Mr. Crab Seafood Restaurant in Dubai

I have been constantly hearing about this seafood place in Al Barsha called Mr. Crab. You know me, I go crazy when I hear the word "SEAFOOD". But the thing with Mr. Crab is, it's too far from where I live. And with all those seafood places popping out nearby, I wasn't sure if Mr. Crab will be worth the journey.

But Mr. Crab has good ways of reminding me to seek out for him. First, I saw photos of my friends devouring Mr. Crab's seafood paella on my Facebook feed. Second, I stumbled onto Mr. Crab's drool-worthy Instagram posts. Third, I received an email invitation from Mr. Crab, himself, to try out the newly-launched menu. 

The third reminder had me! 

So, Ed and I finally went crabbing at Mr. Crab with our friends last weekend. Although we are strangers in Al Barsha, we found the place easily with the help of Google Map. Thank you Mr. Google.  Mr. Crab is actually easy to find. It is located in Deyaar building next to Mall of the Emirates. 

Mr. Crab in Al Barsha

Mr. Crab is a casual seafood restaurant. It looks homey with its wooden furniture and cupboard decked with flower pots. Hanging from the ceiling are cool pendant light bulbs and creative light fixtures made of mason jars.  

pendant lights at Mr. Crab

The cozy setting was aptly paired with warm hospitality. We were immediately attended by a staff. She gleefully introduced each dish as we went through the pages of the menu. The menu is extensive. They offer soup, salad, tacos, pasta, lots of crabetizers and seafood dishes, and desserts. 

the cozy seafood restaurant

Appetizers

My friends and I shared three different kinds of appetizers. First was a complimentary bucket of prawn crackers. This kept us pretty busy while we were waiting for our orders! 

complimentary prawn crackers

Next was a hot pan of Baked Mussels. I love this. The mussels are of high-quality and baked to perfection. It is topped with gooey cheese and accentuated with a mellow garlic taste.

Baked Mussels

Lastly, before we jumped to the next course, we had Spinach Artichoke Dip. It is a creamy cheesy combo of spinach and artichoke served with tortilla chips. It is so good that I can have it as a dip or eat it as it is.   

Spinach Artichoke Dip

Salad

It's the salad and soup options that gave Mr. Crab an edge over the other casual seafood restaurants I have been to. I ordered a serving of Mr. Crab's Seafood Salad. The portion is enough for our group of six to share. The bowl is loaded with plenty of greens, tomatoes, avocado, shrimps, salmon and, of course, crab meat! It is served with homemade Thousand Island dressing which gave it a creamy-tangy finish.

Mr. Crab's Seafood Salad

The Best Tacos in Town

Mr. Crab claims to serve the best tacos in Dubai. I had second thoughts because first and foremost, it is not a Mexican restaurant. But out of curiosity, I gave the Soft-shell Crab Taco a chance. The presentation caught me off guard. And the taste? Well, I've got to give props to Mr. Crab. The delicate flavor of the crab, the tamarind sauce and the spicy mayo fit together like puzzle pieces! I still couldn't say it's the best, but it's definitely one of the tastiest tacos I have eaten in Dubai. 

Soft shell Crab Tacos

Pasta 

There are four varieties of pasta offered at Mr. Crab. I heard the Garlic Noodles is quite popular to Asians; hence, I chose it over the seafood pasta dishes. And yes, my Asian palate loved it! It is simple yet savory. It is an egg noodle dish with crispy fried garlic, Parmesan cheese and spring onions.

Garlic Noodles

Mr. Crab's Specials

I wouldn't let my first dining experience at Mr. Crab end without Seafood Paella. It tastes as good as it looks. The seafood (shrimp, calamari, mussel, blue crab) were cooked just right, and prettily arranged on a bed of aromatic paella rice.   

Seafood Paella

We also tried Mr. Crab's newly-launched Crabonanza - a group meal which includes a huge bucket of seafood, rice and drinks. There are six kinds and we opted to have the bestselling Blue-Crab-o-Nanza. It is a treasure trove of seafood mixed with corn on a cob and baby potatoes in cajun sauce!

Blue Crab o Nanza

Desserts 

Mr. Crab's dessert menu is to die for! There are only 5 desserts available, but all looked sinfully good. We had Gimme S'mores. I love s'mores; hence, it wasn't a surprise that I enjoyed this dessert. I just had a minor issue on the chocolate; I wished it was totally melted.  

Gimme S'mores

Next is the Chocolate Lava! It's a soft and moist chocolate cake oozing with melted chocolate. It is served with vanilla ice cream on the side. 

Chocolate Lava

For those who are not into chocolate, Mr. Crab serves a matcha-version of the Chocolate Lava. We simultaneously dug into the Matcha Lava and unanimously declared that this dessert won our hearts. 

Matcha Lava

Overall, the food, the atmosphere, the service are commendable. Mr. Crab is a place for seafood lovers in its own right. Thanks to our blogger friends - Doc Gelo, Hannah, Myla and Ricky - for joining us at Mr. Crab. Six discerning taste buds are better than two! :)    

Fun-dining at Mr. Crab!

Prices of what we had as of January 2016:

Baked Mussels: 36 AED

Spinach Artichoke Dip: 39 AED

Mr. Crab's Seafood Salad: 39 AED

Soft-shell Crab Taco: 42 AED

Garlic Noodles: 29 AED

Seafood Paella: 79 AED

Blue Crab-o-nanza: 189 AED

Gimme S'mores: 25 AED

Chocolate Lava: 29 AED

Matcha Lava: 29 AED

Location:

Mr. Crab 

Deyaar Building

Al Barsha 1

Check out their Facebook Page for updates.

Contact # 800 672722

Timings: 12:00PM - 12:00AM

We were invited to dine at Mr. Crab. Opinions in this blog post are my own.