Dubai is the kind of city where deciding what to eat can become one of the most difficult decisions of the day.
Within a single weekend, you could start with Emirati breakfast, eat South Asian street food for lunch, order Lebanese mezze at sunset and finish the evening in a restaurant overlooking the city. Its dining scene reflects the extraordinary mix of cultures that call Dubai home — and some of the most memorable meals aren’t necessarily found in the places with the most spectacular views.
If you’re visiting for the first time, don’t try to eat everywhere. Instead, build your trip around a few distinctly different Dubai food experiences.
Editor’s note: This article from Divine Magazine’s earlier archive has been substantially rewritten and updated. Restaurants, menus, prices and opening hours can change, so check current information before visiting.
Start With Emirati Food
It’s surprisingly easy to spend several days eating extremely well in Dubai without actually eating much Emirati food.
Don’t make that mistake.
Traditional Emirati cooking reflects the region’s history and trading connections, with rice, meat, seafood, dates and aromatic spices appearing throughout the cuisine.
Look for dishes such as machboos, a fragrant rice dish commonly prepared with meat or seafood; harees, made from wheat and meat cooked into a rich, comforting consistency; and luqaimat, small sweet dumplings often served with date syrup.
Emirati breakfast can be particularly enjoyable if you want something different from another hotel buffet. Depending on where you eat, you may encounter breads, eggs, cheese, dates and dishes influenced by generations of regional cooking.
Explore Old Dubai for a Completely Different Food Scene
The glossy restaurants inside Dubai’s luxury hotels represent only one side of the city.
Spend some time around Deira, Bur Dubai and the neighborhoods surrounding Dubai Creek and the atmosphere changes. Streets become busier, restaurants become smaller and the city’s enormous South Asian, Middle Eastern and international communities become much more visible through food.
This is where you can build an entire evening around inexpensive dishes rather than one elaborate reservation.
Try shawarma, kebabs, biryani, grilled meats, fresh breads and regional sweets. Follow something savory with karak chai — the sweet, milky and spiced tea you’ll find throughout the city.
Don’t assume the fanciest dining room automatically produces the most memorable meal. In Dubai, an unassuming restaurant with plastic menus and a queue outside can sometimes be exactly where you want to eat.
Make Time for Indian and South Asian Food
Indian and wider South Asian cuisine isn’t a minor part of Dubai’s restaurant scene. It’s woven into the city’s everyday food culture.
You’ll find everything from inexpensive neighborhood restaurants to elaborate contemporary dining rooms, covering cuisines and regional traditions that go far beyond a generic menu of curry and naan.
Depending on your tastes, that could mean biryani, dosa, tandoori dishes, kebabs, vegetarian thalis or richly spiced curries accompanied by freshly baked breads.
If you already enjoy Indian food at home, Dubai is a good place to move beyond the dishes you usually order and explore something unfamiliar.
Order a Table Full of Lebanese and Middle Eastern Dishes
One of the nicest ways to eat in Dubai is also one of the most social: order several dishes and share everything.
Lebanese and other Middle Eastern restaurants make that particularly easy. A table can quickly fill with hummus, moutabal, tabbouleh, fattoush, warm bread, grilled meats and small hot dishes.
It’s ideal when you’re traveling with friends or family because nobody has to commit to one plate, and the meal naturally becomes slower and more communal.
If the weather cooperates, an outdoor table in the evening can make the experience even better.
Experience Dubai’s Luxury Dining — Once
Dubai knows how to make dinner feel like an event.
There are restaurants inside extraordinary hotels, high above the city and beside the water, with dining rooms designed to compete for your attention before the first plate even arrives.
If your budget allows, choose one special restaurant during your trip rather than trying to make every dinner extravagant.
You’re partly paying for the setting, so make it count. A birthday, anniversary or final evening in Dubai can be a good excuse for somewhere memorable.
Before booking, check whether your chosen restaurant has a dress code, minimum spend, cancellation policy or particular seating areas. A beautiful view isn’t quite as romantic when you discover your reservation is actually for a table nowhere near it.
Don’t Dismiss the Hotel Brunch
Dubai has turned brunch into something considerably more elaborate than eggs and coffee.
Depending on the venue, brunch can involve multiple cuisines, live cooking stations, desserts, entertainment and several hours around the table.
It’s not necessarily an inexpensive way to eat, so compare what’s included rather than looking only at the headline price.
For travelers who enjoy trying lots of different foods, however, one carefully chosen brunch can become an experience in itself.
Save Room for Something Sweet
Dessert doesn’t need to mean returning to the hotel’s international buffet.
Dubai offers plenty of opportunities to explore Middle Eastern sweets and flavors, from baklava and kunafa to desserts featuring pistachio, dates, rose and saffron.
Even if you don’t normally order dessert, sharing something unfamiliar after dinner is an easy way to add another food experience to the trip without planning an entirely separate meal.
Try Karak Chai
Not every memorable taste in Dubai requires a reservation.
Karak chai is one of the city’s simple pleasures: strong tea typically prepared with milk, sugar and spices. You’ll find variations across Dubai, often served inexpensively from cafeterias and tea shops.
Grab a cup during an afternoon of exploring and you’ve experienced something much closer to everyday Dubai than another coffee from an international chain.
How to Choose Restaurants in Dubai
With so much choice, restaurant research can become ridiculous. You don’t need a spreadsheet containing 47 dinner possibilities.
Instead, choose restaurants according to the experience you want.
- For local flavor: Look for Emirati cuisine and restaurants away from purely tourist-focused areas.
- For inexpensive exploration: Spend an evening eating around Old Dubai.
- For sharing: Choose Lebanese or Middle Eastern mezze.
- For variety: Consider one of Dubai’s elaborate brunches.
- For a special occasion: Reserve one of the city’s destination restaurants.
- For something casual: Follow busy local restaurants rather than automatically choosing the place with the prettiest Instagram feed.
A Simple 3-Day Dubai Food Plan
If food isn’t the sole purpose of your vacation but you still want to experience some of the city’s range, try this:
| Day | Lunch | Dinner | Something Extra |
|---|---|---|---|
| Day 1 | Emirati food | Lebanese mezze | Karak chai |
| Day 2 | South Asian food in Old Dubai | A special-occasion restaurant | Middle Eastern dessert |
| Day 3 | Dubai brunch or casual lunch | Return to the cuisine you loved most | One final tea or sweet treat |
It isn’t a list of restaurants to complete. That’s deliberate.
Restaurants open, close and change. Food cultures last considerably longer.
The Dubai Meal We’d Remember
If we had to choose one evening, it wouldn’t necessarily involve the city’s tallest building or most expensive tasting menu.
We’d head toward Old Dubai around sunset, walk until somewhere smelled irresistible, order more dishes than seemed sensible and finish with something sweet and a cup of karak.
Save the spectacular skyline dinner for another night.
Dubai’s food scene becomes much more interesting once you realize luxury is only one of its flavors.
FAQ: Eating in Dubai
What food should you try in Dubai?
Make room for Emirati dishes as well as the Indian, Pakistani, Lebanese and wider Middle Eastern cuisines that form an important part of Dubai’s food culture. Karak chai and regional desserts are also worth trying.
Is eating out expensive in Dubai?
It can be, but it doesn’t have to be. Dubai has everything from luxury destination restaurants to inexpensive neighborhood cafeterias. Mixing a few special meals with casual local restaurants is an easy way to control your food budget.
Do you need restaurant reservations in Dubai?
Reservations are sensible for popular restaurants, brunches and special-occasion dining, particularly if you want a specific time or table. Casual restaurants may not require advance booking.
What should you wear to restaurants in Dubai?
It depends on the venue. Casual restaurants may have relaxed expectations, while luxury restaurants and hotel dining rooms can have dress codes. Check the restaurant’s current policy before your reservation.
Where should food lovers explore in Dubai?
Don’t limit yourself to luxury hotels and major malls. Areas around Deira, Bur Dubai and Dubai Creek can provide a very different perspective on the city’s multicultural food scene.