Does Rare 'enchant and engage'?

Impartial restaurant reviews. No-freebies, no-invitations editorial policy.

Whilst I have been publishing restaurant reviews on my FooDiva website for over 13 years, reviews from today onwards will be housed here on Substack - and linked back on the site with its strong search engine. So you can discover my content from whichever platform you prefer.

A reminder that all my reviews continue to abide by my no-freebies, no-invitations editorial policy. It’s quite simple - I always pay the bill. No receipt means no review and no mention here. For more on my editorial policy, have a read here.

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When I am selecting restaurants to review, aside from my homegrown-only criterion, I tend to run a mile from those inviting all and sundry for freebie meals. But…the menu at a new Dubai restaurant in City Walk’s licensed district has me intrigued. Rare, by restaurateur Sahil Anand, who opened (and closed) CMP on the Palm is not a typical steakhouse. Whilst eight steaks will battle for your order, it’s the rest of the menu that has me drooling. The influence of consultant chef, New Zealander Jesse Blake, who you may recall from Lowe, is evident with his trademark style of quirky ingredients and unconventional pairings.

So I book a Sunday lunch (under a pseudonym, of course), purposely avoiding dinner - the meal of choice for the invitees, from what I spot online. I manage to sneak in and out completely anon, which makes my job so much easier.