Abu Dhabi Restaurants

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The Best Restaurants in Abu Dhabi

Whether you are craving a late night shawarma, searching high and low for the perfect ‘proposal’ restaurant, or after a choice of kid friendly eateries for your fussy two year old, Abu Dhabi will provide you with a range of cuisines, formal and informal to suit any budget and please the toughest of food connoisseurs.

The last five years has seen a surge in Abu Dhabi’s restaurant scene with so many new eateries opening at every corner. The new four and five star hotels in the Bain Al Jessrain (Between the Bridges) and Yas Island areas have brought with them a multitude of trendy and elegant eateries providing serious competition to its ever popular neighbour Dubai. Abu Dhabi is now full of a variety of cuisines ranging from Oriental, Mediterranean, Americas, Indian, Middle Eastern and more with a range of budgets to suit all pockets. And with the upward growth of this super fast Emirate and the emergence of new islands such as Saadiyaat Island and Reem Island, more choice and availability is in store for us. Good for Abu Dhabi, but not good for the waistline!

We know how tough it can be when you’re on holiday and all you want is a great restaurant. Abu Dhabi is home to a huge number of restaurants ranging from high end to budget. We’ve listed below our pick of the best restaurants to dine in (or takeaway) in Abu Dhabi city and neighbouring districts – Yas Island, Bain Al Jessrain and Al Raha Beach.

In terms of tipping, this is not strict common practice like you would get in the United States. However a recent law has levied a Tourist and Service charge tax for all restaurants that are classified as ‘Tourist’ establishments. These are normally most restaurants based within hotels. These restaurants will automatically add a 16% tax to your final bill, so you will not be required to add anymore. Take note though that some ‘non – tourist’ establishments (those not in hotels such as fast food chains, street restaurants etc) are adding an automatic service charge and you are not duty bound to pay this. If, however, a restaurant has not levied an automatic service tax and you still want to pay extra – by all means make them happy, normally a tip of 10-15% will have them grinning from ear to ear.

If you are going to indulge in visiting a number of fine dining establishments over a period of a week or longer, it might make sense to purchase The Entertainer which is a book of discount vouchers giving you offers like buy one get on free. There are many offers, and don’t just cover restaurants, but by just using it once you can save the amount spent on buying the book. ( Dhs 295). The guide is a must purchase for all expats, and you can get the guides from most supermarkets. See http://www.theentertainerme.com for more detail.

Please note that alcohol is available at all restaurants based within a hotel. Street restaurants will normally NOT serve alcohol by law. We have clarified those restaurants that don’t serve alcohol as ‘unlicensed’.

Another point to note is children. A few restaurants will not accept young children diners after a certain time. They usually have 3 years as the cut off point, but we advise you to mention children when making a reservation. The majority of restaurants don’t usually have a problem with babies dining, especially as they are in their pushchairs fast asleep, but you might want to check first.

Our best restaurants are split into price bands for your convenience and we have an additional category, the Grapeshisha Choice. This is our favourite all rounder restaurant which ticks most boxes in terms of great quality food, ambience, service, family friendly and value for money. We also have a fine dining choice for those extra special restaurants. You may pay a little more for them, but they are the very best that money can buy.

We’ve grouped the cuisine types into High, Mid and Budget and to give you an idea of pricing, we’ve allocated dollar signs for a 3 course meal including a glass of wine where applicable for one person. For non – alcoholic drinkers, the cost would be less.

$$$$ Dirhams 400 +

$$$ Dirhams 250-400

$$ Dirhams 150-250

$ Dirhams 150 and below

All the restaurants we’ve listed below have our thumbs up and if you have enough time on your trip to Abu Dhabi – visit them all, or save them for your next trip here. Bon appetit!