Mid East's largest waterfront dining experience comes to Dubai Creek

The announcement of Dubai's latest major international and domestic visitor draw was made today at Arabian Travel Market, the Middle East's premier travel and tourism event. Dubai Festival City revealed that at least 20 new-to-market international brands, with many more to come, would form an intricate part of the destination's newest dining attraction, creating a unique and mouth-watering experience in the emirate's buzzing downtown.

The dining focal point will add fresh life to a new downtown café scene, Festival Centre, which will open in October of this year followed by a grand opening to coincide with Dubai Shopping Festival. It will host 450 shops and a plethora of restaurants and cafés. Discerning diners can enjoy a Riviera-style setting, with many venues facing the waterfront.

"We are proud of our strong and unique food and beverage offering. We have dozens of exciting operators committed to our vision," said Phil McArthur, Managing Director - Shopping Centres and Commercial Real Estate, Al Futtaim Group - the developers behind the project.

Both world-renowned and new-to-market cafés and restaurants, which are in the final stages of confirmation, will be found in three themed pavilions strategically located between a Canal Walk and the 150 berth, Mediterranean-style Festival Marina, ensuring access to stunning waterfront vistas.

In addition, a number of high-end restaurants are planned within Dubai Festival City's key-note collection of hotels. These form the Middle East's largest single-project cluster with over 2,500 rooms, and boasts world-renowned brands such as InterContinental, Crowne Plaza, W Hotels, and Four Seasons Hotels & Resorts.

"We are all about creating experiences, and the launch of the stunning food and beverage offering is a major step in positioning Dubai Festival City as a world-class waterfront destination," said McArthur. "No other regional project can boast such an impressive dining experience, with restaurants and cafés from the four corners of the globe, seamlessly blended in a vibrant, downtown, waterfront setting.

"Linked directly to this impressive waterfront food and beverage offering will be our dynamic hotel collection. Each of the properties will boast a stunning collection of restaurants such as Lebanon's top seafood restaurant, Sultan 'Brahim, the first outside of Beirut; Café de la Paix; and Edamame, a stunning Japanese restaurant with a new concept developed exclusively by top Tokyo designer firm, Super Potato, for the InterContinental Dubai Festival City."

Designed to add to the project's overall 'shoppertainment' ambience, this all-encompassing water-frontage combines the very best in food and beverage, soothing water features and canals, relaxing atmospheres, meandering walkways, promenades and themed 'souk-style' shopping pavilions.

A host of other regional brands will be making their Gulf debut at the city-within-a-city such as Scoozi, the pioneering Italian restaurant with a unique sushi conveyor belt system; top Iranian restaurant brand, Isfahan; Waterlemon, the chic art deco international restaurant; and Café Blanc, the contemporary Lebanese restaurant with 'designer' shisha.

In addition, Dubai Festival City has pulled in brands from further a field such as the United Kingdom's Steam Some Dim Sum, which has taken London by storm; Morelli's Gelato, one of Harrods in Knightsbridge's most popular outlets; top Mexican restaurant, On the Border; a 'flagship factory' store for world-renowned doughnut and coffee house, Krispy Kreme; top espresso bar, Illy Café; and popular American/Italian brand, Macaroni Grill, from the USA.

"We have assimilated some of the top regional and international brands, many of which are making their Middle East debuts, and blended them into one complete, customer-centric dining experience," said McArthur. "We are bringing the best of the best to Dubai in a bid to create a fresh and exciting home to all the emirate's dining needs."

Many of the restaurants, cafés and fast food outlets will front the 2.6 million square feet retail, entertainment and leisure focal point, Festival Centre, in three, separately-themed pavilions and a meandering Canal Walk.

The first, named 'The Hub', which is situated adjacent to the modern convention hotel InterContinental Dubai Festival City, on the north-west peninsula of the luxurious Festival Marina, is being tipped as a complete urban nightlife environment, combining night spots and restaurants such as the Irish Village, Bice Grand Café, top Lebanese eatery Karam, Left Bank and new-to-market premier casual dining and entertainment venue, Dave & Busters - the first for the group in the Middle East - so creating an upmarket, downtown environment.

Next to this is the second pavilion, 'Taste', which is themed as the urban living room, and will be a family-friendly lounge area boasting restaurants such as Noodle House and new-to-market, authentic Scottish seafood restaurant, Loch Fyne.

The third and final pavilion, 'Trade Routes', will combine the very best international restaurants from across the ancient trading networks of Europe, Asia and the Middle East. Included is casual-dining Far-Eastern restaurant, Chop Chop, and an authentic experience restaurant concept from Turkey, Ala Turca, with a collection of souk-type shops, selling everything from pashminas to Arabian handicrafts, to provide a cultural environment for all ages.

"Trade Routes will be an absorbing environment which blends shopping and eating from Turkish, Arabic, Oriental, Persian, Indian and Egyptian cultures," added McArthur.

Backing the three pavilions is the 500 metre long Canal Walk, which showcases more than 40 family restaurants and cafés, such as Japengo, Biella, Zatar w Zeit and Yo Sushi!, and is linked directly into the main body of the shopping centre. Fully serviced by a fleet of traditional abras (water taxis), the Canal Walk will offer a reclusive haven from the bustle of the city which the whole family can enjoy.

"Canal Walk is an outdoor pedestrian promenade that leverages Dubai's maritime heritage by allowing the waterway to course into the heart of Festival Centre - much as the Creek runs through the city," said Brett Schafer, Managing Director - Development, Al Futtaim Group.

"The waterway promenades that link two lagoon pools are venues for shopping, dining, or casual strolling for guests of the adjoining Crowne Plaza Dubai Festival City, InterContinental Dubai Festival City, the northerly Festival Tower office complex and the luxurious Four Season's property to the south."

One of the unique elements of Dubai Festival City's food and beverage destination is the innovative development of a specialised micro-climate environment which will extend the outdoor dining experience well into the hot summer months. The latest climate control technology has been utilized to reduce the temperature within the dining hub by using air movement systems, cooling solutions, water features and extensive shading which will all enhance the natural cooling effects of the Creek's breeze.

"One of the biggest dilemmas facing developers in this part of the world is how to extend the outdoor enjoyment for tourists and visitors into the hotter summer months. We have taken this into consideration and, through the use of state-of-the-art temperature reducing solutions, are confident that we can comfortably extended the period that guests can dine and relax outdoors," said Schafer.

Accessibility was also a top priority in Dubai Festival City's planning of the Festival Centre with more than 15,000 parking spaces, the highest customer to parking ratio in the emirate, being allocated to ensure that visitors will be guaranteed ample parking at any of the development's premier offerings.

To further increase efficiency, Dubai Festival City has designed a completely integrated road network in conjunction with Dubai Municipality. This network will be expanded to include the Al Rebat Road extension, the Ras Al Khor Bridge - the fourth crossing at the Creek which will provide access directly into the heart of Dubai Festival City - and its three access ramps.

"A criticism of many major regional and international shopping centres is the lack of sufficient parking access at peak times," explained Schafer. "By implementing our carefully planned parking scheme and road network, we are ensuring optimum convenience for our customers at all times of the day"

This announcement comes just weeks before Dubai Festival City gears up for the first phase opening of Festival Centre which is being led by the launch of the 175,000 square feet HyperPanda hypermarket - the first outside of its native Saudi Arabia - and the specialised Festival Centre 'Gateway' which includes the flagship PlugIns ElectroniX and Ace Hardware & Garden Centre stores.