Chocolat-The, Dubai

When we heard that a new chocolate restaurant was opening up in town, we wondered how it would survive the heat. But then we realised it wasn't actually a Wonka-worthy palace made out of confectionary (using fresh cream as cement and sprinkles as roof shingle, presumably), but a brasserie style boutique-cum-restaurant that sells the stuff. And with that, our Gingerbread House-inspired daydreams of licking the walls and chomping down the cutlery promptly, but wistfully, died.
Tucked behind Sheikh Zayed Road, even the most dedicated cocoa cognoscenti could be forgiven for mistaking the classy glass exterior for one of those ‘designer' food stores, the kind where defensive sales staff judge you the moment you saunter in. Fortunately, this candy store couldn't have been sweeter. Dozens of suited, smiling staff welcomed us hastily inside, past the shelves of meticulously arranged morsels on the ground floor (including rather interesting chocolate ‘cat tongues') to the upstairs restaurant.
Following a quick nibble test, we confirmed that not even the menu was crafted from chocolate - although a small selection of complementary squares made its way to our table to prevent blood sugar levels dropping dangerously low during the perusal period. ‘My dream began with childhood days spent at granny's during teatime...' explained Belgian chocolatier Jean Galler in the menu's prologue. Looking around at the 70s-style curvy orange seating, floor-to-ceiling windows and stylish art deco adverts, we realised his granny wasn't as fixated with doilies and Dean Martin as ours is.
It also seems a Tetley and a Digestive might not quite cut it for her. As well as a compendium of chocolate-based concoctions, from crêpes and pastries to cocoa soup, far-flung teas from Japan, China and India, and all manner of roasted coffees, there were even sandwiches, salads and scrambled eggs for those lacking a sweet tooth.

We plumped for the intriguing smoked salmon salad with white chocolate dressing, and the challenging-sounding full breakfast. Within minutes, our decadent drinks had arrived: one cauldron-sized teapot topped with polyfiller-thick molten chocolate for my friend, and the signature chocolate-thé itself for me - rich hot chocolate with bitter green tea at the centre.

Just as we thought we were going to drown in larynx-clogged delight, brunch arrived. Alongside the light salmon rolls, the salad seemed nondescript enough at first taste, apart from a generous spattering of nuts. But then, every fifth mouthful or so, a pang of white chocolate rippled across my taste buds, giving away the true source of the salad's sweet glaze. Far from a fry up, my friend's full breakfast was a crumbly carb celebration - a selection of mini pastries, alarmingly good French bread, and dinky pots of jam, marmalade and chocolate, leaving her certifiably full.

Battling to the end, and in full view of the crowd of staff peeking out from the kitchen's cabin hole, we accepted defeat after just a few mouthfuls of the chocolate misèrable (a thick milk chocolate cake with vanilla crème centre) and ‘dome' (a mini-auditorium of dark truffle chocolate with solid biscuit base). However, that was only after making sure we could bag it up to savour at our leisure, which we did - scraping it from the box after it had melted on the backseat of the car.

Stumbling away, rubbing our sore heads and sickly stomachs, the pain was a small price to pay for this sticky-faced, self-indulgent pleasure, made socially acceptable in such sleek and stylish surrounds.

The bill (for two)

Evian Dhs16
Apple juice Dhs10
Orange juice Dhs15
Full breakfast Dhs45
Smoked salmon RB Dhs32
Chocolat-thé Dhs22
Dome Dhs20
Misèrable chocolate Dhs20
Total (including service) Dhs180

Ghaya Residences, Sheikh Zayed Road, behind Dusit Dubai (04 321 1098).

Open daily 7.30am-11pm. All major credit cards accepted.

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