Located at: Level 3, The Dubai Mall, United Arab Emirates

Visited on: 08th May, 2024

Discovering this spot was a culinary highlight during our short transit in Dubai. Recently opened, the vibrant restaurant serves traditional Indian flavours with a contemporary twist. The place was bustling at dinner time, and we had to sit out for a while since we had no reservation. We wondered, as we waited, if the food might be worth the wait. It certainly was. What’s more, their pricing was quite reasonable, too, given the current rates in Dubai.

To start with, we tried Rang’s Biryani Balls (AED 35.00). This was a rather interesting trio of spherical portions of biryani sitting on a bed of mozzarella inside a rather thin naan bread. It tasted very good as it was, but with the accompanying butter chicken-like gravy, it was excellent. It was also a delightful combination of texture – the moist rice inside, the buttered naan outside, and the stringy molten mozzarella in between. Enjoyed it thoroughly.

The Chicken Biryani (AED 65.00) was presented in the form of a conical tower that not only looked attractive, but also tasted delicious. The rice was perfectly cooked to pillowy softness, and was flavourful and aromatic. There was a fair bit of chicken in it, as well as some crunchy cashew nuts and herbs. The rice came with a side each of raita and gravy, as expected. All very good and complementary to one another.

Fortunately and unfortunately, we were in such great company that it has slipped my mind to take a picture of the Butter Naan (AED 12.00) that was at the table. However, what hasn’t slipped my mind is the memory of the naan being rather good – thin and lightly crisp, not too bready and not too chewy. Just right. A little more butter would have been good, though.

Their Rang Butter Chicken (AED 57) was delicious. Again, the portion had a fair bit of chicken that was nicely marinated, the flavours were on point. The consistency of the gravy was lovely and it had a perfect sweet-savoury, cream-tomato balance that left you wanting more. An excellent accompaniment for both the naan and the biryani.

Rang serves tea by the pot, and their Masala Tea (AED 29) was quite enough to be shared among three. Again, no photo, but it tasted good. It just needed to be hotter.

Looking forward to revisiting Rang on our next stop in Dubai!

Yummy rating: 4.5 / 5.0