Latest news with #NickAlvis
What's On
18-05-2025
- Entertainment
- What's On
Review: The Beam Dubai
Thanks to Dubai's ever-increasing traffic, there are a handful of areas I largely chose to avoid during peak hours – Dubai Marina being one of them. So, I'm surprised to find myself heading – albeit glacially – for a 7pm dinner reservation at Le Royal Meridien one mid-week evening. But this is no ordinary dinner reservation. At the helm of newly opened The Beam is Nick Alvis, one of a collective of independent chefs who paved the way for Dubai's homegrown restaurant scene to flourish in the late twenty-teens. After departing his renowned Madinat Jumeirah restaurant folly in 2022 and spending some time consulting, he's back on the pots and pans at The Beam. Taking over what homesick Brits will remember as Geales, The Beam is a bistro-style dining experience set in a corner of the resort's neatly landscaped grounds. An immaculate garden greets guests, a trickling water fountain provides a pretty centrepiece, leading to an indoor-outdoor space, bi-folding doors expanding out fully to let one lead into the other. Tables in the garden and on the covered terrace offer lovely views of Ain Dubai on the skyline, while those seated indoors are enveloped in an unpretentious warmth of neutral interiors and soft lighting. We make a reservation only a week after opening, and the spacious restaurant is already abuzz with guests. While some come from staying in the hotel, many are here for Alvis, who greets each table with warm hospitality and proudly shows them around the restaurant when we arrive. The culinary offering is reflective of a European bistro, elevated with a Dubai touch that's fitting for the city's competitive culinary scene. As well as the a la carte menu, a fresh fish display is adorned with towers of seafood and locally caught fish on ice, further enhancing the menu. For starters, we order the venison tartare (Dhs110), which is prettily plated, tender cubes of venison dressed with smoked egg yolk and root ginger. But it's the flat bread that we dream of long after we've finished the final bite. From the dedicated section of skillet baked flat breads, we opt for the sun-dried tomato and burrata one (Dhs60). The bread is the perfect crispy crust and spongy base, swirls of creamy burrata and crunchy pine nuts add rich flavour and texture. We go to the fresh fish display for mains and order the seabass (market price). It arrives as a whole fish, and despite being a very generous portion, it's cooked perfectly and tastes even better when drizzled with a lemon beurre blanc. The ribeye (Dhs360), a juicy piece of Westholme Australian grass-fed Wagyu, is also excellent. It's simply seasoned and served alongside a portion of piping hot chunky chips and a roasted rib sauce. For a sweet ending, the burnt cream (Dhs55), The Beam's take on a crème brulee, is deliciously velvety, laced with raspberry and topped with a scoop of sorbet to add a light note. Verdict: A great restaurant worth braving the traffic for. The Beam by Nick Alvis, Le Royal Meridien Beach Resort & Spa, Al Mamsha Street, Dubai Marina, 5pm to 11pm Mon to Fri, 1pm to 11pm Sat and Sun. Tel: (0)4 316 5550. > Sign up for FREE to get exclusive updates that you are interested in
FACT
08-04-2025
- Entertainment
- FACT
Nick Alvis is putting cocktails in the spotlight with Blush Wine and Cocktail Bar
The concept in Dubai Marina features a gin tree. It's time to raise a glass to a new bar. Blush Wine and Cocktail Bar has opened at Le Royal Méridien Beach Resort & Spa. Located in Dubai Marina, it has been created by the acclaimed restaurateur and chef, Nick Alvis. Following the success of The Beam, Nick has created Blush Wine and Cocktail Bar. The concept puts cocktails in the spotlight, and is a celebration of mixology. Each drink has been handcrafted, named after a colour, and paired with a custom swatch coaster with its exact hex code. Designed by LW Design, Blush Wine and Cocktail Bar showcases a garden-inspired aesthetic, which blends together indoor and outdoor elements. The circular bar allows you to watch the bartenders in action. Look out for the antique mirror panels, hand-painted floral murals on the bar's ceiling, and bold graphic floors. At the centre of the bar is the Gin Tree, which allows guests to choose their favourite gins from around the globe. In addition to the cocktails, there is a wide range of wines, which include more than 110 wines by the glass. The Coravin preservation system ensures rare and premium wines remain accessible for each guest. Nick explains: 'With Blush, we wanted to create something truly immersive. This is not just a cocktail bar, it's a destination where drinks are an experience. From bold reds to delicate pastels, each cocktail tells a story, offering guests a new way to engage with mixology'. Blush Wine and Cocktail Bar is open daily from 5pm to 1am. Check in with FACT for the best things to do in London. GO: Follow @blushbardubai on Instagram for more information.
The National
17-02-2025
- Entertainment
- The National
Chef Nick Alvis on cooking up a comeback with The Beam
If chef Nick Alvis wasn't manning a kitchen, he likes to think he'd be managing game in the English countryside. 'I'd probably be a gamekeeper,' he tells The National with certainty and a casual shrug, as if trading culinary aspirations for muddy boots were a simple pivot. The British chef, who started as a Gordon Ramsey protege in Dubai in 2010, is popularly known for Folly by Nick and Scott, which some consider as a pioneer in the city's fine-dining scene. In 2022, Alvis stepped away from the beloved restaurant, only a year after Scott Price's departure. 'I wanted to take Folly somewhere where it couldn't get,' he says, without giving too many details. Now being relaunched as Folly Brasserie at the Address Montgomerie Hotel, Alvis says he is not involved in it, but adds that he's still good friends with some people who are. 'I'm really grateful for that experience. They supported my dream at that point in my life, and so I can really only say thank you for that,' he continues. 'But we've all moved on.' Unlike his friend and former business partner, Price, who moved to the Scottish countryside post-Folly (he owns a guesthouse and also teaches at a college), Alvis stayed in Dubai to set up a food consultancy business. Now, two years later, Alvis will be back in the kitchen. On February 17, the British chef is opening The Beam, a European bistro, at Le Royal Meridien Beach Resort and Spa in Dubai Marina. 'Marco Torasso, the culinary director of the hotel, was one of the first people I met in the UAE when I moved here 15 years ago. He asked if I could do something with the space,' he says. The venture essentially replaces Geales, another UK import dining concept. The extensive menu is inspired by Alvis's penchant for eclectic European influences, combining his technical knowledge of French flavours with British, Spanish and Italian references. 'I've looked at a lot of classic dishes, but put a spin on them. They're all very influenced dishes,' he says. 'There's no spaghetti carbonara or panzanella salad, but there are dishes similar to those.' Alvis adds it's important for him to have dishes that are 'accessible and easy to understand'. This translates into specific dishes such as Tunworth cheese croquettes (Dh80), stuffed and roasted baby chicken (Dh150), and a range of skillet-baked flat breads, with topping that include octopus, shrimp, shaved fennel and tomatillo salsa (Dh70), dry aged beef rib with Stracciatella and toasted pistachio (Dh80), and Baron Bigod cheese, blossom honey, seasonal truffle and watercress (Dh70). Average spend per person at The Beam will be about Dh350 on food, says the chef. The restaurant will also have a prominent fresh seafood display, which Alvis says will include a combination of local and international hauls, from shellfish to sea bass and squid. 'Sourcing locally is very important for us, especially because of how the agricultural scene has grown and still growing. We want to be able to use whatever we can, when and how we can, to the best possible way,' he explains. For example, Alvis is sourcing his chicken from a company in Abu Dhabi, which also supplies poultry to the royal family. 'Some of the seafood will come from different parts of Europe, but a lot of the vegetables and fruits will come from the UAE.' As someone who's touted as somewhat of a pioneering chef in Dubai, Alvis says he is 'beyond excited' about still being part of the city's bullish culinary growth. 'I came here 15 years ago, and although that doesn't sound very long, the change has been massive. It is a made place to be,' he quips. 'We were classed, me and Scott, as home-grown chefs here, but the level of today's home-grown chefs is phenomenal. I don't think many of us were born here, but this is where we've made our names. You've got Himanshu, Gregoire and Orfali for example,' says the British chef. 'There's a network of chefs now, and everybody looks out for each other. It's really quite impressive.' He particularly lauds the 'younger chefs coming through', adding how Dubai is now becoming a place where these budding cooks are wanting to train in. Given the tremendous competition in the UAE's culinary scene, Alvis likes to differentiate himself with 'being as present as he could' in his ventures. 'I don't have 10 restaurants that I'm never in. I'm not at that point in my career, and I don't know whether I ever will be because I actually enjoy being in my restaurant. I like to always check with my team, and see my regular guests, and they like to see me too.' At one point, Alvis adds, he was operating three venues at the same time and 'I hated it,' he says. Whether the British chef eventually builds a restaurant empire remains to be seen, but Alvis insists that being a hands-on chef defines who he is now and who he plans to remain in the future. In addition to The Beam, the chef is unveiling two more concepts within the same hotel. While he's keeping the details under wraps, Alvis can't help but smile when pressed on whether a fine dining counterpart is in the works. For now, Alvis seems perfectly content to focus on the soon-to-open restaurant, trading any notions of country trails for the creative rush of launching new concepts in Dubai's ever-evolving culinary scene. 'I'm going back to my roots for now,' he says, his infectious, enthusiastic smile hinting at the passion driving his return.
