Eating: Black Tap Abu Dhabi
You've probably already seen the photos from Black Tap in Dubai, you know those crazy-out-of-control milkshakes? Yep, that's the one, and over the summer they've opened a new branch right here in Abu Dhabi at Yas Mall. I've been keen to try it for ages, and now there's one just down the road there was no excuse not to. So before the post holiday diet begins, we paid a trip to find out if it was more than just a gimmick.
The food
Although fried cheese should be a pretty easy thing to get right, you'd be surprised how many places provide decidedly lacklustre offerings in this department, however, I am pleased to report that this wasn't one of them! Beautifully crispy, perfectly fried triangles of cheese appeared, smothered in yet more cheese and accompanied by a smoky chipotle tomato sauce dip. The whole thing was delicious.
Next up was the burger. We'd ordered a crispy chicken sandwich to share (between two adults and one child) so we wouldn't be too full for the main event!
The burger was big - we'd definitely made the right call sharing something on this occasion. I often find burgers in this city to be a massive let down, perhaps I'm hard to please but when I eat out I want it to be good, I need to walk away feeling pleased and that it wasn't a waste of calories. It's so often something as simple as dry meat or bread that lets the game down (and bread is the regular culprit I find) but in this case, not so. The bread was soft, buttery and delicious. And not just that, but the meat was well-cooked and crispy as advertised, not some soggy mass (hurrah!) and the chips felt like REAL chips. Hand cut, properly cooked fried - really scrumptious all round.
The 'Crazy Shakes'
We ordered one Cotton Candy, one Cookies 'N' Cream Supreme and one The Cookie Shake.
And of course they were worth the wait, I mean look at them! It's a lot of milkshake for one person, especially if you've eaten beforehand, but they are delicious and possibly even more importantly, they are a lot of fun!
I went with the Cookies 'N' Cream Supreme - the Oreo one, and whilst I really enjoyed it, I think I actually liked my son's Cotton Candy one the best. It's on a strawberry milkshake base, but I felt it came with the best extras, and since these shakes are not exactly cheap, I liked that added value. Also my son was SOOO happy with the lollipop that came in the shake... he'd probably have been just as happy with that alone!
The bottom line...
The place is very instagrammable, and for that alone it's a welcome addition to Abu Dhabi! But probably the one biggest thing that surprised me was that Black Tap really isn't a gimmick - the food was genuinely very good quality and well prepared, it was definitely worth going back again for and that's not something I say too often about restaurants here!
The only downside is that it is perhaps a bit spendy with the Crispy Chicken burger we ordered costing Dhs78 (it does come with fries and excellent toppings but still...) and the cheapest burger on the menu weighing in at Dhs68 (most are around the Dhs80 mark). And those Crazy Milkshakes (as they call them) are a whopping Dhs62 each. That said, the food IS very good and those milkshakes do need to be tried, so... And when you compare the prices to other similar restaurants it's not really at all bad considering most of their competitors don't come close on quality or taste. Just don't think about the calories!
The other thing that is very noticeable about the menu is that it's not all burgers and shakes - there are tacos, chicken dish options and a good eight different salads on the menu too including a Kale Super Foods Salad that would almost certainly appeal to those with gluten intolerances or veggie/vegan requirements. I'm going back for the salads next time (honest!).
Note that there is no dedicated kids menu, but we found it easy to order something my son would like and just share (he loved the Crispy Chicken from our sandwich!).
Find out more by visiting Black Tap ME.