Dubai's newest Italian opening has landed at SO/ Uptown hotel, and it comes with a pedigree: Rocambolesco is led in the kitchen by Executive Chef Alessandro Mirabelli, with Michelin-starred Luigi Stinga directing the menu behind the scenes.
The restaurant plays a two-floor game. The ground-level dining room is bright, art-filled and relaxed, pitched at long lunches, aperitivo and sharing plates — families welcome. A more intimate Piano Room upstairs will follow in the coming weeks, adding live music and evening entertainment to the equation.
The menu is where the name earns its keep. Rocambolesco borrows from Rocambole, a famously daring fictional adventurer, and the dishes take a similar detour from the expected. The signature Parmigiana swaps the usual formula for baked aubergine with scamorza fondue. A pizza called C'era Una Volta pairs beetroot with gorgonzola. And the Heritage Meatballs arrive slow-cooked in tomato sauce with pecorino fondue, finished with charcoal at your table — a little theatre with the main course.
The drinks list follows the same logic, nudging classic Italian drinking rituals somewhere more inventive. Happy hour and brunch are still to come, but the weekday case is already strong: a Dhs85 sharing business lunch, or a pizza with a side salad for Dhs60 if you're after something quick and cheap in Uptown.
Practical bits: you'll find it on the lobby level of SO/ Uptown. Doors open Monday to Thursday from noon until midnight, with a later 1am close on Friday and Saturday. Sundays are dark. Bookings run through the restaurant's site and social channels.
For travellers, this is a solid mid-range option in a city where Italian dinners can spiral fast — a Michelin-guided menu with entry points at Dhs60 makes it an easy detour whether you're staying in the hotel or exploring the Uptown/DIFC side of Dubai. If the Piano Room launches on schedule, it's worth timing a visit for the evening service rather than lunch: live music plus that charcoal-finished meatball dish is a much better story than a salad-and-slice run.
Story via What's On Dubai.
