When I learnt that British chef Darren Velvick was leaving the helm at Table 9 at the Hilton Dubai Creek, I admit I panicked a little. His heart, he told me, wasn’t in fine dining. Luckily, this gifted chef didn’t go far. Velvick, the recipient of a US$50,000 (Dh183,647) award as part of Marriott International’s Project Canvas (a campaign to get talented chefs to develop home-grown restaurants in the region), started working on The Croft – a concept inspired by his childhood in Hampstead Norreys, a tiny village in Berkshire in United Kingdom.
The Croft, inside the Dubai Marriott Harbour Hotel in the marina, does not have that small, old-country village feel, but it does immediately elicit a sense of comfort and “home” – wherever that may be. At the entrance, there is a room to the right with a pool table surrounded by a handful of casual dining tables. There is also a row of tables in front of the central open kitchen, partially separated by large pillars. Velvick is there, busily preparing dishes behind the curved wood-front counter sprinkled with neatly stacked plates and bowls, potted herbs and jars of spices.
It is homey, comfortable, inviting and so beautifully laid out that it could easily be the setting for a television cookery show.
There are chalkboard specials posted on the wall along with an assortment of chalk graffiti throughout the dimly lit restaurant. Just as Velvick intended, this is most definitely not a fine-dining atmosphere. It is casual and friendly; unpretentious, yet still refined. On the night of our visit, Jane, the restaurant’s manager, served us. He was pleasant, efficient and sincere – it was refreshing to see that waiting tables was not beneath him.
We see Velvick’s talent straight away as we are presented with a cloth sack full of bread and two pots of butter, one of which is Velvick’s homemade brown butter that fans will remember from his time at Table 9. The brown butter is caramelised and bound with crème fraîche and lemon juice. Ask for an extra pot. You’ll want it.
Velvick’s inspired list of starters makes it hard to choose. The snails gratin we go for is our best move of the night. This dish excites all my senses. The perfectly crispy snails are swimming in a mouth-watering garlic butter and mushroom sauce and it’s difficult to not order another round. Just as impressive, the crispy scotch egg is stands so perfectly on its own that it doesn’t need the burnt onion ketchup it is served with. But that ketchup adds another layer of flavour, another detail, a bit more interest – and that’s what Velvick does so well.
This is hearty, classic British food, but upgraded as it is made with the signature style of a contemporary chef who knows his craft. My beef cheek and truffle mash main course comes as a mound of meat carefully set atop a pile of truffle mashed potatoes. The salty braised beef is juicy, tender and rich. Packed with flavour and well-seasoned, the sides of roasted carrots and sautéed spinach are not an afterthought.
The Desperate Dan pie is stuffed with braised beef cheek, beef tongue and onions. It is a hearty, savoury mess, enveloped in what’s described as “mum’s crust pastry” (it is endearing that Velvick would use his mum’s pastry recipe in a restaurant inspired by his childhood).
The desserts are less inspiring than the rest of the menu. We chose the puff buns (profiteroles) and the warm chocolate – a fairly standard, rich fondant. Neither dessert stands out, nor do they seem to have a significant Velvick-inspired twist, though the fondant was topped with crispy cornflakes that did add textural interest to the dessert.
It was a risk – and must have been nerve-racking – for Velvick to leave the comfort of an established restaurant such as Table 9 and take his idea to fruition, but the risk has paid off. In a city littered with mediocre concepts, The Croft is a breath of fresh air.
• Our meal for two at The Croft cost Dh480. Reviewed meals are paid for by The National and conducted incognito
sjohnson@thenational.ae
