Recently my family and I, had the pleasure to visit AB’s Absolute Barbecues on SZR to celebrate my mother-in-law’s birthday, and boy, were we in for a treat! If you love your grilled food and are into your “all-you-can-eat” buffets with a palate for North- Indian delicacy, this place is not be missed. Right from the décor, to the friendly staff, to the mouth-watering Indian delicacies, and to the immaculate service; nothing will be disappointing.

Located in Sidra Tower along Sheikh Zayed Road, getting to this place wasn’t a straight forward job, however the availability of ample free parking was a great bonus. We arrived quite early for dinner, and even though we were shown to our reserved table, we had the opportunity to choose another table, one closer to the glass-covered kitchen, behind which we could see the chefs grilling away! Atleast that’s the reason I thought we opted for another table, only to realise later that it was so that hubby-bi could get a better view of the live cricket being shown on the television.

The way AB’s Absolute Barbecues serve their grilled meats is an absolute treat! The tables have a make-shift wooden slab, which are exchanged for grillers with red-hot charcoal and upon our choice we get served with unlimited number of chicken, fish, lamb and shrimp skewers. These grilled skewers surely give us an indoor barbecue feel and I have already made mental plans to visit here in the summer when UAE heat will be unbearable for any barbecues outdoor. My entire family went slightly crazy on the prawn skewers, as they were jumbo, delicious and unlimited after all! While we were enjoying the “do-it-yourself” grilling experience, various staff members served us with a variety of North- Indian veg and non-veg appetizers at our table. Each appetizer, including the barbequed pineapple and crispy corn, were so simple, lightly flavoured, yet left a tantalizing taste. Their paneer tikka, cottage cheese in tikka sauce, was freshly prepared, with the spiciness just mild enough for us. We loved the soft succulent paneer so much, we all had another round of it.

There was a live counter for Indian chaat (street snack), and I simply had to get myself a plate of Pani-puri. Pani puri is crispy puffed dough balls stuffed with spiced potatoes and sweet chutney, dipped in cold minty water. To ensure the minty water doesn’t seep through, you have to eat it quick and you have to eat it whole! Apart from pani puri’s they were also serving bhel puri, sev puri and much much more.

Furthermore, there was a live “Wish Grill” station, in an open kitchen style for noodles with a variety of protein and vegetable toppings. The expert chefs would prepare it with our choice of sauce and preferred spiciness, and have it sent to the table. I got myself a bowl of spicy noodles and decided to lick a few and share with Azmu. She certainly loved it and looked super cute slurping away on the noodles. Now, I wasn’t going to lick any more noodles for her so decided to get her a separate bowl of noodles with a simple cheese sauce. I could tell she loved it because from slurping one noodle at a time, she went to stuffing her face with a fistful of noodles.

Now that was just the appetizer and we were almost already stuffed. We decided to check out the buffet section for the mains and we were definitely being spoilt for choice with both, vegetarian and non-vegetarian dishes. On the non-vegetarian side, the Mutton Handi was tender beyond belief and the meat was falling off the bone, the Crab Masala was tangy, the Hyderabadi Biryani was prepared with aromatic Basmati rice, gourmet spices and tender chicken pieces and the Butter Chicken was rich, creamy with succulent boneless chicken. On the veg side, there were once again an array of dishes but I didn’t have space on my already over-flowing plate to add anything else, but I did manage to squeeze in a couple of spiced potato balls called Dum Aloo. On our table we were served with a basket of warm, out of the oven, selection of breads such as Tandoori Naan and Butter Naan, to accompany the dishes. Ofcourse, there was also a selection of salads, pickles and spicy poppadums, without which no Indian meal is complete.

Throughout our meal, we were constantly being waited on, our glasses were always filled, Azmu’s mess under her high chair was always cleaned up and even the chef came in to ask if everything was upto par. We were certainly impressed with the entire service and thanks to each and every courteous staff, our evening was going by delightfully. The rustic wall paper decor, dim-lighting, mosaic tile topped tables, and Azmu swinging along to Justin Beiber’s Sorry being played in the background, created a chilled- out casual dining ambience.

We still had a desserts section to try out but before that, hubby-bi and I decided to head to the ‘Kids Corner’. There was popcorn, candy floss, waffles and … the reason why hubby-bi and I really went to the ‘Kids Corner’- the Indian ice slushy known as Baraf Gola. Baraf Gola is crushed ice on a stick, dipped in flavoured syrup. I remember having them a lot when I was young and was delighted to see it in front of me once again! I went for a Kaala Khatta syrup which is tangy and sweet, while hubby went for a mix of Kaala Khatta and Rose syrup. Honestly, we had a widest grin on our faces and looked like silly grown up kids!

So, to the actual dessert section, and it was like a little piece of heaven! There was Ras Malai, Gulab Jamun, Walnut brownies, Peanutbutter cheese cake, Chocolate Gateau, Strawberry Mousse, Sev Khurmo, Ice cream bar and fresh hot Jalebi being made in front of us. I, as usual, went for small helping of almost everything and would give a huge thumbs up to their Ras malai and Sev Khurmo, both rich in cream, garnished with crunchy pistachios and just right with their sweetness. Simply Divine!

As it was my mother-in-law’s birthday, she was treated with a cute birthday cake covered in icing by the staff of AB’s Absolute Barbecues. Almost on cue, they even sang the birthday song in unison and we joined in too.

With family and friends forever visiting us in Dubai, taking them along to AB’s Absolute Barbecues is not going to cost us an arm and a leg. Their pricing for an all-inclusive buffet is as follows:

Lunch
Sun – Thur 12:00 pm to 03:30 pm – AED 59
Fri – Sat 12:00 pm to 03:30 pm – AED 80

Dinner
Sun – Wed 06:30 pm to 12:00 am – AED 75
Thur – Sat 06:30 pm to 12:00 am – AED 85

Early Bird Offer
Thur – Sat 06:30pm to 07:00 pm – AED 80

Kids
All days AED 30

Visit their website on www.absolutebarbecuesme.com to get further information on menu, reviews and how to make a reservation. You will certainly not be disappointed!

Disclosure: The above images have been used from the company website www.absolutebarbecuesme.com, as I did not have my camera on me during the evening to take my own pictures. This is not a sponsored post.