Drink
Soneva Jani opens newest restaurant, The Crab Shack
Soneva Jani has unveiled the latest addition to its culinary offerings, the Crab Shack.
The 32 cover restaurant and 14 seat bar is located on Soneva Jani’s southwest beach, on the opposite side of the island to Cinema Paradiso, and is comprised of two levels. The ground floor is taken up by the restaurant, kitchen and bar area, with the first floor deck designed especially for guests to relax on tiered daybeds and enjoy the Maldivian sunsets while sipping on rosé wine or other beverages.
The Crab Shack is open for lunch and dinner with an á la carte menu. Upstairs serves only drinks and light snacks. While no local crabs will be on the menu (watch The Mangrove Network video from the Change-Maker Series), Sri Lankan mud crabs, Alaskan crabs and Kamchatka crabs (all Marine Stewardship Council certified) are the highlights. Each day the Crab Shack will only serve one type of crab on a rotating basis. The dishes that can be ordered include chili crab, crab curry (both Thai and Sri Lankan varieties of curry), garlic crab, black pepper crab, Szechuan spicy wok-fried crab, Vietnamese wok-fried crab with tamarind, ginger and black pepper.
The menu is also supplemented with Mediterranean dishes, including marinated sardines, mussels meunière, crab and seafood bouillabaisse (subject to availability), spicy seafood salad, and a ceviche of the day. There will also be a seafood platter that includes soft shell crabs, calamari, scallops and more. This platter can be ordered cold or warm (steamed, wok-fried or barbecued). A number of vegetable based side dishes will also be available, using organic greens from the resort’s gardens. Dishes include broccoli with caramelised garlic and marinated artichokes. When it comes to drinks there will be a focus on rosé and Sauvignon Blanc, while there will also be a selection of red wine.
Guests will get to dine barefoot, with toes in the sand, in line with Soneva’s ‘No News, No Shoes’ ethos. The Crab Shack is open-air, allowing for the cool sea breeze to flow through and uninterrupted views out across the lagoon, towards the sunset.
The design of the restaurant and bar uses reclaimed wood and driftwood timber to offer guests a rustic shack experience, while also giving a nod to how Maldivian’s traditionally built their homes before they had conventional building materials. Diners will sit around repurposed tree trunk logs that incorporate recycled glass plate supports and reclaimed barrels. There is a central communal table, while around this there are tables of four, which can all be rearranged depending on party numbers. The main support pillars are made out of entire tree trunks.
Opened in December 2016, Soneva Jani is Soneva’s newest property and the world-leading luxury hotel group’s second resort in the Maldives.
Soneva Jani is located on the island of Medhufaru within a 5.6 kilometre lagoon in the Noonu atoll, and has uninterrupted ocean views in all directions. The lagoon is 35 minutes by seaplane from Velana International Airport and one hour by speedboat from Soneva Fushi.
Meaning ‘wisdom’ in Sanskrit, Soneva Jani currently comprises 24 overwater villas and one island villa, with additional villas to be built in phase two. Five islands encircle the lagoon, each one with soft white sands and covered in rich tropical vegetation. Four of the five islands will remain untouched, making Soneva Jani the lowest density development in the Maldives. The overwater villas are spaced across the expansive lagoon, offering privacy and extensive views over the Maldives’ turquoise waters. The island villas will be tucked into the lush greenery, providing the ultimate privacy, and all within steps of the beach.
Soneva Jani’s main guest facilities are located at The Gathering, the heart of the overwater villas. This dramatic three story structure is home to the main dining outlets, in addition to the Soneva Spa, library, retail area and wine cellar. It is located next to the Maldives’ first overwater Observatory.
Facilities on the island include the overwater Cinema Paradiso, the Eco Centro Waste-to-Wealth centre, organic gardens, tennis courts, water sports champa and Zuhair’s Beach on a desert island in the lagoon.
Drink
Atmosphere Core partners with Italy’s award-winning Prosecco Bottega
Atmosphere Core, a leading figure in the hospitality industry, has announced a unique collaboration with award-winning Italian lifestyle winery Bottega SpA. A 4th generation family estate which first started producing grappa in the 17th century, Bottega presents an enviable portfolio of wines and liqueurs, made world-famous by its iconic GOLD Prosecco DOC.
Driven by shared core values of quality, authenticity, distinctive design, and all-encompassing service styles, this innovative partnership is set to inspire a new wave of wine hospitality in the Maldives. On top of direct product shipments from the Bottega estates for the supply of wines solely to its 9 private-island resorts, Atmosphere Core will also introduce South Asia’s first Bottega Prosecco Bar, a concept created by Sandro Bottega himself to enhance and share Italy’s great wine, genuine food and convivial lifestyle, offering travellers from around the globe a taste of true Italian sparkling life in highly fashionable environments.
Testimony to the quality and popularity of Bottega labels, the family’s estates have won more than 450 awards and accolades with their products now available in over 160 countries worldwide. In 2022, IWRS reported Bottega’s GOLD Prosecco DOC as the top-selling sparkling wine in the Duty-Free channel world-wide.
Commenting on the new collaboration with Bottega, Atmosphere Core Group Managing Director, Salil Panigrahi, stated, “We are committed to providing the best possible guest experiences, and meticulously curate the culinary journeys within our resorts to offer the highest quality of authentic food and beverage concepts, so our guests can return home with life-long memories. We can only achieve this by collaborating with the most dynamic wine producers in the world, and our announcement to partner with Bottega SpA in 2025 is a landmark moment for our company. I wish to personally thank Mr Sandro Bottega for granting Atmosphere Core this opportunity which goes beyond the presence of his labels in our resorts, but also provides us with an exciting platform to explore new immersive lifestyle hospitality concepts”.
With the intent set firmly on growing wine culture, Atmosphere Core regularly hosts partner winemakers and winery owners at its Maldives resorts to lead exclusive and immersive masterclasses for guests, while reciprocating this exchange with wine partners sponsoring resort colleagues to travel and visit their vineyards across the world.
Sandro Bottega, President and CEO of Bottega SpA, comments, “I’m proud to start a partnership with such a prestigious hospitality group as Atmosphere Core. Our main aim is to bring the Italian oenological culture to South Asia. Maldives is a luxury destination, that embraces the same values of quality and elegance of our flagship product: Bottega GOLD Prosecco DOC. Furthermore, we hope to also introduce our Bottega 0 Rosé and White, both without alcohol, they offer the same consumption rituality of the sparkling wines, respecting teetotallers and all those who, for any reason, choose to be cautious in their consumption of alcohol. I’m also excited of the opportunity to open a branded Bottega Prosecco Bar, that will represent an ambassador for Italian cuisine in the islands”.
Wine enthusiasts, global travellers, and valued partners can look forward to a year-round calendar of enriching and immersive wine-focused experiences that embody Atmosphere Core’s commitment to exceptional hospitality and authentic storytelling, fostering genuine connections between guests and partner wineries from 1er Cru Champagne, Stellenbosch, Galicia, the Canary Islands and now Italy.
Cooking
New Tapasake restaurant at One&Only Reethi Rah
One&Only Reethi Rah introduces the newest gem to its collection of eight distinctive culinary experiences with the debut of Tapasake in the Maldives. The new concept offers Japanese cuisine with Mediterranean influences – a fresh take on culinary excellence. With breathtaking views of the crystal-clear Indian Ocean and the venue’s unique style, the new experiential gastronomic destination delivers a truly unforgettable experience to its One&Only clientele.
Designed by Jean-Michel Gathy from Denniston International, Tapasake is a 3665m2 venue suspended over the Indian Ocean’s sapphire surface. Expressive interiors draw the eye in every direction: up to the furthest reaches of the soaring see-through wine cellar; down beneath glass-bottomed floor panels in the sunken lounge to glimpse reef sharks darting across the shallows; left to take in wall-high artworks, intricate panelling and ephemera from the natural world. Playfully composed, Tapasake’s atmospheric surroundings encourage unbridled exploration. Light meets dark. Soft tones meet striking textures. Monochrome elements reflect Japanese design sensibility, while Mediterranean accents are captured in bright splashes of red, orange and yellow. Sweeps of wood, granite and stone ground the space in the essence of the Earth. Water is central to the flow of the design, glimmering in the reflection pool above the sway of the rolling tides. The wind blows a soft sea breeze, energising each new breath, while the fire lights up cigars sourced from the world’s best tobacco regions. This is a setting to savour with every sense.
Golden Hour was made for gathering on the Grand Terrace to toast another remarkable day amid the lush landscape. Here, the inventive cocktail menu mirrors the bold pigments that cloak the coastline at sunset with fragrant violet liqueur, passionfruit and pineapple setting a tropical mood.
A signature One&Only dining experience, Tapasake takes its name from the Spanish “tapas” and Japanese “sake,” with distinctive Mediterranean influences. Guests are invited to indulge in a concept that celebrates the art of sharing, featuring dishes that combine flavours from Japan and the Mediterranean for a truly unique culinary journey.
The sushi area, and teppanyaki grill stations beckon for intimate meals, grand gatherings and everything in between. Tender Wagyu beef meets the heat of the grill in a spectacle of sizzle before your eyes, while uni (sea urchin), otoro (bluefin tuna belly) and tai (sea bream) provide a flavour of the delicacies sourced from a tapestry of celebrated Japanese culinary provinces. Elsewhere, Mediterranean-inspired seafood fresh from local waters sits beside gyoza, Tokyo-style ramen, and traditional tapas, inviting you to mix and match flavours on your own epicurean adventure.
In the evening, Tapasake transforms into a vibrant hub, enhanced by DJs and live music to elevate the energy after dark. Enjoy multi-national cigars and signature whiskey cocktails in Sombra Lounge, or sip limited-edition sake inspired by the location, produced in collaboration with Yumegokoro Sake Brewery in Kitakata City, Fukushima Prefecture, this clean, light and fragrant Naraman Junmai Daiginjo has a Champagne-like profile shaped for celebrations.
Satisfy your wildest whims with bespoke events or delve deeper into your passions with a mixology class, tea ceremony or sake-tasting session. Celebrate milestones in style in private dining rooms that accommodate up to 12 guests, allowing for ultimate seclusion while basking in the natural beauty that surrounds you. Three spectacular spaces infused with distinctive character bring something extra special to your stay. Yuugen, meaning the mysterious sense of the beauty of the universe, provides a private portal to the mesmerising marine life beneath the ocean’s symphony of blues, with a glass floor to draw your gaze while you dine. Tenkei, meaning heavenly scene, positions you for awe-inspiring views of the horizon to backdrop your experience with the magic of the Maldivian sunset. Mesa Secreta translates as Secret Table and invites you into a world of wonder, tucked away to transform your evening into one that won’t be forgotten.
“Tapasake is a fantastic addition to One&Only Reethi Rah’s impressive selection of eight specialty dining venues. This beautiful setting, paired with the restaurant’s elevated food-sharing concept, makes Tapasake the Maldives’ premier experiential gastronomic destination, promising to delight the senses of luxury leisure seekers from around the globe,” said Jan B. Tibaldi, General Manager of One&Only Reethi Rah, Maldives.
Cooking
From pizza to pasta: Alila Kothaifaru Maldives unveils Pibati Sul Mare
“Pibati” in Sanskrit translates to “to drink, absorb, or imbibe,” reflecting a profound connection to savouring and enjoying sensory experiences such as food and drink. Guided by this philosophy, Alila Kothaifaru Maldives has unveiled a refined concept for its beachside restaurant under the leadership of Executive Chef Frank Wackerhagen. The newly reimagined dining destination invites guests to explore Italy’s cherished culinary traditions.
Renamed Pibati Sul Mare—Italian for “by the sea”—the restaurant serves lunch, specialising in artisanal pizzas and handcrafted pastas. Its menu features a harmonious blend of Italian classics and island-inspired flavours, such as the Margherita pizza and the exquisite Linguini allo Scoglio di Panna, a mixed seafood dish in a garlic cream sauce. These dishes are crafted with high-quality ingredients, including fresh, homegrown herbs cultivated on the island, creating comfort food that captures the island’s vibrant essence.
Nestled against the backdrop of stunning ocean views, Pibati Sul Mare offers a serene retreat for diners seeking a memorable culinary experience. The setting combines coastal charm with contemporary elegance, featuring airy, open spaces designed to immerse guests in the scenic surroundings. Soft, earthy tones and natural materials contribute to a warm and inviting ambiance, while exceptional service ensures every guest feels cared for and attended to.
Whether enjoying a gathering with family or savouring a moment of tranquility, Pibati Sul Mare provides an unforgettable dining experience. It promises to captivate the palate and create cherished memories that linger long after the visit.
-
Cooking1 week ago
From pizza to pasta: Alila Kothaifaru Maldives unveils Pibati Sul Mare
-
Featured1 week ago
Tripadvisor names Ayada Maldives Best of the Best Resort for luxury and excellence
-
Love1 week ago
Say ‘yes this Valentine’s at Cinnamon Velifushi Maldives
-
Family1 week ago
Week-long Easter celebration awaits at NH Collection Maldives Havodda Resort
-
Love1 week ago
JA Manafaru celebrates romance with exclusive Valentine’s Day experiences
-
Action1 week ago
Emerald Maldives hosts tennis masterclasses with Filippo Volandr
-
Featured1 week ago
From sunrise to sunset: Valentine’s Day bliss at Kuda Villingili
-
News1 week ago
Lady Amelia Spencer enjoys blissful getaway at JOALI Maldives