The restaurant industry has a knack for mirroring the ebb and flow of societal moods and preferences. Dining spaces often adapt to shifts in socialising trends, and attuned chefs can detect when public tastes are about to pivot from ascetic to indulgent, or vice versa. But to dine at a restaurant that maps out the evolution of the culinary scene is much more difficult and rare.
Films have been great at this, think about The Godfather trilogy that tapped into America’s deep–rooted corruption in the 1980’s or the Netflix series Black Mirror envisioning AI’s future.
Just like a film, international influences and evolving food trends on the culinary scene tell a story, and Row on 45 by Jason Atherton has captured this seamlessly.
Those familiar with Atherton’s culinary career may remember Dubai playing an important role in his early years as a chef. In the early 2000s he served as head chef at Gordon Ramsay’s esteemed restaurant Verre, a time that he nostalgically recalls for its vegetables that “tasted of nothing” and long before he established his own global culinary empire.
Fast forward to today, not only are the vegetables bursting in flavour, but the entire dining landscape and culinary culture has transformed immensely.
Located on the 45th floor at Grosvenor House, Row on 45, short for “Refinement of Work” is a snapshot into Atherton’s impressive 37–year career.
It’s a vivid illustration of the skills and inspiration that Atherton has picked up over the years, whether from travelling or working shoulder to shoulder with some of the world’s most renowned chefs of our time. And like many chefs, Atherton’s culinary inventions are often born at home.
To reflect this, he designed his newest Dubai venue as an intimate 22–seater restaurant that aims to mirror the experience of dining at a friend’s home. But in this scenario, the ‘friend’ lives in a swanky penthouse, and happens to be the renowned Jason Atherton and his team of chefs.
Upon entering Row on 45, guests immediately feel at home in the cosy lounge styled after a living room. Plush velvet armchairs and custom–made mahogany furnishings are artfully arranged, creating an inviting space that is set against the sweeping views of Dubai’s skyline.
Here in the lounge, guests will start their 17–course “haute cuisine menu” presented in three acts — Act I: The Finest Welcome, Act II: The Pinnacle, and Act III: The Grand Finale.
Guests receive personalised envelopes with their names written on the back, akin to place cards at a formal dinner. Inside each envelope is a menu outlining the culinary journey ahead. Guests may peek at the menu immediately to see what delights are in store, or leave them sealed and trust the experience.
Act I opens with canapé–style bites, including a renowned variation of Chef Thomas Keller’s famous Oyster on Pearls, a dish that inspired Atherton following a visit at California restaurant The French Laundry. His version artfully balances poached oysters, silky tapioca, velvety béarnaise and pops of caviar, creating a harmony of textures. The next two canapés dive into his fascination with Japan, featuring Hokkaido scallops and Takoyaki. In fact, Japanese ingredients have been a cornerstone of Atherton’s culinary inspiration for a large part of his career.
During Act II, guests are ushered into the kitchen and dining room, where they will encounter a reinterpretation of one of his most emblematic dishes, the South Coast Turbot from his award–winning London restaurant, Pollen Street Social. This dish has been reimagined featuring a rare Japanese fish, Samegarei, a fantastic find from one of his trips to the country. This fish typically doesn’t travel beyond Japan’s borders, but is highly prized for its rich, fatty flavour — a refinement from Turbot.
A meticulously baked brioche is featured as a standalone dish. Glazed with UAE–sourced date syrup and dusted with sea salt, the head chef asserts “it deserves to be highlighted.’ As it should be. Bread is often an overlooked feature, but at Row on 45 they underscore the artful craft of bread baking.
The menu highlights include decadent Hokkaido sea urchin and expertly seared Wagyu beef. One dish features a generous portion of Chinese sturgeon caviar aged to perfection in Germany. It is served with smooth French Noirmoutier pureed potatoes, Atherton’s preferred choice for enjoying caviar. Guests will also get to taste Atherton’s famous bouillabaisse, the velvety seafood stew that he mastered under the tutelage of legendary chef Marco Pierre White.
The meal reaches its zenith in Act III, characterised by a distinct British Stilton custard, served with white chocolate. Three other desserts are enjoyed in the third room, the Chef’s library. This is the ultimate grand finale of the dinner, allowing guests to relax to a curated Chef’s playlist with tunes by Mark Knopfler, Brian Adams, and other classic hits.
As any Dubai food connoisseur would acknowledge, the city’s dining experiences are as rich as the different cultures that reside here. Yet, not every Dubai–based chef can convey this richness while bringing a smile to your face. Serving an exceptional meal might be a subtle form of soft power, but it’s certainly powerful nonetheless.
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