Dubai Restaurant Review: Sports Cafe, Jebel Ali Golf Resort

In a nutshell: good food and great views onto the marina.

4/5

The Sports Cafe at Jebel Ali Golf Resort & Spa (it used to be plain old Jebel Ali Hotel when we used to go there as children but they've gone a bit more upmarket now) is located within the Club Joumana complex. Club Joumana is the clubhouse for both the marina and the golf and also offers squash, table tennis, air hockey and table football. In keeping with the sporty, casual theme the furniture inside and outside at Sports Cafe is all rattan, there are sofas all round the walls and bean bags on the floor. Everywhere you looked there were TV screens - the quintessential sports bar.

The staff were very friendly and the manager seemed to know many of the diners personally. The menu is quite limited and included the usual array of salads and sandwiches with some hot dishes. I always find restaurant salads are 90% lettuce which drives me crazy so seeing they had a ceasar salad with grilled prawns and a grilled hammour with steamed vegetables and rice, I asked if I could have grilled prawns with steamed vegetables and rice. No problem! The dish was simple, but exactly what I wanted and it tasted great. Simon's bangers and mash were also really good, but could you really go wrong with such a straight-forward dish?

It is quite a drive to get to the hotel but it does mean you feel that you've really got away from Dubai. The restaurant looks out onto the marina and in cooler weather it would have been nice to have a wander round. Club Joumana offers annual memberships which include access to the hotel's beaches and pools, I could be tempted...