Citizen Brunch, hosted at DoubleTree by Hilton Business Bay in Dubai, hit the sweet spot from many directions!

The delightful decor set the scene, and upon arrival you know right away you’re in for an exceptional Sunday brunch – the team clearly put lot of effort into preparing every angle of your visit, as their distinguished celebrated guests.

Besides the vibrant atmosphere, the seating options were varied and comfortable.

Funky, modern, and eye-catching; yet at the same time tasteful and energetic – with carefully positioned artsy statements representing a pride of culture.

The bar is in full swing from the very entrance, greeting you with an innovative spritz cocktail, or mocktail, as per your preference,

with a fully-stocked bar and a live G&T station at your beck and call,

while the good people at the bar also present a well-developed drinks list at your table, all inclusive, and mixed to perfection – this old-timer went for an Old Fashioned, with a request to make it on the stiff side: and the result was excellent, and fragrantly balanced with bitters.

For sure no one will go thirsty during Citizen Brunch!

Full marks then for the energy and ambiance set-up, and the understated excellence from the bartenders – but the food was the next dimension to really impress at Republic Adda Bar & Lounge!

Waves of multiple starters, followed by multiple mains, and topped off with multiple desserts, following a generous sharing concept served at the table.

I highlight these ‘waves’ not only as a reflection of the fun of sharing a delicious with family and friends, but especially as a glimpse into the culinary philosophy behind the Chef’s concept – indeed each dish was a winner on its own merit, but very cleverly the selection was designed to play well with each other.

Indian cuisine is famous for the care in coordinating the various dishes into one cohesive whole meal, and at Citizen Brunch a sweeter chaap is served alongside a tangy lentil sprout salad, next to a crispy and spicy Chicken 65 caressed by curry leaves, and accompanied by a smokey aubergine dip with its own bread dippers, and then also backed up by marinated lamb pav buns, and incredibly also blessed by pop-in-your-mouth shrimp dressed in an umami-rich seaweed cracker – and that’s just the first wave, the starters!

Gastronomical genius layered upon genius, times ten, and squared!

The effect is akin to attending a musical ensemble, where each instrument plays its own tone and rythmn, but when combined and coordinated by a musical maestro – our good Chef! – the component parts achieve a synergy that exponentially elevates the whole experience above the simple sum of the individual players… and such was the experience of each course at Republic Adda Bar & Lounge for Citizen Brunch.

I’ll break down the selection of mains to further elaborate on this point, truly the highlight of this spectacular brunch:

A masterful veg biryani, suave and fragrant on the nose even before touching the palate – not too harsh on the herbs and spices, so that the aroma of saffron is not overpowered. This is paired with a basket of piping-hot naan bread.

But then add the sweet and creamy butter chicken for another dimension of flavor…

Classic combination, but then swing by the fish tikka – deeper into the spices, and cut with pickled onion and mint/coriander sauce, lightly contrasting and enhancing the creaminess of the butter chicken…

And then a total suprise, and an acceleration into full-genius mode!

A magical feast of umami (We saw this with the shrimp starter, too!) whereby mushrooms in a rich and flavorsome gravy are combined with pearl barley, in a fabulous adaptation of an Indian risotto – fabulous!

At this point, your eyes are closing at each bite, and a guttural mmmm escapes from the throat!

Another dish – again, contrasting but complementing – completed the mains, but I’ll let you to discover it yourself!

Desserts crowned an exceptional meal…

The sweet treats were a spectacle at the table, four delights which bounced off each other with joyful laughter, until we finished every bite!

Overall, for a modern Indian street-food style brunch, assembled at a level of excellence in terms of selection of the dishes within each of the three courses, and served with genuine friendliness in a vibrant and energetic ambiance, the Citizen Brunch at Republic Adda Bar & Lounge weaved together a masterful Dubai Sunday brunch – highly recommended!