QE2 Dubai to close iconic Queen’s Grill for major renovation project

The QE2 Dubai’s most elegant dining room, the Queen’s Grill, will close tonight for several weeks as the ship’s operators, PCFC Hotels, launch a major renovation project.

“Dubai’s most authentic British restaurant, The Queens Grill, will be undergoing an exciting redesign throughout the summer,” QE2 Dubai announced on its Facebook page.

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“It will reopen as a new culinary concept that is sympathetic to both its heritage and to the modern demands of Dubai’s eclectic culinary scene,” the post added.

The Queen’s Grill dining room was, for the fifty years of QE2’s service as an ocean liner, the last word is elegant and romantic dining experiences at sea.

It is one of three main dining rooms aboard the former Cunard ocean liner. The Queen’s Grill was once reserved exclusively for first class passengers, with second and tourist class passengers dining in the Princess and Britannia Grill restaurants respectively.

When Cunard Line discontinued its class system, the Queen Grill remained only for ‘Queen’s Grill’ stateroom occupants, or a modern-day version of First Class, a tradition that remains in place now aboard the cruise lines’ current ships Queen Mary 2, Queen Elizabeth and Queen Victoria.

The Queen’s Grill aboard QE2 Dubai was re-opened last year when the ship was launched as a new floating hotel in the city, but has reportedly struggled to carve out a niche for itself among the competitive culinary scene in the city.

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“Though the Queens Grill’s food and service is impeccable to say the least, the experience is ever so slightly tarnished by the seemingly tired surrounds,” Harpers Bazar Arabia wrote of the restaurant earlier this month.

QE2 Dubai say that the opening date and new concept will be announced in the coming weeks, but it is unlikely to stray too far from the original décor and atmosphere of the Queen’s Grill that made it so popular in the first place during the ship’s cruising days between 1969 and 2008.

Since its opening, the Queen’s Grill has offered reasonable prices by Dubai standards, with a three-course tasting menu for just AED 175 per person, in addition to more extravagant options, such as the ship’s 1969 maiden voyage menu.

This menu features exclusive ingredients that are flown in from the UK and meals such as Sous Vide of Dover Sole and Butter Roasted Halibut – amongst other classics including Foie Gras Parfait, Milk Fed Lambs Loin and Malt Chocolate Tart, designed by Chef de Cuisine, Rama Samy – a former member of the QE2’s culinary team.