6 Great Restaurants To Try In Dubai
Dubai — the dynamic Middle Eastern city of choice for the jetsetter, the shopahalic, the adrenaline junkie, and yes, the foodie. Some of the world's most revered master chefs have outposts here, and more and more budget-minded restaurateurs are also upping the ante on innovative dining without charging wallet-emptying prices. Whether you're visiting the City of Gold as a high-roller or a penny-pincher, consider this assorted selection of Dubai's excellent restaurants.
BUDGET
Salt
Persian Gulf meets SoCal cool at Salt, a wildly popular burger shack located on a pretty stretch of Kite Beach. Millennial entrepreneurs Deem Albassam and Amal Al Marri harnessed the power of social media (and an Instagram-friendly retro food truck) to market their halal-certified wagyu mini-beef burgers, "chicken Cheetos" sliders, and addictive fries. Don't miss the Lotus Shake, a dreamy, creamy treat made of the famous Belgian Biscoff cookie brand — you know, the ones you see on short-haul Delta flights — and vanilla ice cream; or participate in a local trend and dip your portion of Cheetos into a bowl of labneh.
SMCCU Cultural Breakfast and Lecture
Enjoy an Emirati breakfast with a side of cultural education at the Sheikh Mohammed Centre in the atmospheric Old Dubai. On Mondays and Wednesdays at 10 a.m. (lunch and dinner is also available), locals enlighten expats and tourists on the Emirati way of life, facilitate space for questions and try on Emirati garb. The informative, interactive session concludes with a banquet spread of traditional Emirati cuisine including babaleet, Arabic coffee, and chabab, an Emirati pancake made of saffron, wheat, milk, and cardamom. The whole experience costs 90 AED ($24 USD).
MID-RANGE
Fuego
Dubai is not the first place most think to find top-rate Mexican food, and that's what makes Fuego, located in the Souk Al Bahar complex in Downtown Dubai, that much more refreshing. Gone are the clichéed sombrero and maraca paraphernalia; instead, find a contemporary space serving fine selections of ceviche, enchiladas, steaks, and tableside-prepared guacamole. Tacos are top sellers, like the al pastor version with marinated chicken, grilled pineapple, garlic sauce, and adobo sauce; other tasty favorites include the lamb shank barbacoa, a succulent slab atop black beans, barbacoa broth, and tortilla epazote foam.
Seven Sands
You can eat food — great food — from around the world in this cosmopolitan city, but when a taste of the UAE is in order, the Seven Sands is it. The name of this two-story beachside restaurant represents the seven emirates composing the UAE, and the menu is an ode to Emirati culinary tradition, but served in modern digs with fabulous views of The Beach at JBR. If you haven't tried it in Dubai yet, this could be the place to sample the locally beloved minced shark sambousa (related to the Indian samosa); the less intrepid will do just fine with the lamb or chicken Bedouin stews (thereed), kebabs, traditional prawn dishes, and other hearty preparations.
BLOWOUT
J&G Steakhouse
Transport yourself into a classic, masculine Chicago-style steak joint at J&G Steakhouse, the brainchild of famed chef Jean-Georges Vongerichten. Based in the new St. Regis Dubai, the restaurant offers 17 premium cuts to choose from, the most flamboyant choice being the made-for-two wagyu tomahawk, a ginormous 2.6-pound mass of meat cut meticulously tableside (get ready for the "oohs" and "aahs" from nearby patrons). It's not all about meats, however; the menu includes a raw bar (i.e., tuna tartare, wagyu beef tartare), vegan-friendly salads, and a decadent lobster bisque.
Social by Heinz Beck
No need for a journey to Rome for a transcendent Italian meal when there's Social by Heinz Beck, Waldorf Astoria Dubai Palm's preeminent restaurant. The man behind Rome's 3-star Michelin restaurant La Pergola brings a more relaxed yet elegant "taste of Italy" to Dubai. The menu feels both innovative and comforting in equal measure, a feat that shone brightest in the mushroom tortellini on spinach foam with black truffle (it's now one of my all-time personal favorite dishes). Dessert is also a molecular triumph with Beck's famous Raspberries 1.1, featuring 11 different raspberry "interpretations" — sorbet, crystallized, sponge, purée and the like — on an artfully constructed plate.