At Mall of the Emirates, I’d go straight to Antonia for an Italian meal or Konjiki Hototogisu when I want ramen. XU is my Cantonese set-lunch choice; Besh is the Turkish hotel-lunch alternative. Those are four different meals, not four interchangeable places to sit down. For an early coffee, the mall lists PAUL on the ground floor and Jones the Grocer on Level 1 from 8am. Choose the restaurant and its entrance before sending everyone a vague “meet at the mall”.
My choice: My rule here: choose the cuisine before the car park. A bowl of ramen and a three-course hotel lunch answer different appetites, and I would not drag a group between them just to compare signs. The guide below puts the published menus, offer windows and floors in one place.
For a more detailed Cantonese-versus-dumpling comparison, see our Chinese restaurant picks across Dubai. Staying with a shopping-and-lunch plan? Our Dubai Hills Mall guide covers another mall. For a late Syrian meal outside this mall, compare Aroos Damascus’s branches and closing times rather than assume the food court keeps serving all night.
This guide groups restaurants by cuisine, location and the booking they suit. I use the published venue menus and package prices to compare the choices. A coffee stop, a meat-led dinner and a hotel lunch need different shortlists—not a single league table.
Same AED 95 headline, different lunch windows
The XU business-lunch offer specifies noon–3pm Monday–Friday. Besh’s named business lunch starts half an hour later and ends half an hour later. Here is how that affects the choice:
| Monday–Friday arrival window | Published AED 95 offer to compare |
|---|---|
| Noon to before 12:30pm | XU’s starter-and-main offer; Besh’s business lunch has not started |
| 12:30pm to before 3pm | Both offers: XU’s two courses or Besh’s three courses |
| 3pm to before 3:30pm | Besh’s offer; XU’s stated business-lunch window has ended |
This compares advertised service windows, not table availability or a guaranteed last order. XU’s current main page lists weekday lunch until 3pm and Sunday lunch until 5pm; that Sunday service window does not establish a weekday set-menu price for Sunday. Neither weekday offer establishes a Sunday lunch price. Confirm the named package when reserving.
Two-person lunch and early-visit comparisons
The following XU, Besh and Spartan offer prices were rechecked on 18 October 2026. XU’s AED 95 weekday lunch includes a starter and main, making AED 190 for two before extras; with dessert at AED 115 each, AED 230 for two. Besh’s advertised AED 95 business lunch is three courses, also AED 190 for two before extras. XU runs noon–3pm; Besh runs 12:30pm–3:30pm. Choose Cantonese or Turkish according to the menu you want, rather than assume the same starting price means the same meal.
For a later casual meal, Spartan Sports Bar advertises The Meatdown at AED 89 for chicken, steak or fish with fries and salad, 5pm–10pm daily. Two selected meals have an AED 178 base total before drinks or other additions. That is a different format from a business lunch and not an unlimited drinks package. Use the named offer for your chosen service.
For an 8am arrival, the mall’s current pages list PAUL’s ground-floor outlet and Jones the Grocer on Level 1 as open at that time. Antonia and Konjiki are on Level 2, while HuQQabaz Garden is on the ground floor by the outdoor main entrance. These differences are useful when planning an early meal or a short walk from the car; the general shopping hours do not establish every restaurant’s opening time.
Old Tbilisi’s current operator page advertises JBR Walk, Rimal GM-05. Its former mall branch is not a dependable recommendation for this itinerary without current confirmation. Do not travel to JBR expecting it to be inside Mall of the Emirates, or use the JBR menu and hours as proof of mall service.
Do not miss the parking-validation step
Checked directly on 21 October 2026, the mall’s official parking page describes ticketless, barrierless number-plate recognition. It says a stay exceeding four hours generates an SMS fee/payment link to the number linked to the vehicle. It also gives a practical alternative: spend AED 150 or more in the mall and visit a Customer Service Desk to validate for free parking for the entire day. Paying for food is not the same step as having the parking validated.
I would keep the receipt and deal with validation before leaving, particularly when shopping has already used most of the four hours. Ask Customer Service which receipts qualify and how to link the vehicle; do not assume every attached-hotel bill, valet service or rental-car arrangement follows the standard mall process. The two-person hotel lunches above start at AED 190, but that arithmetic alone does not prove their receipts qualify. Nor is buying extra food automatically cheaper than paying the parking charge. Check your actual stay and eligible spend first.
How the mall’s dining is laid out
Dining is spread across the ground floor, Levels 1 and 2, plus the attached Kempinski and Sheraton hotels. Antonia, Konjiki Hototogisu, Tribes and Al Hallab are listed on Level 2. HuQQabaz Garden is on the ground floor by the outdoor main entrance. The hotel restaurants have their own floor and access arrangements; Besh is on Sheraton’s fifth floor. Use those details to choose the route, not a broad claim that every restaurant sits along one strip.
Three useful starting points
Antonia
Antonia is our Italian starting point for a pizza-and-pasta meal on Level 2. Its own site lists the Mall of the Emirates branch and phone +971 4 351 4588. Choose the Dubai branch when opening menus or arranging the booking: Antonia also has several Abu Dhabi locations. For a fixed-time group meal, arrange the table rather than assume every location takes identical bookings or serves an identical menu.
XU Dubai
XU is the Cantonese option inside Kempinski, with a current weekday business lunch at AED 95 for a starter and main or AED 115 with dessert. The offer runs noon–3pm Monday–Friday. It is our choice when a defined lunch order makes more sense than wandering between counters. Dinner is listed daily from 6pm–1am and has a different menu; the weekday lunch price should not be treated as an evening package.
Konjiki Hototogisu
Konjiki Hototogisu is listed on Level 2, with nearest parking C. It is a Bib Gourmand restaurant in Michelin’s 2026 Dubai selection. We would choose it when ramen is the actual meal you want, rather than as a general solution for every group’s cuisine preferences. The mall lists 11am–11pm weekdays and 11am–midnight weekends. Check the chosen outlet’s seating process and leave room for a wait rather than tying the next booking to a guessed queue time.
Kempinski Hotel dining
Kempinski has several distinct dining formats attached to the mall: Italian, Spanish, French brasserie, Cantonese and café or poolside visits. Select the actual venue and its service. A hotel name is not a restaurant reservation, and a poolside restaurant listing is not proof that a dining booking includes swimming access.
- Vera Versilia: the hotel’s Italian restaurant, with Vera by the Pool as a separate poolside venue. Choose the service you intend to use.
- Salero Tapas & Bodega: Spanish tapas, paella and a bar; select a currently advertised entertainment night if a performance is central to your plans.
- Eugène Eugène: a French brasserie whose hotel page lists lunch noon–5pm and dinner 5pm–midnight daily, with smart-elegant dress.
- Aspen Café: the hotel café choice for a break or afternoon-tea enquiry. Use its actual menu and service instead of assuming another brasserie offers the same tea package.
Sheraton Hotel dining
Sheraton’s current dining page lists Besh Turkish Kitchen, Spartan Sports Bar, Sanctuary Pool Bar and &More by Sheraton. Besh offers a three-course business lunch at AED 95 Monday–Friday, 12:30pm–3:30pm. Spartan’s Meatdown offer now lists a choice of chicken, steak or fish with fries and salad at AED 89, 5pm–10pm daily, on the live hotel dining page checked on 18 October 2026. OAnjo’s venue section says it is taking a pause, despite other parts of the page retaining old promotions. Use the closure notice when planning that venue.
Middle Eastern and regional standouts
| Restaurant | Cuisine | Level | Why it’s worth it |
|---|---|---|---|
| Al Hallab | Lebanese | Level 2 | Lebanese menu for a mezze-and-grill order |
| Tribes | African | Level 2, Star Atrium | African grill-house format for a meat-led meal |
| HuQQabaz Garden | Turkish, shisha lounge | Ground Floor | Explicitly listed as 24-hour by the mall; use the outdoor main entrance |
| Besh Turkish Kitchen | Turkish | Level 5, Sheraton | Published three-course weekday lunch; a defined alternative to a mall-counter meal |
Indian
For Indian food, Gazebo’s branch menu lists the mall outlet on Level 1 near Ski Dubai, while Farzi’s Mall of the Emirates menu is a separate modern-Indian option. Our preference is to choose the menu style you actually want, then work out the order rather than compare only the brand names. For a vegetarian table, check the dishes and sauces. A substantial vegetarian section does not make every dish vegan or free from dairy.
Italian beyond Antonia
Il Pastaio Trattoria is the pasta-focused option, separate from the brand’s other Dubai restaurant at Habtoor Boulevard. Cipriani Dolci is on the ground floor, with nearest parking B; the mall lists it from 10am to midnight. Choose by the dishes and location you want. I would compare the actual dishes before choosing on price: a pasta order and a café-and-dessert stop are not the same basket.
Asian beyond the ramen queue
Din Tai Fung’s operator lists its mall branch on Level 2 near VOX Cinema, with phone +971 4 265 1288. It is our straightforward dumpling choice when that location fits the day. Choose the branch’s actual menu and seating arrangements; a quoted twenty-to-thirty-minute wait is not a reliable prediction for every service. Vegetarian-looking dishes also need checking for sauces and meat ingredients.
Steak and grill
The Butcher Shop & Grill is listed by its operator among its UAE locations and has a retail-butchery and grill-house format. Texas de Brazil’s own location page places its mall restaurant on Level 2. Choose the former for an individually selected steak order, or compare Texas de Brazil when its continuous-service format suits the group. Establish the actual package and inclusions rather than treat a salad-bar item count as the reason to book.
Casual and family-friendly
For a family, start with the children’s appetites, available time and the actual menu. A burger stop, bakery meal or hotel lunch can each fit, but a floor number does not establish a shorter wait. If you need everyone seated at a particular time, use a venue that confirms the arrangement. If you need a quick bite, choose the outlet nearest the next part of your day.
Cafes and bakeries
- PAUL: the mall lists its ground-floor outlet from 8am to midnight, with nearest parking B and the main entrance. A useful early pastry-and-coffee stop.
- L’ETO: a café option for cakes, coffee or a menu-led meal. Start with the cake counter for a coffee break, or use the branch menu when you want a fuller meal.
- Jones the Grocer: listed on Level 1 with nearest parking A and hours of 8am–1am daily. Our pick to compare for a breakfast before standard mall shopping hours.
- BRĒD: listed on Level 1 with nearest parking D. The mall describes an artisan bread-and-pastry concept. Our choice for a bread-and-pastry stop when that part of the mall fits your route.
Food court and quick bites
Use the dining directory for food outlets, rather than the retail-store search. The mall currently lists Albaik and Bombay Chowpatty on the ground floor among its quicker choices. Check the actual outlet and access route if the meal has to fit between Ski Dubai, the cinema or another timed booking.
Coming soon
Treat an announced restaurant as a future option until its operator publishes an operating venue and booking or service information. The mall’s refresh includes new openings and relocations, so use the current dining page for the restaurant you intend to visit. A refurbishment announcement is not confirmation that every named future venue is already serving meals.
Practical tips for eating at Mall of the Emirates
- For drinks with dinner, choose a specific hotel restaurant or bar and its current drinks menu; establish the service and package before booking.
- Reserve a suitable restaurant if your group needs a fixed seating time. A guessed 7pm peak or shorter wait on another floor should not determine the plan.
- HuQQabaz Garden is explicitly listed as 24-hour on the mall’s current page, on the ground floor by the outdoor main entrance.
- Check the mall’s current parking and access information before visiting during refurbishment.
Frequently asked questions
What is the best restaurant at Mall of the Emirates?
Our picks are Antonia for an Italian meal, Konjiki Hototogisu for ramen, XU for a defined Cantonese lunch and Besh for a three-course Turkish lunch. Choose the meal and budget first. XU is Cantonese, not an Italian alternative, and Old Tbilisi’s current operator page promotes a JBR address rather than confirming its former mall service.
Is there vegetarian and vegan food at Mall of the Emirates?
Indian venues Gazebo and Farzi offer vegetarian dishes, and other menus include vegetable, salad or cheese-led orders. Establish vegan suitability and preparation with the specific venue: dairy, eggs, meat stocks and sauces need checking even when the main ingredient is a vegetable.
Which restaurants serve alcohol at Mall of the Emirates?
Start with the attached hotels’ restaurant and bar pages, including XU, Salero and Spartan Sports Bar, and the actual drinks menu for the service you want. A mall restaurant name alone does not establish its drinks licence or whether an offer includes alcohol.
Is there Indian food at Mall of the Emirates?
Yes. Gazebo lists the mall branch on Level 1 near Ski Dubai, and Farzi has a Mall of the Emirates menu. Choose from the branch’s current dishes and confirm any important dietary requirement before ordering.
Which restaurant is open 24 hours?
The mall’s HuQQabaz Garden page explicitly lists 24-hour weekday and weekend operation. It is on the ground floor by the outdoor main entrance. That is a venue-specific listing, not proof that it is the only round-the-clock dining option across the mall and both attached hotels.
Choose the meal, then plan the mall route
Our recommendation is to make the location work for the meal: an early café for breakfast, a published hotel package for a defined lunch budget, or the restaurant serving the cuisine your group wants. Use the dining directory for floors and parking, then the operator’s own menu for the order. Avoid planning around a guessed queue, an old opening announcement or a restaurant service that has not been confirmed.
