I booked my trip to Dubai in January, otherwise known as Annual Report Hell. It’s not that I dislike the corporate copywriting work that I do – I actually appreciate its diversity – but January reached fever pitch, when I was five months into the project but couldn’t yet see the finish line. Then KLM released their World Deals, and I remembered that one of my closest school friends was living in Dubai for three years. A few WhatsApps later and I’d booked my flight for the day my project finished. After that, I didn’t think much more about it – I was going for warmth, sunshine and a chance to catch up with an old friend. I very definitely wasn’t going for work, and I didn’t do any prior research about restaurants in Dubai. But two days into my holiday, I found myself eating at the newest Japanese warayaki restaurant on the block (more on that below) and before I knew it I was busy scouring the internet for the best places for Pakistani curries and then walking five kilometres to eat at them.
In short, you can take the Amsterdam Foodie out of Amsterdam, but you can’t take the Foodie out of… ok, so that doesn’t really work. But you know what I mean: despite my best efforts to relax, I still came back with a list of recommendations for restaurants in Dubai that I wanted to share with everyone. Plus a few more food tips for good measure. So here goes… My 10 top tips for Dubai restaurants, bars and cafés.
Fine dining in Dubai: Netsu at the Mandarin Oriental Jumeira
Ordinarily, it would be hard for me to afford to eat at any of Dubai’s top restaurants (when you come from a country where you pay 50% tax to one where people pay zero tax, you’re at a significant fiscal disadvantage). But somehow, via a lucky friend-of-a-friend situation, I got an invitation to Netsu – the recently opened Japanese restaurant at Dubai’s Mandarin Oriental Hotel. And I wasn’t paying. This was fortunate given Dubai’s propensity to add gold leaf to anything and everything – but all that bling didn’t distract Netsu’s diners from what transpired to be an outstanding meal.
Suriyaki at Netsu, featuring gold leaf – because this is Dubai!
We started with simple tempura squid and sweet & sour chicken – and while those might sound like something you’d order from your local takeaway, these were some next-level flavours. Netsu’s USP is its warayaki cooking method, which essentially means barbecuing over hay for a quick, intense blast of sweet smoke. And while the chefs certainly cook the more obvious things like steak and tuna in this way, they also came out with some creative additions like grilled corn with a sweet, creamy sauce that paired perfectly with the charred flesh of the corn. For the full-on, only-in-Dubai experience, try the “luxury rice” featuring wagyu beef, sea urchin and gold leaf. Or the suriyaki roll filled with wagyu beef and truffle, wrapped in daikon, and (you’ve guessed it) topped with gold leaf. The desserts are also superb, from the chocolate mochi by Little Moons to the kinako French toast. Just don’t forget to take your credit card…
At completely the other end of the spectrum is Ravi’s: a name that came up every time I asked anyone in Dubai for their favourite curry house. This Pakistani institution has been running for donkey’s years, and it’s clear why. For 30 Dirhams (the equivalent of about €8), you can get one of the best curries you’ll ever eat, a simple roti to mop up the juices, and a small salad with yoghurt dressing to cool your mouth down after all that spice. The green chicken masala that I ordered (with memories of my favourite curry house in Brixton) was hot and fruity from the green chillies, aromatic from the blend of warm spices, and fragrant from the fresh mint and coriander. A spice sensation.
With similar décor and prices only a little higher than Ravi’s is Al Fannah: a fish restaurant along Jumeira Beach. From a counter in one corner, you simply point at your fish or seafood of choice – all marinated in a masala spice mix – and the chefs at Al Fannah will fry it up for you and serve it simply with lemon, rice, salad and a curry sauce on the side for those who like it extra spicy. I tried the shrimp and calamari, both of which were perfectly cooked and perfectly spiced, for 74 Dirhams (€18) including all of the above. The portion size was huge – it was really enough for two people, which would’ve made it even better value for money.
“Brunch” means something very different in Dubai than anywhere else in the world. It’s not necessarily in the morning – in fact, it might be at 7 o’clock in the evening. But it almost always involves all-you-can-drink booze, all-you-can-eat buffets, and a raucous time being had by all. I went to the Westin Hotel on a Friday afternoon for the Bubbalicious Brunch, which is known for being utterly over-the-top and one of the first brunches to take off in Dubai. As expected, the buffet was vast, featuring everything from sushi to BBQ to (my favourite) an entire library of cheese. We started with a bottomless glass of Prosecco, and from there proceeded to work our way through G&Ts, margaritas, mojitos and even Jagermeister shots (!) over the course of three or four hours. Sober we were not. Thrilled to be alive we very much were – hence the dancing afterwards. The whole experience will set you back over €100 per person, but it’s entirely worth it. You’ll never experience anything quite like a Dubai brunch…
For breakfast or a hearty snack, you can’t go wrong with manakish: a pizza-like flatbread that’s often topped with cheese and za’atar (a blend of thyme, oregano, marjoram, sumac, sesame seeds and salt). It’s widely reputed that the best manakish comes from Al Reef Bakery – and who am I to argue? According to Google, it’s open 24/7 and for 9.5 Dirhams (around €2.50) you can keep hunger locked up till lunch – or dinner, or breakfast the next morning…
Cheese manakish at Al Reef Bakery (taken before the za’atar had been added!)
Fresh fish (cleaned and BBQ-ed!) at Souq Al Bahar 4 Fish
If you’re looking for fish and seafood to take away, stop by the fish market at Jumeirah Beach for the freshest catch. Better still, you can take your purchase to the building next door to have your fish cleaned, butterflied, seasoned and grilled over the BBQ – you can eat it at the tables outside or take it home with you. Now that’s what I call service!
If you’re visiting the city as a tourist, you’re undoubtedly going to want to witness the spectacle that is the famous Dubai Fountain under the Burj Khalifa. And there’s no better view than from the balcony at Karma Kafé, where you can nibble on dim sum and other pan-Asian delights. Try the shrimp tempura, the vegetarian coconut curry, or any of the steamed dumplings. Ask for a table in the outside corner of the balcony for the best fountain views.
Speaking of views, Neos Lounge is perched on the 63rd floor of one or other skyscraper overlooking the Burj Khalifa in downtown Dubai. And it sells half-price cocktails between 5 pm and 8 pm daily – result! Order the fresh and spicy Tom Yum Collins or the sultry and smoky Quita Penas. And try not to fill up on too many of the free snacks…
Breakfast poke bowl at Skm’d
Among a cluster of food trucks along the beachfront at Kite Beach, you’ll find some serious nutritional value at Skm’d. After a heavy day of brunching or a night out hitting the cocktails, you’ll be in need of Skm’d’s freshly squeezed juices and smoothies. And once you’ve had your first injection of vitamins, you’ll want to proceed with the breakfast poké bowl, packed full of superfoods like kale and quinoa as well as the requisite breakfast additions of poached egg and smoked salmon. And then lie on the beach and sleep off your hangover.
Targeting cyclists and coffee lovers, Café Peloton (which is handily around the corner from Al Reef Bakery – see above) is the perfect pit stop for puncture repair or caffeine cravings. When I was there, Peloton’s changing menu of specialty coffees offered four different types of beans prepared in seven different ways, from aeropress to syphon. It’s not cheap at 25 Dirhams (€6) a cup, but the quality of the brew and the barista’s attention to detail are exquisite.
