Restaurant Review: Kuuru Riyadh, KAFD
Fresh sushi and tantalising Japanese-Peruvian dishes aside – what sets Kuuru apart is a collective understanding of space, flavour and culinary history…
Part of the renowned Leylaty Group, Kuuru has rapidly established itself on the Saudi culinary scene.
Born in Jeddah and now a firm favourite on the Riyadh dining scene, the restaurant boasts a large, warmly lit interior that sports brilliant hues of turquoise and gold with geometric patterns and industrial copper tones. Pair that with the enticing Nikkei menu, featuring a drool-worthy array of sushi alongside killer mocktails, for one helluva meal out.
We make our way to Riyadh’s King Abdullah Financial District (KAFD) on a Tuesday afternoon to discover the Homegrown Restaurant of the Year at the 2024 What’s On Saudi Arabia Awards.
View this post on Instagram
The look
Upon arrival, you’ll be ushered into elegant woodsy interiors via a dimly lit welcome area, revealing an expansive wood-lined dining space, with a mocktails bar on one side and a sushi Nikkei bar in the heart of the main dining room.
Inspired by the rich Nikkei culture dominated by Inca-Peruvian accents, the setting feels like you’re ejected into a world entirely removed from the rest of Riyadh. An abundance of wood intertwines perfectly with the range of pristine handmade pottery, sourced directly from Peruvian local artisans, while the wood panel ceilings mimic a sleek underground member’s club.
Several tables line the perimeter of the room, but we chose the table by the window as it is the most spacious and welcomes city lights through the floor-to-ceiling windows.
Staff are enthusiastic, and our waiter has an encyclopaedic knowledge of the menu, taking time to explain the hero dishes, cooking techniques and flavour profiles. It can be overwhelming if you’re just looking to order a few dishes here and there, and most dishes do seem self-explanatory.
The menu
If you have visited Kuuru Jeddah prior, the menu in Riyadh will strike you as fundamentally familiar. However, we opted for its business lunch menu (SAR195 / SAR230 with dessert) instead.
To start, your senses get jostled awake with the four types of appetisers. Artfully constructed and assembled in beautiful ceramics, we graze our way through starters of Kuuru ceviche – tender Najel fish with smoked corn, sweet potato, and cilantro sitting in a pool of the thrillingly tart Nikkei leche de tigre; followed by the corn kakiage (crispy seaweed corn bites) – ungainly, crunchy, fried shapes – that melt in the mouth and are all the better with the Peruvian chilli sauce.
Next is the Nikkei-style sando, which is alarmingly good, with its crunchy layer of the toasted bread against the soft, tender braised short rib; and finally, the Naka truffle (salmon belly nigiri).
Kuuru’s business lunch main course features a choice of Tori Panca (charbroiled chicken), Shake Nitsuke (soy-glazed salmon), or the Midori salad. With its beautifully seared exterior, the tender chicken, a generous portion of white meat, is perfect. We enjoy the contrast between the juicy poultry, the hearty aji panca sauce, and the crunch of the tenkasu.
Dessert offers two simple options: Lima Chokoreto (moist chocolate cake with honeycomb) and Kuuru cheesecake. Surprisingly, Kuuru’s version of the humble American classic with hazelnut crust, and dressed in dulce de leche crumble and lime zest, comes out on top. A light and fresh affair, it is simple but impressive and has us wanting more – quite possibly one of the best cheesecakes we’ve had in Riyadh, too.
No Kuuru experience is complete without an over-the-top bed of sushi, and the menu in Riyadh offers everything you would expect and then more. If you are left with some room, we recommend ordering its Nikkei-style nigiri items from the ala carte menu, such as the Concha Trufada (SAR79), a startlingly delicious, melt-in-your-mouth scallop nigiri, the Wagyu A Lo Pobre (SAR81), barbecued Wagyu striploin and Nippon chimichurri, topped with quail egg, and the Langostino Karai (SAR64), shrimp nigiri with Mentaiko sauce and Grana Padano cheese – creamy with just the right touch of sweetness.
But if there is one nigiri that will have you talking for weeks, it is the simply named, stunningly composed Chu-toro Foie (SAR119). The dish sees seared foie gras atop fatty tuna. No doubts remain once you try it, and the flavours meld together – pure, harmonious bliss. A celebration in my mouth.
What’s On verdict: Kuuru makes food magic, whipping up dish after dish of gastronomic bliss that makes every meal one for the books. Plus, its business lunch menu is of great value. Still, the allure of Kuuru lies equally in everything that comes before and after the meal. From the pair of wooden chopsticks to the napkin on your seat, everything is emblazoned prominently with the restaurant’s logo. There is joy and occasion in stepping into the newest home of a modern culinary institution – in dressing up for it and experiencing it for the first, second, or tenth time. We recommend the Nikkei bar area for the best seat in the house, offering a full view of rolls made and prepared to order. One thing’s for sure, we’ll be back…
Kuuru Riyadh, KAFD 3.05 Building, Al Aqiq, Riyadh 13519, Sat to Wed noon to midnight, Thurs & Fri noon to 1am. @kuuruksa
Images: Social / Forsite Creative