Catch Russell Peters at Etihad Arena in Abu Dhabi on 25 October. Get all the details on pricing, timings, and why this comedy legend is a UAE favourite. Continue Reading Russell Peters to perform at Etihad Arena in Abu Dhabi
Author: Monica Bonalto
Monica Bonalto
Monica Bonalto arrived in Dubai in 2017 with a background in hospitality journalism and quickly became one of the most trusted voices in the UAE's dining and nightlife space. Over seven years on the ground, she has reviewed more than 400 venues across all seven emirates — from the sun-baked beach clubs of JBR and the rooftop terraces of DIFC, to the understated local gems that rarely make it onto tourist lists.Before joining What's Hot in UAE as Nightlife & Dining Editor, Monica contributed to Time Out Dubai, Abu Dhabi Food Festival coverage, and several regional hospitality publications. She has attended every major restaurant opening in Dubai since 2019 and maintains direct relationships with PRs and venue operators across the city — which means the information you read in her guides is always verified, never recycled from a press release.Her specialities are happy hours (she has personally verified every deal on our lists), Friday brunches, and the Northern Emirates' emerging food scene. She is based in DIFC and eats out five times a week. When she says a place is worth your money, it is.Follow Monica's work on Muck Rack, Substack, Vocal, and Medium.
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Start with Haidilao on Level 1 near the food court, which holds a 4.9 rating from 2,534 Google reviews and is the highest-rated sit-down restaurant in the building. If hotpot isn’t the plan, Turkish Village (4.8 from 7,508 Google reviews) is the mall’s most-reviewed restaurant by a wide margin, and Shvili (4.8 from 1,784 Google reviews) is the Georgian option people keep coming back for. Between those three you have most of Dubai Festival City Mall’s dining reputation covered in one afternoon. What separates Festival City from every other Dubai mall is the Creek. The centre sits on the water…
Short version: Namelaka holds the highest Google rating in the Dubai Hills Mall area at 4.9 from 6,635 Google reviews, Catch22 is the one people actually queue for at 4.8 from 5,843 Google reviews, and Peet’s Coffee is the best-rated caffeine stop at 4.9 from 3,464 Google reviews. Everything below is grouped by what you came to do — fast coffee, family lunch, proper dinner — and every rating is Google’s, with the review count attached so you can weigh it. One thing the mall’s own directory will not tell you: several names people search under “Dubai Hills” are not…
Short version: Social House, Joe’s Café and Hurricane’s Grill are the three safest bets inside The Dubai Mall, and the crowd agrees — 4.9 from 16,591 Google reviews, 4.9 from 25,425 and 4.8 from 20,453 respectively. If it’s the fountain you’re after, cross the bridge to Souk Al Bahar instead. If you need feeding in ten minutes flat, the Level 2 food court does the job without ceremony. There are 175 food and drink listings in and around this mall. The mall’s own directory lists all of them and tells you nothing about which are any good. So here is…
Short version: the best-reviewed places to eat in Dubai’s financial district right now are Duck & Waffle DIFC (4.9 from 1,017 Google reviews), Bombay Borough in Gate Village (4.8 from 9,352 Google reviews) and MINA Brasserie (4.8 from 860 Google reviews). DIFC dining does three jobs — the deal lunch, the dinner you are trying to impress someone at, and the drink that follows — and the venues that nail one rarely nail all three. So we have sorted the district by job, with Google ratings and review counts attached, because 1,017 people is evidence and a press release is…
Short answer: go to Antonia on Level 2 for a proper sit-down meal, Konjiki Hototogisu for the best bowl of ramen in any Dubai mall, and XU Dubai inside the Kempinski if the occasion deserves a tablecloth. Mall of the Emirates stacks three dining tiers on top of each other — a ground-floor food court shifting serious volume, a Level 2 restaurant strip people drive across town for, and hotel restaurants attached to the Kempinski that most shoppers never notice. Below is our shortlist, built from Google ratings and review counts rather than a directory dump. Best restaurants in Mall…
Start with three names. Al Fanar Restaurant & Cafe at The Fountains carries 4.9 from 12,202 Google reviews, the heaviest weight of public opinion anywhere in Yas Mall. Texas de Brazil on the ground floor sits at 4.8 from 7,275 Google reviews, and L’ETO on level G at 4.9 from 3,996. Any of those three will see you right; the rest of this is about which one suits the day you are actually having. The day matters more here than at most malls. Yas Mall is on Yas Island in Abu Dhabi, minutes from Ferrari World, Yas Waterworld, Warner Bros.…
Aroos Damascus is a Syrian grill house that has been feeding Deira since long before Dubai had a restaurant scene worth arguing about. Google’s business listings show three UAE branches under the name: the large original on Al Muraqqabat Road in Deira, a Sheikh Zayed Road site at Al Manara, and one across the border in Al Qasimia, Sharjah. People go for charcoal grills and mezze at prices the rest of the city abandoned a decade ago, and because the Deira kitchen is still firing skewers at three in the morning. Aggregator pages give you a star rating and leave…
Quranic Park doesn’t look like much from the entrance, pleasant landscaping, a couple of themed gardens. Then you reach the Cave of Miracles and the Glass House, and it becomes clear this is one of Dubai’s more genuinely thoughtful public parks, built around a concept you won’t find anywhere else in the city. What Is Quranic Park? Quranic Park is a themed public park in Al Khawaneej, Dubai, designed around plants, trees, and elements referenced in the Quran. It combines open green space and walking trails with two standout attractions, the Cave of Miracles and the Glass House, plus a…
Don’t miss The Corrs at Etihad Arena in Abu Dhabi on 27 September 2026. Get ticket prices, timings, and details on the iconic Irish quartet’s return. Continue Reading The Corrs to perform at Etihad Arena in Abu Dhabi