Not to mention Ikea’s hotdogs, chicken shawarma, and ice cream with chocolate stick!
Ikea recently opened in the Philippines later in the year 2021 and everyone has been rumbling about Ikea’s Swedish Restaurant and their Swedish Meatballs (aside from the furniture) ever since it opened. People be lining up for hours just to get first dibs on Ikea’s Swedish Meatballs. Not to mention that BTS members, J-hope and Jungkook even went to Ikea just to try it too. I wanted to try it here in the Philippines but I haven’t been to Manila yet again so when I had the chance to go to UAE, I told myself that I should try it there.
Yup, this Ikea’s Swedish Restaurant food trip was included in our itinerary! This was supposed to be our dinner after going to Warner Bros. but like every other itinerary, we did not go there as planned. Instead, we had it for lunch before going to Warner Bros.
My sister already told me what food they liked there, and the Swedish Meatballs are definitely not on their list but of course, I still have to try it myself.
There were a lot of food options and one thing that I liked here is that desserts come first! Haha. Yup, I’m that girl who looks up the dessert menu first before going to the main dishes.
I didn’t even notice that there were drinks besides the cakes as I went on thinking which cakes to get. I decided to get their Crunchy Chocolate Almond Cake and their Blueberry Cheesecake. They also have Oreo Cheesecake, Carrot Cake, Red Velvet, and Daim Chocolate Cake. As I went on picking the cakes, one of my sisters asked me why I am getting too many cakes. I was supposed to get 3 slices if she didn’t notice me. LOL.
I asked my other sister if they have already tried their cakes and she told me they didn’t so, this was also their first time and I just picked the ones which I thought would be delicious.
Crunchy Chocolate Almond Cake
At first, I thought the Daim Chocolate Cake was the Almond Cake, good thing I checked the receipt and confirmed it on their website!
To be honest, this cake doesn’t really look that appetizing to me since it was thin but I still went for it since I thought it would be safe to choose a chocolate cake. Safe because I will be sharing this with my sisters and I don’t want them telling me that the cake I chose wasn’t delicious. Haha.
Daim, it was so delicious! I thought to myself, “why isn’t anyone talking about this cake???“
The chocolate cake wasn’t too sweet, it was just right and the crunchy almonds add flavor and texture to it. It was light and not overwhelming. I can definitely finish a slice (or two) of this cake even after savoring their meals.
Definitely a must-try!
Price: Dhs 7
Table for: 1
Food Rating: 5/5
I saw that you can buy the ready-to-bake version of this Daim Chocolate Almond Cake in their stores in the US but I am not sure if they also sell it in UAE or the Philippines. You might just want to check it out!
Blueberry Cheesecake
Their Blueberry Cheesecake doesn’t look like the typical cheesecake. I mean, look at the cake toppings. It has crumbles on top and wasn’t totally covered with blueberries. It also looked a bit dry, to be honest. But lo and behold, don’t be fooled by its unfussy look.
It was indeed different in a very good way. It was perfect. The crumble on top makes it perfectly sweet and the tartness of the berries are on a different level as if they used fresh blueberries that have a tarty taste and not the typical canned blueberries that are more on the sweet side. I love blueberries that are also made with canned berries but I love this one better. Something new yet familiar to my tastebuds!
Price: Dhs 15
Table for: 1
Food Rating: 5/5
Now, I am wondering what the other cakes would taste like!
Moving on from those delicious cakes, we went to the main meals and skipped the salads and soups. Oopsss. Thought the salad would be… a typical salad. I don’t know, I didn’t even hear that they also serve salads here.
Onto the main dishes, there were also a lot of seemingly good options including their Salmon Fillet and Chicken Shawarma Plate but we opted to go for the following instead.
Swedish Meatballs
The main reason why I wanted to try Ikea’s Swedish Restaurant!
Too bad the pasta was no longer available by the time we dine in so, I got this with Basmati rice and gravy sauce instead.
My sister already told me that she didn’t like their Swedish Meatballs and prefer other food but I still went for it since I have to see for myself why these meatballs are famous. Famous enough for people to be lining up just to get it.
Hhhmm… It wasn’t for me. The meatballs are hmm.. just plain meatballs with flavorless gravy. I thought it was only me but I asked my sisters if the gravy was really tasteless and they said yes, “wala talagang lasa.” The meatballs are fine, it was soft but not as flavorful as I have thought. It would have been better if the gravy was at least rich and flavorful which would make up for the plain taste of the meatballs.
My sister has already tried their meatballs with pasta and told me that it was also plain and taste like pasta with plain tomato sauce and meatballs. And she doesn’t like it either.
The taste may be different in the Philippines or other parts of the world where there is Ikea but here in Abu Dhabi, it tastes that way for us.
It was too late when I saw that they also serve the meatballs with lingonberry jam and mashed potatoes which I thought would be, hmmm… at least a bit different. I wonder what it would taste like.
Price: Dhs 12
Table for: 8 pcs meatballs
Food Rating: 3/5
Beef Ribeye
Ooohhh! Didn’t know that Ikea’s Swedish Restaurant has Beef Ribeye!
Got their Ribeye with broccoli, mashed potatoes, and gravy. The beef was soft and juicy but I need salt for this one. It was sulit for its size though. The gravy is the same as the one we got with our Swedish Meatballs.
If I will order this again? Yes because it was sulit but I will ask for salt and pepper next time.
Price: Dhs 39
Table for: 8 pcs meatballs
Food Rating: 3.5/5
Seafood Paella
Another dish I didn’t know they have but was definitely yum!
As you can see, their Paella has shrimps (2 pcs), mussels, and squid and it tastes simply good. Definitely not the best one out there but would also buy it again next time.
Price: Dhs 39
Table for: 1
Food Rating: 4/5
Baked Chicken
This is the best one that we have tried out here in Ikea. For a moment here, I forgot about their gravy and focused on the chicken.
It was juicy and flavorful! Definitely, a must-try here in Ikea!
Price: Dhs 25
Table for: 1
Food Rating: 5/5
Fried Prawns & Mozzarella Sticks
These were just add-ons that you can buy per piece.
The taste was okay but you can skip this one.
Prices:
Dhs 4 (Fried Prawns)
Dhs 3 (Mozarella Sticks)
Table for: 1 piece
Food Rating: 3/5
Vitamin Well Hydrate Drink
This was one of the drinks I didn’t notice since I was too busy choosing cakes.
My sister got this and it was refreshing but have a vitamin-like aftertaste. Not bad really but will still not buy it next time and would choose their Peach Iced Tea instead.
Price: Dhs 9
Table for: 1
Drink Rating: 3.5/5
Bottomless Drinks
Here, you can buy a bottomless drink and get it yourself. You can choose from their soft drinks or Peach Iced Tea.
Love their peach iced tea!
Price: Dhs 7
Table for: 1
Drink Rating: 5/5
After dining at their Swedish Restaurant, my sister told me that she wants to get ice cream and a hotdog since it tastes good. So, yes, we proceed to Ikea’s Swedish Bistro (as if we are not yet full). They offer more pastries here like donuts, muffins, cinnamon rolls, and also fresh fruits, and juices.
Just a little back story, we got lost going here. We rode the elevator twice, going up and down and up and down again. Using two different elevators. LOL.
Chicken Hotdog Sandwich
This one tastes good too. Perfect merienda after roaming around Ikea.
Also, the hotdog is bigger than the bread.
Price: Dhs 5
Table for: 1
Food Rating: 5/5
Chicken Shawarma
They got this in two sizes: small for Dhs 5 and the bigger one for Dhs 9. I got the small one for take-out since I am already full.
The photo does not do justice to how good this chicken shawarma is. It has a lot of chicken and comes has fries inside just like the other shawarma I have tried in UAE.
Price: Dhs 5
Table for: 1
Food Rating: 5/5
And of course, we cannot go without desserts!
Ice Cream
Their soft-serve ice cream is available in vanilla and chocolate flavor. You can have it mixed if you can’t decide which flavor to get or just want to try both flavors in one go just like we did.
Simple ice cream but wait ’till you get their chocolate sticks. Haha. Sobrang sarap nung chocolate sticks nila!!!
The price of the chocolate sticks was the same as the price of the ice cream. At first, I thought it was expensive for an additional Dhs 1 but yeah, I am willing to pay another dirham just to get another stick.
Price: Dhs 1
Table for: 1
Food Rating: 5/5
Overall, I am quite disappointed with Ikea’s Swedish Meatballs but I would highly recommend their Blueberry Cheesecake, Chocolate Almond Cake, Baked Chicken, Seafood Paella, Chicken Shawarma, Hotdog Sandwich, and Soft-serve Ice Cream with Chocolate Sticks! Don’t forget the chocolate sticks, okay?
Ambiance: 5/5
Service: 5/5
Value for Money: 4/5
Overall Rating: 4/5
Also, don’t forget to use your Ikea Family Card to get a 20% discount on some of their meals! Good thing my sister has one. 🙂
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Location: Yas Mall, P.O. Box 52718 Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates
Store Hours:
Monday to Thursday – 10:00 am to 10:00 pm
Friday to Saturday – 10:00 am to 12:00 midnight
Sunday – 10:00 am to 11:00 pm
Contact Details: +971 800 4532
Facebook Page: IKEA (Yas Mall, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates)
Instagram: @ikea
Website: www.ikea.com
P.S. Since I wasn’t able to try the Swedish Meatballs with pasta maybe I should try Ikea’s Swedish Restaurant in the Philippines? Should I?
Disclaimer: We paid for our food and this review was written with an honest opinion.
Looking for a place to stay at Yas Island? We stayed at Hilton Hotel and got complimentary access to one of the theme parks at Yas Island!