Dubai: Churrasco Nights at Cabana

// I was invited to Cabana and I did not pay for food and drinks //

On Thursdays, Cabana enters Brazilian mode and welcomes diners to their weekly Churrasco Night. The restaurant is next to the swimming pool, 3 floors up, at The Address Dubai Mall so it’s al fresco dining. After spending the summer months inside air conditioned malls and homes, you want to be outside as much as you can. Being able to sit outside is therefore always an order-winner at this time of the year.

We got a table not too far from the buffet, so after a short introduction from the staff, we went up to have a look at what was on offer. The appetizer/side dish section of the buffet wasn’t very big, yet it had most of the things you would want to eat along with your meat. The bread deserves a special mention. It was freshly baked, and so tasty that I considered sneaking some of those bread rolls into my bag, to eat for breakfast the following day. I didn’t do it though, just in case you wonder. In the beginning, we wondered why none of the meat guys stopped at our table.

After having finished our starters, we wondered why none of the meat guys stopped at our table. That was until we realized that the badge at our table had the red side up, signaling that we didn’t want meat. We quickly flipped the green side up instead and from that point, the meat just kept on coming.

The meat was Brazilian and very tasty. The cuts served were all premium cuts including ribeye and tenderloin, as well as lamb chops and the biggest chicken drumsticks I’ve seen. Those Brazilian chickens must be very big! Considering that Cabana only does Brazilian food once a week, I think they did very well. I would even say that they’re on par with many of the all-time Brazilian places in the city.

During the evening, a band was playing South American music and two samba dancers were entertaining the diners. As they were dancing by our table, they encouraged Hanna and me to come and join them. Though I’m a horrible dancer, so I kindly rejected and clung to my chair, while Hanna got up and showed her samba moves.

The dessert buffet was standard Dubai, meaning that it looked better than it tasted, but I was so full after all the meat we had, so I didn’t really care.

Who should go: Meat lovers, al fresco diners and people looking for a new kind of buffet.

Who shouldn’t go: Not worth the money for vegans and vegetarians.