Top Dubai restaurants: a FooDiva 2024 guide

I give you the ninth edition of the annual FooDiva guide to top restaurants in Dubai. A record number of 45 homegrown, locally developed concepts have made the cut. Dubai boasts a matured restaurant scene, dominated by independent, chef-led and owner-operated establishments – something I am proud to champion with my #UAERestaurantsUnite campaign. These gems tick every box in equal measure – food, service, location, interior, atmosphere and value for money – in line with FooDiva’s editorial policy. There’s no room in this inn for imported brands, franchises, celeb chefs, royalty gigs and large chains.

These are restaurants that I have chosen to frequent socially over the last year, as well as those that have scored highly in my personal reviews. They have all consistently impressed across the whole dining experience – and serve à la carte. Very importantly, I always pay the bill. Some I have selected to showcase in my #ThreeChefsDinner dining experiences. Whilst I would love to dine at every single restaurant in Dubai every year, it’s simply not practically possible, or even financially feasible.

Whether you’re a UAE resident or a visitor, this guide is designed as a bucket list round-up to inspire your next breakfast, lunch or dinner. That’s how I use it! Towards the end, I have added my go-to restaurants for delivery.

If you sign up to my newsletter for a paid subscription, you’ll also receive the guide as a PDF.

Entries are categorised by licensed (with alcohol) and unlicensed (without booze), sub-divided into districts, and then alphabetically.

If you’re after bespoke tips and foodie itineraries, then check out the FooDiva restaurant recommendations service or my Restaurant Whisperer Substack subscription offer. For other handy tips, My Little Pink Lifestyle Book is regularly updated.

I am keen to know your favourite haunts, which may just inspire my restaurant outings this year – so please feel free to share.

LICENSED

Bluewaters Island

Alici: This Amalfi-inspired seafood restaurant should be on everyone’s bucket list even if Ain Dubai on Bluewaters Island is never re-opening. The deep-fried anchovies ‘alici’ are a must-eat, as is the sea urchin spaghetti, paired with picture-worthy views and a striking coastal décor. Walk off lunch or dinner with a stroll across the pedestrian footbridge from Bluewaters to JBR Walk soaking up the scenic skyline.

Dubai Marina

Bistro des Arts: This gem on Dubai Marina Mall’s promenade transports diners to a quintessential Parisian bistro offering a genuine taste of classic French fare with go-to plates of escargots, steak tartare and crêpes Suzette.

Dibba Bay Oysters: A licensed oyster ‘shack’, Dubai-style. On the lawns of Sheraton Jumeirah. Overlooking JBR beach with sunset views. The cooked Kilpatrick oysters, even with beef bacon, are utterly delicious, umami-laden morsels. Five additional grilled flavour combinations might tempt your taste buds, as are raw oysters, smoked Salmontini salmon, local burrata, and not-so-local (obviously) caviar.

JB’s: Our ‘local’ gastropub. At Amwaj Rotana on JBR Walk. The roast pork belly and Scotch egg, amongst the plethora of cooked pork dishes, has everything to do with it.

Tamoka: Latin-American meets Caribbean restaurant Tamoka; a sundowner beach bar Cana; and a food truck Cana-van. With, very importantly, pork on the menu. You may get sand in your toes, but only once you’ve slipped off funky sneakers or jewelled sandals. A dedicated, slick team runs this hotel-operated show at the Ritz-Carlton JBR Walk.

JLT

Hawkerboi: You may recall the at-home supper club, Hawkerboi, that Tom Arnel was running for a couple of years as a proof of concept (and a smart marketing tactic). Now a bricks-and-mortar restaurant in JLT serving a modern twist on hawker stall fare, mainly Malaysian, Thai and Indonesian. Buzzing, boisterous vibe guaranteed.

Mythos: This slice of Santorini in JLT impresses with no-frills simplicity and charm across both food and décor, despite the lack of a view. A charming husband and wife team, Ilias and Eva, run the kitchen and front-of-house respectively. Always busy, so book well ahead. The only Greek restaurant in Dubai (and we have many) to feature pork on the menu. A second, larger licensed outpost with a dreamy terrace sits at City Walk – sans pork.

Palm Jumeirah

Chez Wam: The baby of French chef Hadrien Villedieu, who made a rather good name for himself with contemporary cooking at Inked. Named after the French slang for chez moi, Chez Wam is his new playground for modern French cooking with a nod to Japanese influences. Atop the St Regis Gardens Palm Jumeirah.

Ibn Al Bahr: My go-to restaurant at the Club Vista Mare complex on Palm Jumeirah’s eastern shoreline. A Lebanese seafood tavern owned by fishermen. Choose fish from the daily catch on display, along with a selection of meze plates from the à la carte menu, and enjoy a meal on the terrace, or even the sand, soaking up vitamin sea.

Kyma: Palm Jumeirah is overflowing with beach clubs – however only one boasts a dedicated Greek restaurant with a Greek chef, Yiannis Katsikas. Adults-only too. At West Palm Beach. For balmy al fresco dining over well-executed meze plates.

Okku: The original Okku that opened in 2009 became Dubai’s first independent, homegrown, licensed restaurant concept. Remember the wild disco brunch and Sunday L.O.V.E. promo? Those heady, old-school times are forever ingrained in my memory. Five years after closing, the modern Japanese trendsetter has popped up in a new location. Palm Jumeirah at the Marriott. The new Okku is grander in décor. Of course it is. We’re in Dubai. The black cod, a signature on every Japanese menu since Nobu invented it, is the most affordable in town.

TagoMago: Il Faro and its glorious pizzas may be long gone, but in its place, still perched like a lighthouse (incidentally, the translation of Il Faro), you’ll find stellar Spanish tapas with a serving of breeze. Don’t miss the orange-stuffed olives; the Gilda bluefin tuna à la San Sebastián’s pintxo bars; the squid ink paella; and the flan dessert.

Umm Suqeim

Bastion: This brasserie-cum-steakhouse atop Jumeirah Beach Hotel shows off a breathtaking view of Burj Al Arab, from both the French window-framed dining room, and the bijou terrace. Oysters Rockefeller. Foie gras. Beef tartare, prepped tableside. Steaks, tomahawk included. A cheese trolley. And even some serious plant-based dishes.

Folly: Classic European-style cooking with playful touches and substantial portions by chef Bojan Cirjanic. A prime sundowner setting at Souk Madinat Jumeirah overlooks the waterway and Burj Al Arab from multiple terraces.

Taverna Greek Kitchen: This Greek restaurant at Souk Madinat lives up to its taverna name with a casual, rustic décor and expansive boardwalk. Greek chef Thodoris Rouvas ensures classic, authentic dishes including the signature slowly barbequed lamb shoulder and a fresh fish display – all at a wallet-friendly price point.

Dubai Hills

Reif Japanese Kushiyaki: Maverick Singaporean chef-restaurateur Reif Othman now boasts a licensed RJK restaurant in Dubai Hills. Reif is a creative soul, constantly adding new dishes to his tick-your-own-order menu. Thankfully, my favourite dish, the baked avocado with seaweed butter and teriyaki sauce remains a constant feature. His first venture into Korean cuisine, Hoe Lee Kow, sits in the same complex, whilst the OG at Dar Wasl remains.

Jumeirah

Mimi Kakushi: Baked bone marrow. Beef tartare. Teeny fried savoury buns. Pickled onions. All these umami flavours in one sole dish. Mimi Kakushi is an independently operated Japanese concept at the Four Seasons Jumeirah’s restaurant village. The food may be modern Japanese, but the striking nouveau Orient decor harks back to 1920s Japan evoking a true sense of place.

Pearl Jumeirah

Bungalo34: For al fresco, beachside Mediterranean dining. Independently operated by The Tashas Group at Nikki Beach Hotel. Novel dishes, like the warm salmon carpaccio, tuna tagliata, grilled calamari in lemon butter sauce – and to finish, what I have labelled, the Pina Colada cheesecake. Paired with, likely, the best playlist in town.

City Walk

Nola: The upscale City Walk sibling of the OG in JLT. New Orleans, Southern-style fare. Your three course meal should kick off with the baked filo-wrapped Camembert, followed by maple-syrup-marinated lamb chops, and culminating with the fluffiest, most pillowy, sugar-dusted beignets in town.

Downtown Dubai

Jun’s: A chef-led independent concept by Chinese-Canadian Kelvin Cheung on the main Downtown Dubai boulevard. The Asian-North-American cuisine pays homage to Kelvin’s heritage. A melange of cultures, and for want of an overused word, but highly relevant in this case – fusion. A well-engineered menu with intriguing ingredient and flavour combinations that, unusually for high-end restaurants, caters for many a dietary requirement.

Time Out Market Dubai: A food hall in Souk Al Bahar with 17 best-in-class Dubai concepts, whilst a terrace overlooks Burj Khalifa and the magical fountains. Every year, a revolving door of concessions leave and newbies join the market. The choice of dishes is hugely overwhelming, so I would urge using the app to help decide in advance, which also saves time with online ordering and payment.

DIFC

Avli: A cavern-cum-temple to modern Greek dining. A test of any Greek kitchen is the execution of feta saganaki – and Avli’s, with crisp honey-drizzled filo is the city’s best, rivalling any one might find in Greece. I taught myself to bake it – no mean feat.

BB Social Dining: This owner-operated townhouse of a restaurant hidden in DIFC feels like a cosy speakeasy, with a Far-Eastern menu. The plump, pillowy bao buns, freshly baked in-house daily are Dubai’s best. The ground floor terrace makes for pretty conservatory-style surroundings.

Boca: A Mediterranean concept helmed by a new Spanish chef Patricia Roig, embraces a sustainable menu ethos sourcing locally, whilst minimising food wastage. The wine list boasts Dubai’s most comprehensive selection of organic, biodynamic, sustainable and natural wines. The working wine cellar makes for an intimate private gathering.

Josette: A French restaurant in DIFC’s ICD Brookfield Place. Classics with a teeny twist – from the snails with garlic almond butter, and pan-fried seabass with ‘fish scale’ potato slivers, to the tableside flambé finale of crêpes Josette with blood orange. I expect it’s the sole restaurant in Dubai to boast a white-labeled house Champagne. All interwoven with extraordinary entertainment.

La Nina: Chef Tim Newton of Opa fame has engineered an Iberian-cum-Latino menu with his Portuguese head chef Ricardo Goncalves at another ICD Brookfield Place restaurant. Tim has a knack for turning out creative fare that is fuss-free, delivering on style AND substance. Refreshing to see oxtail on the menu; braised for 48 hours. The star dish? A flan-meets-crème caramel dusted with 12-month aged Manchego. Tim has always excelled at pastry, unusual for executive chefs, and would do well to consider a dessert-only concept.

Sheikh Zayed Road

Opa: The only Greek restaurant in Dubai to offer plate smashing, a tradition no longer prevalent in Greece, which adds to the atmosphere. Surprisingly, the setting with its own dedicated entrance at the Fairmont Dubai is intimate. The menu may pay homage to mostly modern Greek fare, however, Ottoman influences do creep through.

Wafi

The Nine: This pub at the Sofitel Obelisk is our favourite for a Sunday roast lunch. It’s all about the Yorkies (Yorkshire puddings) whether with beef, as tradition dictates – or any protein – all of which are on the menu here. The prime rib-eye of beef hails from Canada, whilst the English pork is showered with love from Dingley Dell, evident in the tender meat. And the crackling is simply put – a cracker – as are the cauliflower cheese croquettes. Make sure to leave room for the piping hot and ridiculously moreish apple pie.

Garhoud

Fujiya: I know I’ve discovered a good restaurant when a) the place is brimming with natives jovially tucking into their food – in this case Japanese – and b) I want to order every single dish from a mammoth menu. Independently operated with a dedicated entrance next to the Millennium Airport Hotel Dubai’s ballroom, Fujiya is a traditional Japanese izakaya aka pub. Go here to feast on affordable Japanese comfort food whether kaki oyster fry, ramen or shabu-shabu. A second outpost lives in the Swissotel Al Murooj.

NOTE: All these restaurants above serve à la carte menus. For specialist tasting menu-only concepts (homegrown of course), I have tried three that I would recommend. Tresind Studio by Himanshu Saini for inventive Indian fare; Ossiano by Grégoire Berger with a Brittany-inspired seafood journey – both on Palm Jumeirah. And TERO by Reif Othman for a playful Japanese omakase at Dubai Hills Business Park.

UNLICENSED (WITHOUT ALCOHOL)

JLT & Emirates Hills

Bait Maryam: A Palestinian owner-operated gem in JLT with Salam Daqqaq always hovering. Traditional dishes from Palestine and the broader Levant region whether breakfast, lunch or dinner.

Mama’esh: Expect queues on weekends. The original Al Wasl road villa may be the quainter branch of this Palestinian concept, but I prefer Meadows Village to stroll away the waiting time. I adore the watermelon and Nabulsi cheese salad.

Palm Jumeirah

Depachika Food Hall: Inspired by Japanese basement level department stores, this food hall in Nakheel Mall on Palm Jumeirah boasts 40+ dine-in and retail vendors, with many homegrown concepts – including my go-to, Kilikio, by the Mythos team. There’s even a booze shop.

Barsha

Sisi’s Eatery: Dubai’s best Wiener schnitzel, in my opinion. By far. The last time, I demolished one as delicious, was in Berlin. And if you don’t believe me, the local Austrian community raves about this Austrian cafe with a German chef. In Dubai Hills Mall. This pounded, breaded veal cutlet screams succulent golden goodness. Served with lingonberry relish and the choice of a tangy potato salad or crisp shoestring fries.

The Lighthouse: If you’re after healthy Mediterranean fare in Mall of the Emirates away from the white noise of the main thoroughfare, head upstairs to the Apple Atrium. I never fail to order the grilled aubergine with minced lamb. The concept store with quirky gifting items and novel cookbooks will pull at purse strings. Two more branches in Dubai – the original licensed restaurant in D3, and Nakheel Mall.

Umm Suqeim

21grams: A charming bistro paving the way for modern Balkan cuisine in Dubai. In the obscure Meyan mall on Al Thanya street. A terrace with both Burj Al Arab and Burj Khalifa views. All-day dining – however, the breakfast dishes including the Brunch Bestie dish that I named – along with the savoury burek and phyllo pastries are the highlights.

Blu Pizzeria: A teeny menu of only six wood-fired sourdough Neapolitan pizzas. That’s all you need though. At the fishing harbour in Umm Suqeim 3. Walk-ins only.

Lila Wood-Fired Taqueria: Dubai is brimming with so-called Mexican restaurants, but the majority serve Tex-Mex cuisine. However, this teeny gem on the Umm Suqeim 3 end of Jumeirah Beach Road offers an authentic taste of Mexico. The tortillas and tostadas are hand-pressed using heirloom corn from Mexican farms that is ground daily to make the masa dough. Exactly as I recall from food trucks lining Mexico City’s streets. Also delivers well.

Jumeirah

3Fils & Brix Café: 3Fils for small plates of modern Japanese fare. And the new Brix Café for unusual breakfast dishes and a roll call of inventive desserts from pastry chef extraordinaire Carmen Rueda Fernandez. Both within footsteps of each other in the picturesque, al fresco location of Jumeirah Fishing Harbour.

Lana Lusa: Portuguese cuisine is a tough call here, however Lana Lusa does a stellar job in this pretty Wasl 51 location, in particular for lunchtime dining. Don’t miss the salted cod with scrambled eggs and matchstick fries.

Odeon: An Aladdin’s cave of a deli overflowing with seafood, cheese, charcuterie (halal) and traditional home-cooked French dishes, right through to patisserie, groceries, and every condiment under the (Jumeirah) sun. If that wasn’t enough, head upstairs, rooftop included, for breakfast, lunch or dinner over classic Frenchie fare. The French husband and wife owners manage the kitchen and front-of-house respectively making this Jumeirah beach road villa a food lovers haven. I often order platters of oysters (pre-shucked) and king prawns for at-home entertaining.

Orfali Bros Bistro: The Syrian trio of Orfali brothers have created a tiny gem of a restaurant showcasing cutting-edge cooking with an ode to flavours from West Asia (the correct term for Middle East) – almost bordering on a chef’s table concept. In the Wasl 51 complex. With two of the brothers as pastry chefs, the dessert counter is a prominent feature. Be sure to indulge in the caviar-topped ‘doughnut’. Book well ahead.

Three by Eva: Mama Eva and her two daughters run this charming, two-storey villa café on Al Wasl road, serving classic and contemporary Palestinian dishes. At AED75, you’ll spot the most affordably priced bone marrow in town – and the most generous portion. There’s also a pantry to stock up on artisan produce, like goat labneh balls.

Yaba: The alert on the menu and exterior signage of Yaba at Vita Mall by young Iraqi chef Shaheen screams:“Warning: This restaurant doesn’t serve traditional Iraqi food.” A genius strategy to manage guest expectations – in particular from purists, who are always the first to condemn their own cuisine when a dish strays from ‘grandma’s cooking’. Chef Shaheen was an architecture student and an online content creator when he reached the finals of Masterchef UK 2020. The pandemic hit, and a focus on home cooking catapulted his social media accounts into the millions. He relocated to Dubai to showcase a different take on Iraqi cuisine. The star dish? A savoury kubba canelé.

Bastakiya

Arabian Tea House: Good Emirati fare is, sadly, hard to come by in Dubai – but if you dig deep, you’ll uncover Arabian Tea House. Of the city’s four locations, the Bastakiya branch is the prettiest and where the tourists flock (read Instagrammable). My go-to dishes are the grilled halloumi and their sumptuous breakfast trays, which are more representative of the national cuisine. The name is a nod to the unlimited black tea served in dainty Arabian glass teacups.

RESTAURANT DELIVERY

When I eat at home, I tend to prefer cooking to ordering in – but if I do go down the delivery route, other than some of the restaurants already mentioned, here are my go-tos. All have physical locations. I avoid cloud kitchens where quality control can often be an issue.

• Chinese: The Peking duck with pancakes at Han Cuisine can only be ordered direct. Sells out quickly, so plan ahead.
• Lebanese: Allo Beirut for Dubai’s best shawarma – and Al Safadi for meze and grills.
• Pizza: Pitfire and RossoVivo for Roman-style and Neapolitan respectively. And for a ‘healthier’ pizza, the cauliflower crust from Freedom.
• Pho (pronounced feu please!): Vietnamese Foodies. Sadly, the betel leaf duck sausages are no longer.
• Salads, all of them: Zaatar W Zeit.
• Steaks: Steaks are the easiest dish to cook at home – but if I don’t have meat in my fridge-freezer, I will order from either St Tropez Bistro that delivers grass-fed steaks rare and medium-rare, or Couqley (strictly speaking not a homegrown concept) for its famous steak with addictive sauce and frites. Its build-your-own salad is also a winner.
• Sushi & poke bowls: Sumo Sushi & Bento and Sushi Art. The latter’s beautifully presented boxes are perfect for home entertaining.
• Tray bakes & whole cakes: Roseleaf Café for casual home entertaining.
• Thai: Fuchsia for healthy Thai fare. The Barsha outpost recently moved to Internet City.
• Sourdough bread: Birch Bakery that also delivers pre-sliced.
• Bone broth: Hormone-free chicken bone broth from The Roost/ Broth Lab. DIY ramen kits and rotisserie chicken are also top notch.

A bientôt.

FooDiva. x