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 at Al Kheeran, the promenade runs the length of the retail, and the IMAGINE light-and-water show plays out over the canal in the evenings. That means a table on the waterfront side is worth planning around in a way that a table at an inland mall simply is not.
Restaurants with a Creek view
Google’s listed addresses are the giveaway here, and a handful of venues sit squarely on the water side of the centre.
- Semsom — Ground Floor, Festival Waterfront. Lebanese, 4.5 from 2,396 Google reviews, and open 09:00 to 00:00 midweek, stretching to 01:00 Friday through Sunday. The latest reliable kitchen on the promenade.
- Al Fanar — Ground Floor, Canal Walk, near P.F. Chang’s. Emirati cooking with 4.6 from 8,647 Google reviews, the biggest review count of any restaurant in this guide. Closes at 22:00 daily, so it’s an early dinner rather than a late one.
- Famous Dave’s — Level 1, Water Front. American barbecue, 4.2 from 2,229 Google reviews. Hours aren’t published on its Google listing, so ring ahead on +971 4 287 6161.
- Al Faris Floating Restaurant — listed as “next to Imagine Show”, which tells you exactly what you’re paying for. 4.2 from 260 Google reviews, and the daily window is a tight 19:00 to 21:30.
- Zaatar W Zeit — Food Court, Waterfront Center. Open 07:00 to 23:30 every day, which makes it the earliest breakfast in the mall.
Vista Restaurant & Terrace at InterContinental Dubai Festival City is the other name that comes up for views, rated 4.3 from 240 Google reviews with hours listed as 16:00 to midnight. One caveat: the hotel’s own website carries a “temporarily closed” notice against it, so confirm on +971 4 701 1127 before you build an evening around it.
The best-rated restaurants in Festival City Mall
Ranked purely on Google ratings, weighted for review volume so a 4.9 from 40 people doesn’t outrank a 4.8 from thousands.
- Haidilao Dubai Festival City — 4.9 from 2,534 Google reviews. Level 1 near the food court, open 10:00 to 23:00 midweek and until midnight Friday to Sunday. Chinese hotpot with the full theatrical service routine. Go in a group; it makes no sense for two.
- Turkish Village — 4.8 from 7,508 Google reviews, priced moderate, open 08:00 to midnight seven days. The volume of reviews is the story: this is the venue most Festival City regulars have actually eaten at.
- Shvili Dubai Festival City — 4.8 from 1,784 Google reviews, 10:00 to 23:00 midweek, midnight at weekends. Georgian food is still under-represented in Dubai malls, which is half the appeal.
- L’ETO — 4.8 from 1,007 Google reviews. Opens at 08:00 daily and runs to 23:00, midnight on Saturday and Sunday. The cake counter does most of the work.
- Daikan Ramen — 4.7 from 305 Google reviews, on Crescent Road. Small, fast, and the best bowl of ramen in the centre.
- Osteria Mario — 4.7 from 766 Google reviews, 10:00 to 23:00, midnight weekends. Reliable Italian for a table of six who can’t agree on anything.
- California Pizza Kitchen — 4.7 from 1,105 Google reviews. No hours published on its listing; +971 4 320 4813 will confirm.
- Kashkan by Ranveer Brar — 4.6 from 3,581 Google reviews, Level 1, opening at noon and running to 23:00 midweek. The chef-name Indian restaurant in the mall, and the review count says it has earned the billing.
- Off The Hook — 4.6 from 2,918 Google reviews. Seafood and Creole, closing at 22:15 midweek and 23:15 at weekends.
Market Island, the mall’s food hall
The Market Island sits at Mall 9 on Crescent Drive and functions as a food hall rather than a single restaurant. It rates 4.7 from 705 Google reviews and stays open until midnight midweek and 01:00 Friday to Sunday, which makes it the default late option inside the centre. Its own Instagram describes it as a 40-plus brand hall and claims the first licensed bar inside a Dubai mall.
Two stalls inside are worth naming specifically. Kooya Filipino Eatery holds 4.6 from 1,701 Google reviews, a serious number for a food hall counter, and Pasta Art takes 4.7 from 259 Google reviews with fresh pasta made to order. Both run to 23:00 midweek and midnight at weekends.
Where to eat with kids
Rainforest Cafe is the obvious one and it does the job: animatronic jungle, thunderstorms on a timer, 4.4 from 592 Google reviews. Hours aren’t listed on Google, so call +971 4 236 2727. IKEA Restaurant is the unglamorous, genuinely sensible pick, rated 4.2 from 1,048 Google reviews and open 09:00 to 22:30, until 23:30 on Friday and Saturday.
Beyond those, Nando’s (4.4 from 2,320 Google reviews, priced moderate, open until midnight and 01:00 at weekends) handles fussy eaters, and Chin Chin on the second-floor food court takes 4.5 from 415 Google reviews with a 01:00 weekend close. Sugar Factory on the first floor is the dessert theatre option, but be warned — it rates 3.5 from 813 Google reviews, the weakest score of any well-known venue in the mall.
Quick eats and the food court
The main food court is on the second floor, with more counters spread across the ground level and the waterfront centre.
- Wendy’s — second-floor food court, 4.5 from 541 Google reviews, open 10:00 to 01:00 every day. The latest fast food in the building.
- Texas Chicken — 4.7 from 642 Google reviews, 10:00 to midnight daily. Best-rated fast food here, comfortably.
- Five Guys — Main Atrium, Ground Floor. 4.3 from 651 Google reviews, 10:00 to midnight.
- Burger King — Level 2, Crescent Road, 4.4 from 838 Google reviews.
- KFC — 4.3 from 1,146 Google reviews.
- Tim Hortons — 4.6 from 672 Google reviews, from 09:00, closing 22:00 midweek and midnight Friday to Sunday.
- Karaki Lounge — first floor, 4.6 from 514 Google reviews, 09:00 to midnight daily. Karak and a seat, all day.
Late openings and licensed venues
The mall itself closes, but a few kitchens run well past it. Joe’s Backyard is the latest of the lot — 13:00 to 02:00 midweek and 03:00 on Friday and Saturday, rated 4.5 from 3,001 Google reviews and the only venue in this guide Google flags as expensive. Helipad by Frozen Cherry opens at 17:00 and runs to 03:00 at weekends, at 4.3 from 379 Google reviews. Dimash covers 08:00 to 02:00 every day at 4.9 from 736 Google reviews.
On the licensed question: Google categorises Belgian Café at the Crowne Plaza lobby as a pub — 4.5 from 2,545 Google reviews, priced moderate, open noon to midnight daily — and lists Vista under bar and lounge bar. Anise on the InterContinental lobby floor is the hotel’s big buffet room, rated 4.3 from 836 Google reviews, running breakfast from 06:30 and dinner 18:30 to 23:00.
Worth the five-minute drive: Al Jaddaf and Creek Harbour
Teible at the Jameel Arts Centre in Al Jaddaf is the most interesting restaurant near Festival City that isn’t in the mall, at 4.5 from 492 Google reviews. Palazzo Versace supplies two more: Giardino (4.5 from 679 Google reviews, breakfast from 06:30 and dinner 18:30 to 23:00) and Vanitas (4.4 from 305 Google reviews, lunch noon to 16:00, dinner 18:00 to 23:00). Mandi Man on Al Khail Road is the value pick at 4.7 from 6,901 Google reviews, open until 23:30. Also in Al Jaddaf, our guide to Terramar at Marriott Al Jaddaf covers the Mediterranean day-to-night option in the same pocket.
Across the Creek, The Restaurant at Address Creek Harbour takes 4.9 from 1,445 Google reviews and is priced moderate, and DUO Gastrobar at Address Grand Tower 2 matches it at 4.9 from 924 Google reviews with a 09:00 start.
Frequently asked questions
Where to eat in Festival City Dubai?
For the highest-rated meal, Haidilao on Level 1 (4.9 from 2,534 Google reviews). For a Creek-side table, Semsom on the Festival Waterfront (4.5 from 2,396 Google reviews) or Al Fanar on Canal Walk (4.6 from 8,647 Google reviews). For a late one, Joe’s Backyard runs to 02:00, and 03:00 on Friday and Saturday.
Where to eat in Festival mall?
Inside Dubai Festival City Mall specifically: Turkish Village is the most-reviewed restaurant in the building at 4.8 from 7,508 Google reviews; Kashkan by Ranveer Brar on Level 1 is the standout Indian option at 4.6 from 3,581; Market Island on Crescent Drive is the food hall, at 4.7 from 705 and open to 01:00 at weekends. The main food court is on the second floor.
Where to go in Dubai Festival City?
The waterfront promenade and the IMAGINE light-and-water show over the canal are the reason to come in the evening rather than the afternoon. Build dinner around it: eat on the water side, then walk the promenade. Al Faris Floating Restaurant lists its location as “next to Imagine Show” and operates a single daily sitting from 19:00 to 21:30. IKEA and the mall’s retail floors fill the daytime, and the InterContinental and Crowne Plaza hotels sit directly alongside for a drink after.
Where to eat in Festival Plaza?
Different mall, and worth not confusing: Festival Plaza is in Jebel Ali, at the other end of Dubai. Its own dining directory lists Bhukkad Cafe, IKEA Restaurant, Sushi Library and Zaatar W Zeit. We haven’t verified those venues against Google business data the way we have the Festival City list above, so treat that as the mall’s own line rather than ours.
