A Dubai food guide for every palate and budget

Dubai is a food lover’s playground. A restaurant calls out from almost every corner—Emirati, Iranian, Indian, Filipino, Levantine and European, sometimes all on the same street. With nearly 85% of its population made up of expatriates, Dubai’s food culture mirrors the world itself.

With no-frills, hole-in-the-wall spots, mid-range cafés fuelling the brunch culture, and Michelin-starred restaurants defining its global standing, Dubai caters to every appetite and budget. On a recent trip, a local at a community table joked it would take 75 years to eat your way through Dubai—and it didn’t feel like an exaggeration. This guide moves between the everyday and the occasional splurge.

STREET EATS (AED 10-50/person)

While Dubai’s chef-led fine dining often steals the spotlight, the city’s street food scene reveals a far more democratic and delicious side through dishes like falafel, shawarma, biryani and flatbreads.

Deira, in Old Dubai, is one of the most rewarding neighbourhoods for a street food crawl. On Muraqqabat Street, Sultan Dubai Falafel is a local favourite. Falafel here is made from a vivid green chickpea paste blended with parsley, coriander and dill, shaped using an aleb (mould) that flicks the mixture straight into hot oil. Finished with tangy sumac and fiery hot sauce (shatta), each bite packs a punch.

Next door, its sister restaurant Qwaider Al Nabulsi focuses on Jordanian and Palestinian classics such as mansaf (meat slow-cooked in preserved yogurt and served over a bed of buttery rice) and kunafa, the iconic cheese dessert soaked in sugar syrup.

Old Dubai’s tiny Afghani and Pakistani bakeries are worth seeking out too. Abdul Rauf bakery in Hor Al Anz is known for its breads stuffed with cream cheese and za’atar.

NEIGHBOURHOOD FAVOURITES (AED 60-150/person)

Dubai’s malls and neighbourhoods open up a rich casual dining scene, spanning everything from global comfort food to lesser-known community cuisines.

In Dubai Marina, Kooya Filipino Eatery is a standout. Helmed by chef J.P. Anglo, a former judge on the Filipino edition of MasterChef, the restaurant serves a mix of Filipino comfort fare and street-food favourites. The chicken sisig—made with wings, tail, skin and pâté—is rich and savoury, while the grilled chicken inasal, beef-belly caldereta (a fiery stew) and crispy pancit canton (a fried noodle dish) are equally compelling reasons to return.

Balkan cuisine is still under the radar, but 21 Grams in Meyan Mall, Umm Suqeim 2, is changing that. Founded by Stasha Toncev, it is known for its crispy phyllo pie with creamy spinach or goat’s cheese, honey and thyme cherry with vanilla ice cream. Breakfast is a highlight, especially the komplet egg served with sunny-side-up eggs, homemade bread, cheese, sour cream and beef jus.

Alserkal Avenue is another neighbourhood, where there’s a generous mix of art and food. Lila Molino + Café serves house-made tortillas crafted from heirloom Mexican corn, along with dishes like creamy green enchiladas suizas filled with shredded chicken or cheese.

Nearby, Middle Child blends casual dining with a cookbook shop and gourmet grocery. The space centres around a coveted communal table. Order munchies like sour cream and onion dip with Ritz crackers, follow with the generously layered club sandwich with turkey, beef bacon and boiled eggs, and finish with their indulgent cheesecake.

FINE-DINING PICKS (AED 350-1,000/person)

In 2025, 19 Michelin stars were awarded across the city, including three-star recipient Himanshu Saini’s Trèsind Studio and single-star Dinner by Heston Blumenthal.

Beyond the stars, however, the fine-dining scene runs even deeper. Many of the most exciting openings debuted just last year, with Three Bros leading the charge. This experimental concept from Orfali Bros Group, in Jumeirah’s Wasl 51, is notoriously hard to book, with only 22 covers. The playful menu includes comfort dishes like the OB cheeseburger, ama ebi shrimp in olive oil and tomato pulp, and creamy morel chawanmushi (a Japanese savoury egg custard).

Mamabella at Kempinski The Boulevard brings rustic southern Italian dining to Dubai. Handmade pastas, Sicilian pizzolo (stuffed flatbread), scrocchiarella (thin Roman-style pizza) and oven-baked sea bass in a salt crust anchor the menu, but the real USP is its rotating cast of Italian nonnas, each invited monthly to cook family recipes.

Jun’s in Downtown Boulevard is also making waves, with chef Kelvin Cheung’s 13-course tasting menu built around “third-culture cooking”. Drawing from Chicago, Hong Kong, Shanghai, Yunnan and Amman, highlights include pani puri with butter-poached lobster and a playful Garrets popcorn “Chicago Mix” dessert with popcorn mousse, burnt caramel ganache, popcorn sponge, four-cheese ice-cream, and kaluga caviar.

Meanwhile, New York-born Carbone at Atlantis The Royal channels 1950s Italian-American glamour. While some dishes are new, it continues to offer signatures like linguini vongole, veal Parmesan, and spicy rigatoni. Reservations well in advance are essential.

Geetika Sachdev is a Delhi-based lifestyle journalist.