Brunch at the Beach – Safina

Recently my family was invited down to Saadiyat Beach Club to check out the new family brunch happening at Safina restaurant. Safina Restaurant recently launched a family “Brunch Like No Other” and it does live up to it’s name.

What makes this brunch different from the others?  The ambiance, the food and spending quality time with each other. With breathtaking views of the white sandy beach and blue sea, it is hard not to feel relaxed when you enter Saadiyat Beach Club. We had the opportunity to escape from our normal routine, enjoy a 5 star meal and relax.

At Safina, you have a choice to sit indoors or out. We stayed indoors so that we could keep a close eye on the children who were in the huge kid’s room nearby. This haven contained a separate buffet filled with all the usual kid menu favorites (it’s worth mentioning that the chicken nuggets and fish fingers were freshly battered and not processed).  Large comfy pillows are available to sit and watch movies, a choice of games and activities, and of course, a face painting station.

The buffets are what you would expect from a luxury restaurant.  Hard to ignore is a gorgeous dessert buffet set right in the middle of the restaurant tempting you to start with dessert first. If you are a seafood lover, the spread is heavenly.  There is a wide selection of fresh seafood from several types of prawns, crab, salmon, fish, mussels and sushi.  For the non seafood diners, there is a variety of chicken and beef dishes such as chicken satay, chicken tandoori, chicken curry, beef medallions, pasta. Live cooking stations add to the decision making process of what to eat next.  Once the mains are finished, top off with a magnificent dessert and cheese selection.

My husband loved the seafood.  My children loved the dessert bar which included big colorful gumballs and a chocolate fountain.  My favorite part were the food stations around the buffet stations – even a guacamole station. Everything made fresh to order.  Hard to ignore was the live tartare station with a selection of beef or salmon.  I’ve had beef tartare before at a wine tasting and wasn’t a fan.  I thought I’d give it another try.  I am glad I did.  It was delicious.  Having it made right in front of me meant they could add the flavors that I like (hot and spicy).

The variety of drinks available during brunch was impressive.  With the basic soft package, you can get soft drinks, water and tea.  The Bubbly Package includes Prosecco and Matusalem Mojitos – all different flavors: Rose, Passionfruit, Strawberry, Blackberry – you get the idea. The French Bubbly package includes Louis Roederer Champagne and Grey Goose cocktails which names like Grey Goose La Poire, Grey Goose Pomegranate.  Whilst this is not the type of brunch where you will tie one on, it was nice to have such a large selection of drinks to choose from.

This is a classy beach brunch. No loud background music but rather calming tunes contributing to relaxed atmosphere. Everything seemed to just slow down.  We were able to take our time and unwind. The stress from our daily lives didn’t seem so important as we ate, drank and looked out to the beauty of the sea.

Most people moved onto the beach or pool afterwards and we were no different.** The children’s play area has a playground with sprinklers, a wading pool and a kids club tent filled with toys, activities and movies. We played in the kids pool area for a while before moving onto the beach for a quick dip in the sea, then watched the sunset together.

I have gone to family brunches before which are great.  Abu Dhabi is full of fantastic brunches.  This was the first time I actually left a brunch feeling completely content, satisfied and a bit re-energised. The kids were non stop but enjoyed every moment of it and even my workaholic husband managed not to think about work for a few hours.  It was a gorgeous day, we spent quality time together, and ate great food.  We all left with a happiness buzz from that.  You have to try for yourself.  I highly recommend it.

Safina Restaurant’s Brunch Like No Other

When:  Every Friday
Time:  1-4pm
Where: Saadiyat Beach Club (for map click here)
Cost:  275 AED pp – Soft Package
375 AED pp – Bubbly Package
475 AED pp – French Bubbly Package

Ages 7-12  99 AED

Kids under the age of 6 FREE

For reservations, please call 02 656 3500 or email safina@saadiyatbeachclub.ae

**For an additional cost of 215 AED pp, diners can use the beach and pool facilities after brunch.

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