I wasn’t entirely sure what to expect from Dubai. Like many people, I’d heard the stories about the glitz and glamour, but sometimes reality doesn’t quite live up to the hype. Well, after my whirlwind day and a half there, I can say this city genuinely surprised me in a wonderful way.
Dubai’s skyline is nothing short of breathtaking. Everywhere you look, architectural ambition reaches toward the heavens, but nothing prepares you for the Burj Khalifa—the tallest building in the world at 830 meters. Seeing it in person is awe-inspiring. Under the Arabian sun, its vast glass and steel form evokes a lateen sail, recalling the dhows—Dubai’s traditional wooden vessels that once traded across the gulf. It feels as if the entire city is a 21st-century high-tech dhow, ready to cast off its moorings and sail into the lapis lazuli waters of the gulf. The architecture throughout the city tells the story of a place that refuses to accept limitations, looks to the future, yet respects the past.
A visitor has no need to step outside the human-made uber-lux environment. The city is designed as a series of connected air-conditioned spaces, bridges, and walkways. From hotel to taxi to shopping mall, one moves seamlessly from one climate-controlled environment to another. It makes perfect sense given the heat.
The Mall of the Emirates ensures that Dubai deserves the moniker of being extraordinary. It glistens—the dazzling interiors create an almost ethereal brightness that makes the entire place feel like a jewel box come to life. I’m not often drawn to shopping centres, but this felt different. Perhaps it was the way light bounced off every surface, or how the entire space seemed to hum with activity.
And then there was Ski Dubai—an actual indoor ski slope complete with penguins, within a shopping mall in the heart of the desert. It’s certainly bold, with flawless execution.
Dubai, if anything is a perfect example of the vision, and ambitions, of the Al Maktoum family, who have ruled since 1833. Ancient descendents of the Bani Yas tribe the family lead the emirate, and hold the posts of UAE Prime Minister and Vice President. The late, Sheikh Rashid bin Saeed Al Maktoum, viewed as the architect of modern Dubai, led projects like Port Rashid, Jebel Ali, and the Dubai World Trade Centre – and set the stage for global trade and finance.
His successor, Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum established Emirates Airline, and fantastical projects such as the artificial island Palm Jumeirah, and the wonder of Burj Khalifa. Dubai, a global business and luxury powerhouses, is like an emerald on the edge of the Arabian Desert and the Persian Gulf—an Arabian Nights dream brought to life in glass, steel, and tech.
Milos and culinary excellence
Estiatorio Milos, is in the vast Atlantis resort on Palm Jumeirah, Dubai’s palm-shaped artificial island that extends into the Persian Gulf. It is pure excellence. The seafood restaurant falls under the tutelage of the globally renowned chef, Costas Spiliadis, whose talent and Dubai’s drive for excellence seem to confluence very naturally.
Spiliadis, who was born in Patras, studied at NYU and Concordia University, Montreal, before opening the first Estiatorio Milos in Montreal in 1979, which became one of the city’s most influential dining destinations. Spiliadis launched Milos restaurants in New York (1997 and 2019), Athens (2004), Las Vegas (2010), Miami (2012), London (2015), Los Cabos (2019), and in 2023, in Dubai.
This was the kind of dinner that reminds you why good food in a memorable setting can make for a special evening. The restaurant balanced well between upscale and comfortable. The prices reflect the reality of having a world-renown chef Spiliadis, now in Dubai —where everything comes at a premium.
What impressed me was a thoughtful touch: they had noticed the name on our reservation and arranged for us to have a Greek-speaking waitress. In a city filled with good restaurants, they took the time to make that small but meaningful gesture. Details like this can really make a difference.
The restaurant seeks authenticity in seafood dishes, where every plate is served in its purest form—quality ingredients prepared with care and precision. No complications, just solid cooking that lets each flavour come through clearly. You’ll pay for the privilege.
After dinner, we were treated to the resort’s spectacular fountain and light show that captured Dubai’s flair for turning every moment into extraordinary displays of tech sophistication and opulence. The choreographed water and lights dancing against the night sky were a filmic, perfect finale to an already perfect evening.
In just thirty-six hours, I went from curiosity to admiration. There’s much more to Dubai and much complexity beyond the manicured experiences, a sort of adult Disneyland. I was there only briefly—I glimpsed the surface, and it is exciting.
Subtlety is not Dubai’s mode. It is opulent, a little crass, but authentic. There’s something admirable about a place that wears its ambitions proudly and spectacularly.
And I still haven’t experienced skiing in the desert—maybe on my next visit, or maybe not.
*Meni Valle is Greek-Australian food writer and cookbook author – her latest publication is THESSALONIKI and the many kitchens of northern Greece.
