Atelier M founder and chef, Mohammad Islam, discusses the influence of Jean-Georges Vongrichten on his career, his vision for F&B in Dubai and why quality produce is paramount
Pier 7 in the Dubai Marina is the new kid on the F&B block, housing a single restaurant on each of its seven floors. The first outlet, Lebanese brand Abd-El Wahab, opened in May 2013, with Mexican outlet O Cacti following suit later in the year. The building is operated as a standalone development by The Emaar Malls Group LLC, with each restaurant able to be fully licensed.
In the midst of, or rather, on top of this F&B development is a chef who managed to get not one, nor two, but three floors to give birth to his vision — French-Asian concept Atelier M. The venue can seat 114 in the dining room on the seventh level, 90 in the bar on the next, and 70 at the open-air rooftop lounge.
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On the seventh level of the tower facing the Marina, vintage interiors with glittering chandeliers stare me in the face, and as I walk past the welcome desk, an open kitchen reveals itself to my right.
I see chefs hard at work in a busy and bustling environment. In the middle of this is chef Mohammad Islam, founder of Atelier M, directing the flow of work, slowly looking over at what his team is doing, occasionally speaking quietly.
After spotting me, Islam walks over with an easy stride, and we start talking about him and his food. Born in Bangladesh, he had moved to the US to study engineering, but soon decided cooking was his forte. Does he regret moving?
“No I don’t honestly, because I was really bad at it. I had very little or no interest [in engineering]. There were so many smart kids at my school and I was struggling to get by, to try and keep my parents happy. When I told them I was going to be a consultant, it was a shock!”
He started off by working in kitchens of many top-tier restaurants including The Dining Room at The Ritz-Carlton in Chicago. He then worked as the executive sous chef at Mercer Kitchen in New York City with three-star Michelin chef Jean-Georges Vongerichten for five years, whom, he says, taught him a lot.
“Initially, I was always working in four-star restaurants or Michelin restaurants. I was asked by Jean-Georges to work at Mercer and I was very disappointed. I said, ‘I’m going to open a restaurant like this and serve simple food? What are you talking about?’ That was 23 years ago. He told me to try it and that I will see another side of cuisine I’ve never seen — simplicity. I did learn a lot there, it broke my tunnel vision.”
With those lessons in mind, he explains that the basic concept behind Atelier M is something he is most comfortable with. He says: “It is contemporary French cuisine with an Asian twist. We use the same classic technique but with completely nouveau-style cuisine and products.”
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