What to eat at Time Out Market Dubai. A tried and tasted guide.

Time Out Market in Lisbon was a foodie highlight of my visit back in 2016. So much so, I wondered then why Time Out hadn’t considered bringing the successful dine-in concept to Dubai. Instead, Depachika Food Hall and Food District (the latter closed for the summer) beat them to it – initiating a food market trend. Some things are worth the wait though. Time Out Market Dubai opened earlier this month at Souk Al Bahar occupying the space that housed much-missed Rivi (Rivington Grill) – and a few thousand more square metres. The other markets globally have typically relied on tourists for their bread-and-butter. With 17 homegrown restaurant concepts, this new destination has every potential to revive the Souk provided residents are targeted, which going by the queues, it clearly seems to be doing.

The choice of food is so overwhelming that some kind of guidance is required, I believe. Otherwise a visit is like popping to the supermarket without a shopping list. So along with Fine Dining Matt, we have tried and tasted our way around the market over seven visits to bring you this guide on what to eat – categorised into what we feel would make good starters, mains and desserts.

Note; the venue is licensed with three bars, serving Dubai’s cheapest bottle of Champagne (the excellent Nicolas Feuillatte Brut) for AED400 including taxes, knocking BB Social Dining off the top spot. Downloading the app helps with viewing all vendor menus – but also allows you to order directly from your table, with a push notification advising when the order is ready for collection.

At the end of this guide, I’ve taken the liberty of recommending some Dubai concepts I’d like to see joining the market at some point in the future 😉

STARTERS

BB Social Dining: sample some of the Far-Eastern inspired dishes that make the original BB in DIFC a foodie favourite. Chef Alex Stumpf and his team have transported their best creations to the market, making it an almost-impossible task to choose – but priority must go to the freshly baked daily bao buns. The Habibti bao (AED54) tastes as wonderful as it looks with a soft-shell crab peering out from a watercress and wasabi dressing. Other stand-out dishes are the braised short rib This is BB bao (AED50), super green hummus (AED32), and the addictive crunchy soy-glazed Brussels sprouts with red chilli (AED34) – Fine Dining Matt.

Fulvio’s: an Italian concept by the head chef of one of Dubai’s most celebrated restaurants – Il Borro Tuscan Bistro. A clever way perhaps of making sure this classifies as homegrown 😉 The vitello tonnato is my go-to dish – thinly sliced roasted veal, light tuna sauce, fried capers, hazelnuts and dried cranberries (AED69). Give it a good mix before eating to bring the flavours to the fore. If you’re after pasta, go for the tortelli with pumpkin, amaretti biscuits, fontina cheese and sage (AED95) or the carbonara with mezze maniche (half-sized rigatoni – AED89). The bistecchina di manzo (more commonly known as tagliata di manzo) is another stand-out dish of sliced chargrilled Black Angus steak with carrot ketchup and mixed salad leaves (AED155) – FooDiva.

Long Teng: renowned for classic Chinese seafood fare in Business Bay. Plated simply, the variety and quality of the steamed dim sum platter (AED48), and the fried dim sum platter (AED68) will have you arguing about which morsels you like best. Personally, the Angus beef and onion pancake was the highlight from an impressive range – Fine Dining Matt.

Pitfire Pizza: I can’t believe it’s taken me this long to try this JLT gem. I would now rank it as one of Dubai’s top five pizzerias. A Neapolitan-Roman-New York hybrid style, the Margherita (AED47) with hand-torn mozzarella, Parmesan and basil will appeal to pizza purists – or the Pepperoni (AED53) for everyone else. The garlic butter-drenched ‘knots’ (AED28) are also worth many a calorific bite – FooDiva.

Two Leaves by Project Chaiwala: if you can ignore the chai wala’s annoying, high-pitched screeching voice as he pours karak tea, order the smashed desi samosa ‘shashmosa’ (AED30), a veggie dish bursting with spicy and tangy flavours. You’ll never crave a regular samosa again – FooDiva.

Vietnamese Foodies: I’ve been a fan of the JLT location with its fragrant, healthy Vietnamese fare from pretty much day one. I would choose this vendor for a relief from the heavy carby options found elsewhere. Try the grilled duck sausages wrapped in betel leaves (AED36) or the rice paper rolls, with either prawns, chicken or sweet potato (AED24) – FooDiva.

Al Fanar: The ultimate in home-grown at Time Out Market with this restaurant serving Emirati cuisine, seafood in particular. The garlic butter mussels (AED66) stand out, making an excellent sharing dish of ten plump mussels packed with flavours of garlic and butter. However, these are imported from New Zealand – Fine Dining Matt.

Little Erth: A predominately vegan joint in JLT, neither Matt nor I are its target demographic. However, many vegans rave about this joint. If you’re on a health drive (unlikely if you’re going to Time Out Market), I would order one of two salads, the yoga bowl (AED42) in particular – FooDiva.

MAIN COURSES

Folly Workshop: Folly presents well with a mix of classics and reimagined dishes that you might not see at the original restaurant in Souk Madinat. Nick and Scott, alongside head chef Gerard, bare their culinary teeth with pulled, smoked short rib with mustard on brioche (AED75), but do try the battered haddock with warm tartare sauce (AED75), and do not leave without gorging on the decadent fat chips with Parmesan and truffle (AED30) – Fine Dining Matt.

Local Fire by The Mattar Farm: Hattem Mattar finally gives the BBQ crowd what they want; a permanent location to try his range of artisanal smoked and barbequed meats. In good news, his original queues appear to have subsided. His classic is the brisket in toasted potato bun (AED78) with a spicy sauce and two condiments of choice – Fine Dining Matt.

Liban by Allo Beirut: this retro Lebanese street food joint easily pulls off the best shawarma in Dubai. My favourite? The beef shawarma with tomato, pickles and tahini wrapped in toasted Arabic bread (AED26). Insanely delicious – FooDiva.

Masti: a modern Indian concept by the same family as Allo Beirut and Ibn Al Bahr. If butter chicken could become even more decadent, then adding burrata seals the deal (AED80). Freshly baked warm naan helps mop it all up. The pour-your-own, crisp pani puri morsels with avocado ceviche (AED40) makes for a refreshing amuse bouche – FooDiva.

Pickl: a clear favourite of the ever-burgeoning Dubai burger scene. Pickl’s best dish is the fried chicken sando (AED38), which is actually a burger. Served alongside skinny fries (AED16) – or even Folly’s fat chips – AND a cold beer – Fine Dining Matt.

Reif Japanese Kushiyaki: Chef Reif’s food is one of the hottest tickets in town and none more so than his edgy style of Japanese street food that will leave you ordering more and more. There are many dishes to choose from, sushi and ramen included, however his Gyu nikomi sando of braised katsu Angus beef and omelette (AED95) is why you head here. This generous portion of a toasted sandwich is best shared between more than one diner, especially if you have already indulged in multiple starters – Fine Dining Matt.

DESSERTS

Brix: I dare you to save room for desserts. Chef Akmal may have left 3 Fils’ dessert bar, but his signature African Power House dessert (AED40) remains. A dark (Ghanaian) ganache chocolate indulgence – served with a scoop of vanilla ice cream – FooDiva.

Nightjar: An array of exciting, sweet treats and coffees are on offer, but you cannot say no to a slice of Basque cheesecake (AED40), baked by the owner’s wife of Roseleaf Cafe fame. Just like the original – which I have had in its home of San Sebastian – is luxurious, creamy and cheesy as one would expect. The burnt crust is achieved by cooking at a high temperature and is the perfect end to a night at the market – Fine Dining Matt.

Scoopi: The Belgian Lotus biscoff trend hits Time Out Market with this glorious velvety ice cream (AED45) churned on the spot. That’s high praise from someone with no sweet tooth – FooDiva.

FOOD FOR THOUGHT WITH A WISH LIST OF ADDITIONAL VENDORS:

• Breakfast: Balkan bistro, 21 Grams.
• Greek: take your pick from the wealth of Greek restaurants we have here. My vote goes to the most authentic and casual in keeping with a traditional Greek taverna – Mythos.
• Portuguese: Lana Lusa.
• Spanish: Boca.
• Turkish: Ruya for fine dining – or Kaftan for rustic.
• Oysters: Dibba Bay.
• Tea: Avantcha Tea.

Any more you’d like to see?

A bientôt.

FooDiva & Fine Dining Matt. x

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