some great deals on sundowner cocktails to be enjoyed al fresco on their beautiful Maiden’s terrace and a very popular Dim Sum disco brunch. Inside, the décor is bright and contemporary with floor to ceiling windows allowing in plenty of light. Come dusk and the venue is spacious enough for dancing and revelry late into the night.
As the name suggests, the menu from chef Bing Luo is inspired largely by his time spent exploring the region of Shanghai; a melting pot of cultural influences with a fusion of different Chinese flavours. His brasserie style menu is based on old family recipes, revived with a modern twist. Start with Boom Boom shredded organic chicken with scallions and homemade pancakes; Spanish octopus in a hot and sour sauce; or share a Dim Sum platter with fillings that include Wagyu beef, mushroom, shrimps and steamed chicken.
Main courses are divided between meat and poultry options; seafood; vegetables and tofu; and rice and noodle dishes. For those struggling to decide the chef’s signature dishes are a great place to start. Stand out choices include Kung Pao lobster marinated and cooked in one of Szechuan’s most famous sauces; classic braised organic chicken with wild mushrooms in a traditional Mala hot clay pot; and Char Siu black Angus rib eye beef prepared in the classic Catonese way to enhance the sweet and rich flavours of the BBQ meat.
Desserts focus on Asian ingredients; white chocolate coconut yuzu cake comes with a refreshing yuzu coconut sorbet and yuzu sauce; a black sesame fondant is topped with vanilla ice cream and a sesame tuile; and a green tea orange tart comprises white chocolate and orange crème, green tea namelaka, homemade orange jam and marinated orange.