2. Al Safadi, DIFC
Safadi is one of my favourite places especially for the meze they do here, which is just delicious. Along with the usual meze dishes like tabbouleh and hummus, I recommend dishes here like the hindbe salad (chickory salad), Lahem Beajin (meat pie), Makdous (oil marinated eggplant stuffed with walnuts) and the fried cauliflower. These meze dishes are hard to find in Dubai and Al Safadi nails them. A must try desert is the Halewet el Jebben (creamy sweet cheese rolls). The staff are really friendly too and are always helpful with the menu.
Contact: +971 4 343 5333
3. Moms Food, Dubai Marina
It’s mostly quiet apart from when lunchtime hits and it gets pretty crowded. The food is really good.
The specialty here is everyday dishes you miss from home, the food your mom would cook. I guess the clue is in the name, but it really lives up to the promise and is always there if you are craving some authentic comfort food. The restaurant is currently under refurbishment, but I will be straight back when it reopens in August.
Contact: +9714 452 5225
4. Jedoudna – Media city
In Arabic Jedoudna means “our ancestors” and this place is wonderful with indoor and outdoor areas, live stations cooking up traditional dishes and is always full with groups of friends and families enjoying shisha while playing cards or Backgammon – just like you’d find in most shisha places in Lebanon. As for the food, the menu offers a selection of authentic Lebanese dishes from breakfast through to dinner. Even the olives and pickles are just delicious. The ingredients are really fresh and the portions are generous – again just like at home. Definitely try the cauliflower sandwich.
Contact: +971 4 448 9024
5. Abd el wahab, Souk Al Bahar
I love the atmosphere here and if you get a spot in the outdoor area you’ll have great views of the Dubai fountains, which makes it a great place to take visiting friends and family. Abd el wahab, named after the street it is located on in Beirut, is one of the best restaurants in Lebanon so I had high expectations trying the one here in Dubai. To be honest it is just as good. For people who like raw meat the Kofta, the Kebbe are really good, I also always order the shanklish, tabbouleh, the birds, batata harra and there is a great selection of Levantine drinks.
Contact: +97144230988