Dubai Restaurant Review: Hoi An - Take 2

We were at Hoi An in the Shangri-la Hotel last month and my 5/5 review inspired one of our friends to suggest that the four of us go there for dinner since we hadn't seen each other in a couple of months (time flies so quickly!) The big question was whether it would live up to our previous fantastic experience. The answer was...almost but not quite. I wouldn't hesitate to eat here any time as the service is so warm and friendly and the food is excellent so it is still worth its 5/5 rating, I just think my menu choice wasn't the best last night and hence the less satisfying meal.

Hoi An is doing a special summer promotion fixed menu of AED 160 for 2 people which includes 2 starters to share, soup, 2 mains to share and 2 desserts to share. Fantastic value but I just didn't find the menu appealed to me and it wasn't suitable for my current 'restricted diet' since there were spring rolls (fried), crab cakes (wheat), spicy main courses and ice-cream (dairy). Our friends shared the promotion menu and they said it was really good, although the poultry (we think it was quail legs but we couldn't remember what the menu said and they were way too small for chicken) was extremely spicy - it couldn't be faulted for value for money though. I should have asked if the menu changes on a daily / weekly / fortnightly basis since I presume it would do to encourage people to keep coming back.

Simon and I both had rice paper rolls, which are Vietnamese spring rolls - rice paper with prawns, vegetables and coriander inside and served cold not fried. They were gorgeous and I much prefer these to the Chinese spring rolls. We had actually had a small 'amuse bouche' beforehand in The Balcony Bar next door since we'd arrived quite early - chicken satay which was tender and flavourful although it had sweet chili sauce on it and I prefer the more traditional Malaysian style with peanut sauce. Since Asian food in general is quite light, we were still able to easily eat our meal despite the double-starters...although we couldn't manage a dessert!

I ordered sea bass wrapped in a lotus leaf for my main. We celebrated our 1 year wedding anniversary at Hoi An in March (since we got married at the Shangri-la last year we thought it apt to celebrate our anniversary there too) and I had eaten the sea bass then which I remembered as being really moist, delicate and 'wow'. This sea bass was served with a rather stodgy sort of herb covering which didn't taste bad, but didn't match up to my earlier experience of it. I wrote this on the comment card and Luyen (I think she was last night's supervisor) came to speak to me as soon as she read it and explained that because I'd asked for no garlic, the chef had made the dish differently to normal. She was extremely apologetic and even brought the chef out to see me so he could explain why the dish wasn't as I remembered it! Top marks for genuine guest care and for caring what diners have to say about their experience.

On this visit the temperature of the restaurant was a lot better than last time (not that I'd found it warm last time but Simon had been very hot). It was a Wednesday night and yet was absolutely packed, so the promotion must be working. My only slight issue with the set menu (noted last time as well) is that the service is super-fast; your next course comes the minute your plate is cleared. It's understandable at that price that they want to turn over the tables as quickly as possible but after the soup course I asked our waitress to give us fifteen minutes before bringing the mains since I just felt too rushed. As before, what really sets Hoi An apart is the free welcome drink and the hot towel you get on arrival which immediately make you feel special. Still a top choice.