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3 Fils, Dubai: Much Loved, But Still Any Good?
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3 Fils, Dubai: Much Loved, But Still Any Good?
3 Fils, 5 dishes, 1 mocktail, 1 large bottled sparkling water: AED277 (US$75, £56, €62). Shop 02, Jumeirah Fishing Harbour, 1 Al Urouba St, Dubai, United Arab Emirates. +97143334003. https://www.3fils.com/
Written by EatGoSee // See other Dubai food reviews here
3 fils is a Dubai staple favourite restaurant with long lines snaking out the door. Personally, I find it distinctly average, living on a legacy it no longer sustains; surpassed by superior market newcomers.
The Highs
The Lows
The Highs
The Lows
3 Fils: Returning After A Long Absence
Sitting alone at a table inside 3 Fils munching a mystery morsel, I look around to see both the inside and outside dining space packed while the front of house manages hungry diners’ expectations. They will wait 30 minutes, maybe an hour. The closest empty chair is about two restaurants down with skulking owners looking on enviously.
3 Fils is one of Dubai’s most popular restaurants. A local hero done good. I call 3 Fils to enquire about a table for lunch overlooking the Jumeirah Fishing Harbour and the Arabian Sea. A cautious voice down the phone warns me that I would need to wait at least an hour, maybe more.
3 Fils appears to have more than just survived COVID’s crippling clutches. Perhaps this is partly down to 3 Fils trove of accolades including 50 Best Discovery, Forbes’ Top 10 Coolest Places to Eat in 2019 and completing a hat-trick of Dubai’s Best Asian Restaurant awards.
3 Fils is one of Dubai’s most popular restaurants. A local hero done good. I call 3 Fils to enquire about a table for lunch overlooking the Jumeirah Fishing Harbour and the Arabian Sea. A cautious voice down the phone warns me that I would need to wait at least an hour, maybe more.
3 Fils appears to have more than just survived COVID’s crippling clutches. Perhaps this is partly down to 3 Fils trove of accolades including 50 Best Discovery, Forbes’ Top 10 Coolest Places to Eat in 2019 and completing a hat-trick of Dubai’s Best Asian Restaurant awards.
3 Fils: A Staple Dubai Favourite?
No wonder Jumeirah’s Range Rover driving, Chanel-swinging denizens descend to queue (impatiently) along Jumeirah Fishing Harbour waiting to snuffle 3 Fils dragon shrimp tempura sushi rolls or the beef chorizo indomie. As a side point, I do understand why restaurants have a no booking policy, especially in this economy. The most uncharitable budget airlines allocate a limited number of seats at an additional cost. I find the certainty worth the price. Just a thought, 3 Fils (and others).
The outside dining is especially popular with views of yachts, boats and people fumble around the marina in jet skis for the first time. The inside is moody with dark woods like a make-shift industrial workshop punctured with perspex dividers between tables; a tell-tale feature in a COVID world.
I first came to 3 Fils about 2 years ago sitting just inches away from where I am today. Chef Akmal Anuar was at 3 fils helm then. The most positive and memorable dishes started with Fremantle Octopus plated on a smear of potato and leek puree dressed in a tongue-popping gremolata. The togarashi-glazed chicken wings were crisp; they glistened and sang with gentle spicing. Both dishes remain on the menu still, but I resist. Mrs EatGoSee will tell you I am a creature of habit returning to those dishes I love shunning unknown corners of the menu.
3 fils, however, is perhaps a place where habit should have led my choices. The togarashi-glazed chicken wings are fab, but set a standard that the other dishes cannot match, like the volcano sushi rolls.
3 Fils reminded me of an acerbic insight about me penned by my 8th-grade Geography teacher. “[He is] capable of greatness but stifled by inconsistency”. It cut deep but that does not make it untrue. The same insight is levelled at 3 fils.
The outside dining is especially popular with views of yachts, boats and people fumble around the marina in jet skis for the first time. The inside is moody with dark woods like a make-shift industrial workshop punctured with perspex dividers between tables; a tell-tale feature in a COVID world.
I first came to 3 Fils about 2 years ago sitting just inches away from where I am today. Chef Akmal Anuar was at 3 fils helm then. The most positive and memorable dishes started with Fremantle Octopus plated on a smear of potato and leek puree dressed in a tongue-popping gremolata. The togarashi-glazed chicken wings were crisp; they glistened and sang with gentle spicing. Both dishes remain on the menu still, but I resist. Mrs EatGoSee will tell you I am a creature of habit returning to those dishes I love shunning unknown corners of the menu.
3 fils, however, is perhaps a place where habit should have led my choices. The togarashi-glazed chicken wings are fab, but set a standard that the other dishes cannot match, like the volcano sushi rolls.
3 Fils reminded me of an acerbic insight about me penned by my 8th-grade Geography teacher. “[He is] capable of greatness but stifled by inconsistency”. It cut deep but that does not make it untrue. The same insight is levelled at 3 fils.
One more point: I am exasperated by restaurants that serve things to diners that cannot be eaten. On your plate no less.
3 Fils is beautifully imagined but executional flawed
This brings me all the way back to the mystery morsel I am munching curiously. The menu says “charcoal” then whispers “it’s a secret” (AED32). It is a mystery wrapped in an enigma but, in some ways, this Charcoal epitomises 3 Fils.
This charcoal ‘conundrum’ reveals a sweet aubergine bite encased within a fried, ink-black dumpling balanced on actual charcoal briquettes. It is pleasant but underwhelming mouthful. The aubergine is a bland sponge aching to be dredged through an aromatic dip. Comically, a waiter assures me that they do not serve soy at 3 fils because all the dishes are well-marinated and seasoned. This Charcoal is evidence to the contrary. I also cannot overstate how exasperated I am by restaurants that provide inedible things to diners. Served on your plate no less. The 3 Fils staff go out their way to tell you to only eat the ‘Charcoal’ and not the charcoal. Sound advice, but why put anyone in this position in the first place?
The highlight is the scallop with mandarin orange and sumac (AED52). A simple bowl of supple, raw scallops arrives dusted with citrusy, amethyst sumac flanked by the sweetest mandarin segments. A gentle nuttiness from buckwheat provides much-needed texture. My only ask is that the puddle of sauce is a touch more generous in which I can greedily drag these scallops.
The next round of dishes demonstrate the signature 3 Fils imagination. Yet, each plate lacks consistent execution. I expect more given the awards and fervent following.
My crispy eel unagi with foie gras and yellow pepper mayo is a tale of two dishes (AED42). The spicy, crisp maki roll is fresh and slightly sweet but it is incompatible with the battered crispy eel resembling tamarind pods. The fatty eel wants a fresh brightening lift but the maki roll fails to the rescue. The two elements should be combined cohesively or served as separate dishes. I recommend separate dishes.
The lamb ribs with spiced barbecue marinade shimmer with a shiny glaze and delicious lamb fat. Tender, soft meat purrs with warm cumin (AED54). The redundant red pepper dip could be substituted for the glaze, a bright chimichurri or ferocious harissa. The 3 Fils kitchen should revisit the ribs butchery as I find myself spitting out cartilage fragments into my hand and onto my plate.
The 3 Fils experience is rounded up with the tooth fairy dessert. 3 Fils branched out opening a sister (and adjacent) restaurant, Brix, recently offering a dessert tasting experience. The tooth fairy arrives. Visually-striking shards of saffron meringue flecked with verdant lime zest rise out of a sour violet curd which is a shade of periwinkle. Shame it tastes like cough syrup. I cannot finish it.
I walk out of 3 Fils unclear whether to return and I am left with the impression it is overrated. Both dinings at 3 Fils reconfirmed that the whole experience is inconsistent and mostly middles in some courses. 3 Fils has competition now with Reif Kushiyaki within a stone’s throw in Dar Wasl. Yet, lines around along the harbour assure that 3 Fils remains popular.
3 Fils punches close to average now as other restaurants within its ilk overtake with demonstrable consistency, even if creatively inferior to 3 Fils. Certain dishes are indistinguishable to a PF Changs. In fact, I long for the PF Changs version. Harsh I know. Some dishes need improvement to take them from good to great. For some plates, it is unclear whether they should be on the menu at all (aka the Charcoal). 3 Fils could offer a lot but it needs to re-focus on executional details. 3 Fils showcases bags of imagination but does not always see the vision through.
This charcoal ‘conundrum’ reveals a sweet aubergine bite encased within a fried, ink-black dumpling balanced on actual charcoal briquettes. It is pleasant but underwhelming mouthful. The aubergine is a bland sponge aching to be dredged through an aromatic dip. Comically, a waiter assures me that they do not serve soy at 3 fils because all the dishes are well-marinated and seasoned. This Charcoal is evidence to the contrary. I also cannot overstate how exasperated I am by restaurants that provide inedible things to diners. Served on your plate no less. The 3 Fils staff go out their way to tell you to only eat the ‘Charcoal’ and not the charcoal. Sound advice, but why put anyone in this position in the first place?
The highlight is the scallop with mandarin orange and sumac (AED52). A simple bowl of supple, raw scallops arrives dusted with citrusy, amethyst sumac flanked by the sweetest mandarin segments. A gentle nuttiness from buckwheat provides much-needed texture. My only ask is that the puddle of sauce is a touch more generous in which I can greedily drag these scallops.
The next round of dishes demonstrate the signature 3 Fils imagination. Yet, each plate lacks consistent execution. I expect more given the awards and fervent following.
My crispy eel unagi with foie gras and yellow pepper mayo is a tale of two dishes (AED42). The spicy, crisp maki roll is fresh and slightly sweet but it is incompatible with the battered crispy eel resembling tamarind pods. The fatty eel wants a fresh brightening lift but the maki roll fails to the rescue. The two elements should be combined cohesively or served as separate dishes. I recommend separate dishes.
The lamb ribs with spiced barbecue marinade shimmer with a shiny glaze and delicious lamb fat. Tender, soft meat purrs with warm cumin (AED54). The redundant red pepper dip could be substituted for the glaze, a bright chimichurri or ferocious harissa. The 3 Fils kitchen should revisit the ribs butchery as I find myself spitting out cartilage fragments into my hand and onto my plate.
The 3 Fils experience is rounded up with the tooth fairy dessert. 3 Fils branched out opening a sister (and adjacent) restaurant, Brix, recently offering a dessert tasting experience. The tooth fairy arrives. Visually-striking shards of saffron meringue flecked with verdant lime zest rise out of a sour violet curd which is a shade of periwinkle. Shame it tastes like cough syrup. I cannot finish it.
Would I Return to 3 Fils?
I walk out of 3 Fils unclear whether to return and I am left with the impression it is overrated. Both dinings at 3 Fils reconfirmed that the whole experience is inconsistent and mostly middles in some courses. 3 Fils has competition now with Reif Kushiyaki within a stone’s throw in Dar Wasl. Yet, lines around along the harbour assure that 3 Fils remains popular.
3 Fils punches close to average now as other restaurants within its ilk overtake with demonstrable consistency, even if creatively inferior to 3 Fils. Certain dishes are indistinguishable to a PF Changs. In fact, I long for the PF Changs version. Harsh I know. Some dishes need improvement to take them from good to great. For some plates, it is unclear whether they should be on the menu at all (aka the Charcoal). 3 Fils could offer a lot but it needs to re-focus on executional details. 3 Fils showcases bags of imagination but does not always see the vision through.
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