UAE Food & Cuisine Guide: Arabic & International | Homejourney

Executive Summary: Your Definitive UAE Food & Cuisine Guide

If you love UAE food, plan to visit Dubai or Abu Dhabi often, or you’re from the Gulf and curious about Singapore property, this guide is written for you. Drawing on first-hand experience dining across the UAE and helping Gulf-based clients explore Singapore real estate through Homejourney, this is a practical, safety-focused guide to Arabic cuisine, Emirati food, and the best Dubai restaurants—with clear tips that travellers, expats, and investors can act on.

You will find:

Core pillars of Middle Eastern food and traditional Emirati dishes (what to try, where, and roughly how much)
How to navigate food courts, mall dining, and Michelin-level Dubai restaurants safely and confidently
Suggested 3-day and 5-day food-focused itineraries
Price benchmarks useful for budgeting—and for comparing lifestyle costs with Singapore
How frequent trips between UAE and Singapore can fit into a wider lifestyle and property investment strategy with Homejourney

Throughout, you’ll see specific, on-the-ground details: where locals actually eat in Deira or Al Karama, what a typical shawarma or machboos costs in Dubai, and what to expect in terms of hygiene, tipping, and late-night dining.

1. UAE Food & Cuisine Overview
2. Essential Emirati Food: Dishes & Culture
3. Broader Middle Eastern Food in the UAE
4. Dubai Restaurants: From Street Food to Michelin Stars
5. International Cuisine in the UAE
6. Practical UAE Travel & Dining Tips for Singapore Travellers
7. Sample 3-Day & 5-Day Food-Focused Itineraries
8. From UAE to Singapore: Lifestyle & Property Investment Links
9. FAQ: UAE Food, Dubai Restaurants & Singapore Connections

1. UAE Food & Cuisine Overview

1.1 Why UAE Food Is Worth Travelling For

The UAE—especially Dubai and Abu Dhabi—offers a rare mix of traditional Emirati food, classic Arabic cuisine, and global dining at almost every price point. From a 6 AED (about S$2.20) shawarma in old Dubai to multi-course tasting menus with Burj Khalifa views, you can tailor your experience to any budget or travel style.[1][5]

For travellers from Singapore, what stands out is:

Depth of Arabic and Emirati flavours – long-simmered rice dishes like machboos, slow-cooked lamb (khuzi/ghuzi), and spiced stews such as tharid or harees.[1][2][6]
Huge diversity – Lebanese, Syrian, Palestinian, Iranian, Turkish, Indian, Pakistani and Filipino food are everywhere, mirroring the UAE’s expat population.[5]
Late-night culture – many shawarma stands and casual eateries operate well past midnight, especially in Dubai’s Deira and Al Rigga areas.

1.2 Best Time to Visit for Food Lovers

You can enjoy UAE food all year, but your experience changes with the season:

October–March (cooler months): Ideal for outdoor dining and food tours in areas like Jumeirah, La Mer and Al Seef. Alfresco shisha cafés and beachfront restaurants are most pleasant.
Ramadan: A unique time for food-focused travellers. Daytime dining is more limited in public, but hotel restaurants usually remain open discreetly. After sunset, iftar buffets and late-night suhoor spreads showcase generous Emirati and broader Arabic cuisine, including harees, luqaimat and machboos.[2][6][7]
Summer (June–August): Very hot outdoors, but indoor malls and hotel restaurants are fully air-conditioned. You’ll rely more on indoor dining and delivery apps.

1.3 Getting There from Singapore (Food-Focused Angle)

From Singapore, direct flights to Dubai or Abu Dhabi typically take around 7 hours. For many of Homejourney’s clients, Dubai is a regular stopover between Europe and Asia, making it easy to plan 48-hour food trips sandwiched between business travel or property research in Singapore.

Insider tip from frequent flyers based in Singapore:

On late-night SQ/Emirates flights, light meals are served; arriving early morning in Dubai, you can head straight for a traditional balaleet or chebab breakfast at an Emirati café once you’ve checked into your hotel or dropped bags.

1.4 Currency & Quick Price Benchmarks

The UAE uses the UAE dirham (AED). A practical, traveller-friendly rule of thumb for Singaporeans is:

1 AED ≈ 0.36–0.38 SGD (rates fluctuate; always check live rates on your bank or FX app).

Typical food prices in Dubai (rough estimates):

Street shawarma: 6–12 AED (about S$2.20–S$4.50)
Mid-range Arabic restaurant main dish (e.g. mixed grill, machboos): 55–90 AED (about S$20–S$33)
Hotel or fine-dining tasting menu: 350–900 AED per person (about S$130–S$330), excluding alcohol

Homejourney supports UAE currency in our property tools, so if you’re comparing the cost of a dinner at a Dubai hotel restaurant to a mortgage repayment on a Singapore condo, you can easily convert between AED and SGD in your budgeting flows.Bank Rates

2. Essential Emirati Food: Dishes & Culture

2.1 What Defines Emirati Food?

Emirati food draws on Bedouin, coastal and trading heritage: rice, lamb, chicken, local fish, dates, and warming spices are common, with a cultural emphasis on sharing and hospitality.[2][6] Dishes are often slow-cooked and generously portioned, designed for family gatherings and celebrations.

You’ll see many Emirati dishes on special occasions or in heritage restaurants rather than every modern café menu, so planning where you eat matters if you want an authentic experience.

2.2 Must-Try Emirati Dishes (Quick Reference Table)

Dish	Type	Key Ingredients & Flavours	Typical Price in Dubai
Machboos[1][2][6]	Main (rice & meat/seafood)	Spiced rice with chicken, lamb or fish; similar to biryani but with Gulf spices like loomi (dried lime).	55–85 AED in restaurants
Khuzi / Ghuzi[1][4][6]	Main (lamb & rice)	Slow-roasted lamb served over spiced rice with nuts and raisins; considered a national dish.	70–120 AED per portion; higher at hotel banquets
Harees[1][2][6]	Main / Ramadan dish	Cracked wheat cooked slowly with meat and ghee until porridge-like; very comforting, mild in flavour.	30–55 AED per bowl
Tharid / Thareed[1][2][4]	Main (stew)	Meat and vegetable stew poured over thin bread (regag), allowing the bread to soak up the broth.[2]	45–75 AED
Balaleet[1][2][4]	Breakfast	Sweet vermicelli with sugar, saffron, cardamom and rose water, topped with an omelette.[1][2]	25–45 AED
Chebab / Chabab[1][4][6]	Breakfast / snack	Emirati pancakes, often served with date syrup and cheese or honey.	20–40 AED (2–3 pieces)
Jasheed[1][2]	Main (seafood)	Shredded shark or local fish cooked with spices, onions and sometimes rice; strong maritime character.	55–90 AED
Luqaimat[2][4][6]	Dessert	Deep-fried dough balls drizzled with date syrup or honey; crispy outside, soft inside.[2]	20–35 AED per sharing bowl

2.3 Where to Try Authentic Emirati Food

A few well-known names regularly recommended by UAE-based food guides and local friends include:[2][6]

Al Fanar Restaurant & Café (multiple locations in Dubai & Abu Dhabi) – Known for nostalgic décor and a full spread of Emirati classics like machboos, harees and balaleet.[2]
Arabian Tea House (Al Fahidi Historical Neighbourhood, Dubai) – Popular for Emirati breakfasts (balaleet, chebab) in a heritage courtyard setting.[1]
Smaller, family-run Emirati spots in Deira, Sharjah, and Ras Al Khaimah – these change frequently, so when you’re on the ground, ask hotel staff where their families would go for harees or tharid.

Insider tip: In older neighbourhoods like Al Fahidi or around Dubai Creek, late-morning is a sweet spot—you avoid tour groups, and locals are still lingering over tea and chebab.

2.4 Cultural Etiquette Around Emirati Dining

When you’re invited to share Emirati food in a home or at a more traditional restaurant, a few customs matter:

Use your right hand for eating and passing dishes.
It’s polite to accept at least a small portion when offered, especially of main dishes like machboos or khuzi.
Sharing large platters is common; don’t be surprised if there are no individual plates at more rustic places.
Dress modestly when dining in traditional or family-oriented venues—think covered shoulders for both men and women.

3. Broader Middle Eastern Food in the UAE

3.1 Core Arabic & Levantine Dishes You’ll See Everywhere

Beyond Emirati food, the UAE is a showcase for Levantine and pan-Arabic cuisine: Lebanese, Syrian, Palestinian and Jordanian restaurants are especially common.[1][3][5]

Expect to see these staples on almost every Arabic menu:[3][5]

Hummus – Chickpea and tahini dip, drizzled with olive oil.
Falafel – Deep-fried chickpea fritters; often in sandwiches or mezze platters.[1][5]
Shish tawook – Marinated chicken skewers with garlic yoghurt sauce.[3][5]
Kofta – Minced meat skewers with spices and herbs.[3][5]
Manakish / Manakeesh – Flatbread topped with za’atar, cheese or meat; common breakfast or snack.[1][3]
Tabbouleh – Parsley, tomato and bulgur salad with lemon and olive oil.[3]
Warak enab – Stuffed vine leaves with rice and sometimes meat.[1]
Baklava – Layered pastry with nuts and syrup; more Turkish/Levantine but widely available.[5]

3.2 Typical Prices & Where Locals Go

In Dubai and Abu Dhabi, good-value Arabic food clusters around older districts and less touristy malls:

Deira, Al Rigga, and Satwa (Dubai) – Numerous small Lebanese or Syrian restaurants, shawarma kiosks and bakeries. A strong shawarma sandwich or falafel wrap can be 6–10 AED, mezzes 12–25 AED each.
Sharjah – Often slightly cheaper than Dubai, with many family-run Arabic places.
Mall food courts – Chains like Automatic, Zaatar w Zeit, or Operation Falafel provide consistent quality at 35–60 AED per person.

From a Singaporean perspective, casual Arabic meals in the UAE often feel cheaper than dining at comparable Middle Eastern restaurants in areas like Arab Street or Bussorah Street in Singapore, especially once you factor in portion sizes.