INA Dubai Hosts Michelin-Starred Chef Danny Africano for a Two-Day Fire-Led Dining Experience

Jan 7

Dubai’s culinary calendar opens the year with a flame-lit highlight as INA Dubai welcomes Michelin-starred chef Danny Africano for a special edition of its Masters of Fire Guest Chef Series. Running throughout January and launching with two exclusive chef-led evenings on 7 and 8 January, the collaboration brings European craftsmanship and elemental cooking to the shores of J1 Beach.

Chef Africano is the creative force behind Lignum, the County Galway restaurant that earned its first Michelin star in 2025. Rooted in wood-fired cooking, fermentation, and seasonality, Lignum has become synonymous with a refined yet primal dining philosophy — one that finds natural alignment with INA’s open-fire DNA.

Shaped by his Italian heritage and rural Irish upbringing, Africano’s cuisine balances elegance with instinct. His global experience — spanning kitchens in Singapore, New York, and Melbourne — informs a style that is thoughtful, restrained, and deeply expressive. Fire and smoke are not embellishments, but narrative tools, revealing the purity of exceptional ingredients.

A Menu Designed Around Fire and Craft

Guests can expect a curated selection of dishes that reflect Africano’s signature approach, including Brown Crab with pine nut paste and caviar, Black Garlic Tartlet with aged beef tartare, Grilled Squid with coriander paste and kombu, and a standout BBQ Blue Lobster with pumpkin and strega sauce, accompanied by wood-fired olive oil brioche.

The opening nights will see Africano in attendance, personally introducing the menu, before the experience continues throughout the month — offering Dubai diners a rare opportunity to experience Michelin-starred cooking in a relaxed, coastal luxury setting.

Set against the backdrop of J1 Beach, INA seamlessly blends design, dining, and nightlife, transitioning from refined dinners to late-night energy with resident DJs and live performances — making it one of the city’s most compelling lifestyle destinations.