Review: Zhen Wei, Dubai

Staring at the roof isn’t a recommended way to begin a meal at a restaurant. But at Zhen Wei, the pan-Asian restaurant in Caesars resort on Bluewaters Island, it’ll help you decide what to order for your first course. The roof comprises of the woven thatch motif, similar to the one found on the cover of a dim sum basket, and hence we began by ordering from the dim sum menu.

An unconventional choice is the chicken soup Xiao Long Bao – a dumpling served on a soup spoon and filled with a thin flavourful chicken soup. Pop the dumpling with your gold-tipped chopstick, drink the soup and then eat the dumpling. Two other excellent choices from the dim sum menu include the four seasons shrimp crystal bag, which has shitake along with orange and green tobiko fish roe, and the scallop with lobster siew mai served with a very well done ginger-garlic soy sauce.

If you’re still peckish for more starters, try the creamy, comforting laksa seafood noodle soup or crispy deep-fried calamari served with chipotle-chilli dressing.

There are a few sharing-style main course dishes, referred to as Large Plates, but the stand out is the black tea-smoked seabass which comprises of a succulent, mildly sweet, chilean seabass served with a pomelo salad. The mapo doufu and side of wok fried-rice provide a satisfying end to the mains.

The desserts aren’t a drill here – there’s plenty to choose from including the crispy papaya puff, an apple sticky rice cake and also the fried red bean balls covered in sesame, all of which keep the levels of fine dining, innovation and layers of flavour at the same level that you’d come to expect by the time you reach the desserts.