Escapism. We all seek it in one form or another, be it via Rowling, gaming or Dubai Bling. Arguably, travel is the ultimate form of distraction, whether you’re physically boarding a flight or indulging in the armchair variety.
Last weekend, I decided to combine the yearning to escape — if only for the few hours that baby M was on a play date — with a hankering for an offbeat Dubai brunch. Enter La Fete de Monaco in Cote d’Azur Hotel on the Heart of Europe.
In 2019, when I first visited this neck of the World Islands — a 30-minute boat ride from Dubai — Monaco was the cluster that stood out most. The project is now near completion, and yet the multicoloured facade of this island’s hotel exudes as fresh and fun a vibe as the first day I saw it.
Even the oh-so-cool Floating Seahorse villas cannot quite compete with the vibrant tri-sided building looming large over a shaded swimming pool. Replete with the promise of sophistication and hedonism alike, the adults-only hotel offers a beachside Sunday brunch to boot.
You’re not merrymaking on any old beach, either. This one channels the French Riviera in all its unabashed glory. Think soft white sand, coral-strewn azure waters (the island cultivates its own corals and marine life including baby sharks), and cherry red and sunshine yellow parasols. And you can only access the venue via boat, in this case aboard a luxe private yacht from Jumeirah 3.
The act of setting sail, if only for a half-hour, promotes the thrills of a new adventure and a sense of leaving the everyday behind.
The pool — with its submerged loungers, larger-than-life floaties and central tanning deck — is a big draw of the brunch, but more innovative still is the hotel’s “raining street”. Here a row of rooftop sprinklers send forth a Mumbai monsoon-style downpour (with no potholes to contend with).
A stroll along the uber-pretty street, with its barrel-style tables and cheery red and white polka-dot awnings is more refreshing than your usual pool-beach brunches.
And then there’s the food, which could give any gourmet meal a run for its money, being as it’s priced at Dh400 a pop (inclusive of free-flowing drinks). Ordinarily you’d pay far more for such a spread of caviar, oysters and foie gras at most fine-dining establishments on the mainland.
Here you can eat your fill of the above exotic ingredients, plus tuna, mussels, chicken and mushroom vol-au-vent, lamb chops, tiger prawns, beef bourguignon burgers and duck confit sandwiches, each decadently prepared and plated. The quinoa salad aside, vegetarians are not as well catered for in the main spread, but the kitchen whipped up a passable pasta for the odd man out in our party.
“We work with local producers where possible, sourcing mushrooms from a dealer in Sharjah, salmon farmed in Jebel Ali and oysters from Dibba Bay,” the group executive chef tells me. “The dishes are influenced by the Mediterranean cuisine of Monaco, but cooked in the Provence style with a dash of northern Italian techniques thrown in.”
The music — a staple of any successful brunch or beach party — is another big draw. DJ Irma from Ukraine spins her love of old-school hip-hop into her sets, as well as mixing up songs from the 1980s and 1990s with RnB, Afrobeat, Latin and the commercial hits “everyone knows and likes”, she says.
Pool brunches and beach parties are a dime a dozen in Dubai. But one that ferries you about on a private yacht, offers gourmet food for a fraction of its usual cost and transports you to the French Riviera (at least in spirit), that is an experiential meal I’d escape to any given weekend of the year.
Being able to cool off on a street where it rains on demand doesn’t hurt, either.
La Fete De Monaco brunch at Cote D’Azur Monaco Hotel on the Heart of Europe Island is from 1pm to 5pm every Sunday. Packages start from Dh400, inclusive of yacht transfers (carry your original Emirates ID or passport to board) and pool access. For reservations, contact 055 226 9353 or restaurants.monaco@thoe-hotels.com
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
Ferrari 12Cilindri specs
Engine: naturally aspirated 6.5-liter V12
Power: 819hp
Torque: 678Nm at 7,250rpm
Price: From Dh1,700,000
Available: Now
Thank You for Banking with Us
Director: Laila Abbas
Starring: Yasmine Al Massri, Clara Khoury, Kamel El Basha, Ashraf Barhoum
Rating: 4/5
The specs
Engine: 1.6-litre 4-cyl turbo
Power: 217hp at 5,750rpm
Torque: 300Nm at 1,900rpm
Transmission: eight-speed auto
Price: from Dh130,000
On sale: now
Director: Jon Favreau
Starring: Donald Glover, Seth Rogen, John Oliver
Rating: 2 out of 5 stars
T20 World Cup Qualifier A, Muscat
Friday, February 18: 10am - Oman v Nepal, Canada v Philippines; 2pm - Ireland v UAE, Germany v Bahrain
Saturday, February 19: 10am - Oman v Canada, Nepal v Philippines; 2pm - UAE v Germany, Ireland v Bahrain
Monday, February 21: 10am - Ireland v Germany, UAE v Bahrain; 2pm - Nepal v Canada, Oman v Philippines
Tuesday, February 22: 2pm – semi-finals
Thursday, February 24: 2pm – final
UAE squad: Ahmed Raza (captain), Muhammad Waseem, Chirag Suri, Vriitya Aravind, Rohan Mustafa, Kashif Daud, Zahoor Khan, Alishan Sharafu, Raja Akifullah, Karthik Meiyappan, Junaid Siddique, Basil Hameed, Zafar Farid, Mohammed Boota, Mohammed Usman, Rahul Bhatia
All matches to be streamed live on icc.tv
F1 The Movie
Starring: Brad Pitt, Damson Idris, Kerry Condon, Javier Bardem
Director: Joseph Kosinski
Rating: 4/5
ELIO
Starring: Yonas Kibreab, Zoe Saldana, Brad Garrett
Directors: Madeline Sharafian, Domee Shi, Adrian Molina
Rating: 4/5
The%20Super%20Mario%20Bros%20Movie
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It Was Just an Accident
Director: Jafar Panahi
Stars: Vahid Mobasseri, Mariam Afshari, Ebrahim Azizi, Hadis Pakbaten, Majid Panahi, Mohamad Ali Elyasmehr
Rating: 4/5
WHAT IS GRAPHENE?
It was discovered in 2004, when Russian-born Manchester scientists Andrei Geim and Kostya Novoselov were experimenting with sticky tape and graphite, the material used as lead in pencils.
Placing the tape on the graphite and peeling it, they managed to rip off thin flakes of carbon. In the beginning they got flakes consisting of many layers of graphene. But when they repeated the process many times, the flakes got thinner.
By separating the graphite fragments repeatedly, they managed to create flakes that were just one atom thick. Their experiment led to graphene being isolated for the very first time.
In 2010, Geim and Novoselov were awarded the Nobel Prize for Physics.
Results
6.30pm: Maiden Dh165,000 (Dirt) 1,600m
Winner: Celtic Prince, David Liska (jockey), Rashed Bouresly (trainer).
7.05pm: Conditions Dh240,000 (D) 1,600m
Winner: Commanding, Richard Mullen, Satish Seemar.
7.40pm: Handicap Dh190,000 (D) 2,000m
Winner: Grand Argentier, Pat Dobbs, Doug Watson.
8.15pm: Handicap Dh170,000 (D) 2,200m
Winner: Arch Gold, Sam Hitchcott, Doug Watson.
8.50pm: The Entisar Listed Dh265,000 (D) 2,000m
Winner: Military Law, Antonio Fresu, Musabah Al Muhairi.
9.25pm: The Garhoud Sprint Listed Dh265,000 (D) 1,200m
Winner: Ibn Malik, Dane O’Neill, Musabah Al Muhairi.
10pm: Handicap Dh185,000 (D) 1,400m
Winner: Midnight Sands, Pat Dobbs, Doug Watson.
MISSION: IMPOSSIBLE – FINAL RECKONING
Director: Christopher McQuarrie
Starring: Tom Cruise, Hayley Atwell, Simon Pegg
Rating: 4/5
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Diriyah%20project%20at%20a%20glance
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LILO & STITCH
Starring: Sydney Elizebeth Agudong, Maia Kealoha, Chris Sanders
Director: Dean Fleischer Camp
Rating: 4.5/5
Ticket prices
- Golden circle - Dh995
- Floor Standing - Dh495
- Lower Bowl Platinum - Dh95
- Lower Bowl premium - Dh795
- Lower Bowl Plus - Dh695
- Lower Bowl Standard- Dh595
- Upper Bowl Premium - Dh395
- Upper Bowl standard - Dh295
The%20specs
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