TRADER VICS, FESTIVAL CITY, DUBAI

ESCAPE INTO ISLAND STYLE FUN
Escapism, south-sea island style fun and sushi are all on the menu at the new Trader Vic’s outlet in Dubai Festival City. You have the familiar aspects of any Trader Vic’s — hand-painted Tonga Tappa wall covering, suspended canoes, lobster pots and fishbowls used as part of its lighting strategy, the installations of which were carefully supervised by Trader Vic’s designer William Baker.

But this outlet has experimented with a few new tricks. “It's all about how we differentiate and also how we can make this strong enough for the people on the Palm and elsewhere want to come down to Festival City” says RMAL Hospitality CEO Anthony Liddiard.

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“We wanted to keep the open ceiling, and as much height as possible, with the bamboo structure just to create that wow factor. Here we also raise the bar so you can see all the way down into the end of the restaurant. Every TV has the traditional Chinese smoke oven, this one we’ve placed in a glass box so you can see straight through it into the other end of the bar or restaurant,” says Simon Penhaligan, director restaurant operations, RMAL Hospitality.

“The terrace will be set up year-round. People who wish to be outside are more than welcome to enjoy it,” adds Trader Vic’s general manager Laurence Fernandez.
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CHINESE OVEN AND KITCHEN EQUIPMENT: ALENCO | CUTLERY: RAK CERAMICS | POTS AND PANS: AL DIYAFA

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