THE BRIEFING · 0:22
Riyadh and Dubai Are Writing the Next Chapter of Middle Eastern Dining
Two cities are shaping the conversation around food in the Middle East — but they are doing it in very different ways.
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BY THE NUMBERS
Riyadh vs Dubai
Two cities, two very different strategies. Tap any number for the full story.
COMING UP
Dates for the diary
Every date we are tracking, counting down. Tap an event for its story, or add it to your calendar.
- 1DAY TO GO19 OCTCasea 101 is scheduled to open at One&Only The Palm (L’Abysse listed for the same day)DUBAI · NEIGHBOURHOODS+ Add to calendar
- 3DAYS TO GO21 OCTRiyadh Season 2026 beginsRIYADH · EVENTS+ Add to calendar
- 5DAYS TO GO23 OCTLe Café LPM is due to open in JumeirahDUBAI · NEIGHBOURHOODS+ Add to calendar
- 14DAYS TO GO1 NOVAl Baleed Culinary Festival begins at Al Baleed Resort Salalah by AnantaraACROSS THE REGION+ Add to calendar
NEWS FROM THE REGION
Country by Country
Pick a country for its latest openings, awards and deals.
122M+visits to Saudi Arabia in 2025, domestic and international, on preliminary figures51restaurants in the Michelin Guide’s first Saudi selection, across Riyadh, Jeddah and AlUla3Saudi restaurants on MENA’s 50 Best 2026, led by Kuuru in Jeddah at No. 6
Chipotle Enters Saudi Arabia as Riyadh’s Global Dining Map Expands
The fast-casual brand opened its first restaurant in the kingdom in August, with Alshaya Group, at Sidra next to Granada Mall.
From Berenjak to Cipriani Dolci: The International Names Choosing Riyadh
London’s Persian grill heads for Via Riyadh, and Cipriani Dolci brings a taste of Venice to the Diplomatic Quarter.
Riyadh’s New Dining Addresses: Nine Openings to Know
From Persian and Anatolian cooking to smash burgers and a skyline brasserie, nine restaurants that opened in the capital between January and September 2026.
Beyond Restaurant Openings: Saudi Arabia Invests in Culinary Skills
A year-long Culinary Arts Commission programme, and a national selection on the road to the Bocuse d’Or final in Lyon.
25of the 50 places on MENA’s 50 Best 2026 went to the UAE≈1,200new restaurant licences counted in Dubai in 2024 by the Department of Economy and Tourism69→122restaurants in the Michelin Guide Dubai, from its 2022 launch to the 2026 edition
Yannick Alléno’s Two New Dubai Concepts Put One&Only The Palm in Focus
Coastal-Italian Casea 101 opens on 19 October, with the L’Abysse omakase counter expected alongside it.
Gymkhana Lands in DIFC, and Hikiniku To Come Heads for Al Quoz
London’s Michelin-starred Indian opened at Gate Village in September. A halal wagyu hamburg counter is next.
A New Generation of Emirati Dining Is Taking Shape in Dubai
Athar at Chef’s Society in City Centre Mirdif, and Abra, coming to Etihad Museum.
The Palm and Jumeirah: Where Dubai’s Autumn Openings Are Landing
From One&Only The Palm to the beachfront strip, the season’s biggest new restaurants cluster by the water. Here is what is scheduled, with dates as announced.
490,493visitors at the 15th Qatar International Food Festival, a record and 36% up on the year before44restaurants in the Michelin Guide Doha 2026, three of them with a star$245Magreed by Saudi-listed Jahez for 76.56% of Qatar’s Snoonu
Qatar International Food Festival Closes Its 15th Edition with a Record 490,493 Visitors
Ten days at the 974 Stadium Precinct drew the festival’s biggest crowd yet, with 246 vendors, more than 50 chefs and the first QIFF Awards.
Alba Earns Doha’s Third Michelin Star as the Guide Grows in Its Second Year
The MICHELIN Guide Doha 2026 lists 44 restaurants, with Alba promoted to one star, eight Bib Gourmands and nine new entries to the Selected list.
Msheireb Foodhall Opens in Doha as Qatar’s First Internationally Operated Food Hall
Msheireb Properties and TGP International have opened a nine-restaurant food hall at Msheireb Galleria, with a rotating Food Lab for guest chefs, workshops and pop-ups.
17%the new cap on commissions when the platform delivers; some had charged up to 35%8,000+trade professionals at the 14th HORECA Kuwait in JanuaryNo. 18Cantina, the best restaurant in Kuwait on MENA’s 50 Best 2026
Kuwait’s Delivery-App Commission Caps Hold After a Court Annuls Their Penalty Clause
Commissions of up to 17 per cent and a KD 1 delivery-fee ceiling remain in force, but an administrative court has removed the article that set the penalties for breaking them.
HORECA Kuwait’s 14th Edition Welcomes More Than 8,000 Trade Visitors
The January show at the Kuwait International Fair brought more than 100 exhibitors, a chef competition involving more than 200 chefs and five panel debates on Kuwait’s hospitality sector.
NAC Opens Its First Kuwait Restaurant in Hessah District, Where Nobu Is Also Due
The Mayfair-born French bistro has opened a two-storey, 350-square-metre site with a terrace in the sea-facing mixed-use district, run by a local franchise partner.
5thyear of Bahrain’s Best Restaurants Awards; the 2026 public vote has opened46judges on the 2025 panel, from hotel general managers to food influencers36.8%market occupancy in the first half, down from 57.3%, Gulf Hotels Group said
Bahrain’s Best Restaurants Awards Return for a Fifth Year, with Public Voting Open and a December Gala
Bahrain Confidential’s poll pairs a judges’ list with a public vote; its December 2025 gala named 26 restaurants by judges and 25 by public vote.
Bahrain’s Restaurant Groups Report a Softer Year as Visitor Numbers Fall
AlAbraaj slipped to a first-quarter loss and Gulf Hotels Group’s half-year profit fell 46 per cent, as both pointed to weaker visitor demand. Both are still opening new venues.
Takht Jamsheed, Bahrain’s Persian Restaurant Since 2002, Opens a Second Home at Marassi Galleria
Gulf Hotels Group’s Persian restaurant has opened its first branch outside The Gulf Hotel, in the Marassi Al Bahrain mall, in a room styled as a royal court.
12Omani brands at the International Franchise & Retail Show in New Delhi in May26Omani brands in the fifth edition of the OCCI Franchise Programme300Indian branches: the target set for Seven Fries, which launched in Seeb in 2021
Salalah’s Al Baleed Culinary Festival Returns for a Fifth Edition in November
Al Baleed Resort Salalah by Anantara has listed a month of guest-chef dinners, from a Michelin-starred Turkish chef to a Hong Kong young-chef winner, with Omani heritage dinners for the resort’s tenth anniversary.
Omani Restaurant Brands Sign Franchise Deals Abroad as Seven Fries Opens in New Delhi
Two Seven Fries branches opened in the Indian capital in May and three master franchise agreements were signed for Omani brands, ahead of a new Chamber of Commerce programme for 26 more.
Pickl Opens Its First Oman Restaurant at Muscat’s Souq Al Madina
The Dubai-born burger brand has opened beside its sister brand BonBird, working with the same local partner, MENA Foods & Investments.
No. 1Khufu’s in Giza, the first Egyptian restaurant to top MENA’s 50 Best5Egyptian restaurants on MENA’s 50 Best 20264thedition of Cairo Food Week, a ten-day programme across the city from 24 September
Cairo Food Week Marks Its Fourth Edition With Chef Takeovers Across the City
The ten-day festival from Flavor Republic Ventures opened on 24 September with a sustainability-themed dinner, then put visiting chefs into Cairo kitchens and added a pop-up museum at the Grand Egyptian Museum.
Marrybrown Plans 100 Egyptian Outlets in Deal With Talaat Moustafa Group’s Retail Arm
The Malaysian halal fast-food chain signed in February, with six Cairo restaurants targeted for 2026 and 100 outlets over ten years, in what Bernama calls the property group’s foray into food and beverage.
Nobu Opens Its First Cairo Restaurant at Eastown in New Cairo
SODIC opened the Japanese-Peruvian restaurant at its Eastown District on 24 June, with chef Nobu Matsuhisa at the preview and a Nobu hotel planned to follow.
No. 5Beihouse in Beirut, the list’s highest new entry and the best in Lebanon3Beirut restaurants on MENA’s 50 Best 202630thedition of HORECA Lebanon, scheduled for 10 to 13 November at Seaside Arena
Beihouse Leads Lebanon at MENA’s 50 Best 2026 as Beirut Places Three Restaurants
The Pasteur Street restaurant debuted at No. 5 and won the Highest New Entry award; Em Sherif ranked 13th and Buco 39th, all in Beirut.
HORECA Lebanon Marks 30 Years With a November Show at Beirut’s Seaside Arena
The organiser lists 10 to 13 November for the hospitality and foodservice trade fair, with culinary, barista and junior-chef competitions and a showcase of Lebanese-made products.
Scalini Opens in Downtown Beirut in a $2 Million Bet on High-End Dining
The London-founded Italian restaurant’s first Lebanese branch comes from 7 Management and Assaad Group, which says a coffee chain and Dubai concepts are next for Beirut.
AWARDS & RANKINGS
The Middle Eats Awards
Our own awards for the region’s best restaurants are in preparation. Categories, judges and the nomination calendar will be announced in The Middle Eats Weekly first.
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RANKINGS & RECOGNITION
01Dubai’s 2026 Michelin Guide: A City Competing at the Highest Level20 starred restaurants among 122, across 38 cuisines
02Orfali Bros and the Rise of Dubai’s Distinctive Culinary VoicesTwo Michelin stars, and No. 4 in MENA’s 50 Best 2026
03Inside Riyadh’s 2026 Restaurant Awards: Chotto Matte Takes the SpotlightRestaurant of the Year at What’s On Saudi Arabia 2026
04MENA’s 50 Best 2026: Khufu’s Takes No. 1 as Dubai Holds Three of the Top FourKhufu’s in Giza leads, ahead of Kinoya, Trèsind Studio and Orfali Bros
All awards & rankings →
MENA’S 50 BEST RESTAURANTS 2026
Where the 50 places went
- UAE25
- Morocco6
- Egypt5
- Lebanon3
- Saudi Arabia3
- Jordan3
- Kuwait2
- Qatar1
- Bahrain1
- Tunisia1
THE MICHELIN GUIDE
Dubai and Doha, on one scale
Dubai 2026122 restaurants 3 stars 22 stars 41 star 14Bib Gourmand 22Selected 80 Doha 202644 restaurants 1 star 3Bib Gourmand 8Selected 33Bars drawn to the same scale. Dubai’s guide covered 69 restaurants at its 2022 launch; Doha’s 2026 selection is its second.
FLAVOURS CAPTURING ATTENTION
Hover a card to flip it
Hot Right Now
Two trends moving from social feeds to restaurant menus.
DESSERT · DUBAIHow Dubai Chocolate Became More Than a Viral Dessert
THE STORY
What began as a chocolate-and-kunafa bar has become a category of its own — cookies, croissants and cheesecakes built around kunafa textures. Proof that regional ingredients can travel without losing their identity.
Read the story →
TREND · FLAVOURSweet Meets Heat: Why Swicy Flavours Are Finding an Audience
THE STORY
Mango dusted with chilli is only the start: sweet-and-spicy “swicy” and fruit-with-heat “fricy” pairings give familiar ingredients a new sensory rhythm — approachable and surprising at once.
Read the story →
MARKET INTELLIGENCE
The Business of Food
The numbers behind the region’s restaurants. Tap any one for the full story.
SAUDI ARABIA · DELIVERY
Delivery orders per quarter
124MQ4 2025
118MQ1 2026
132MQ2 2026
“More than” figures as reported; deliveries of all kinds, not only restaurant meals
AMERICANA RESTAURANTS
+59.2%
first-half net profit, to $147.2 million, on revenue of $1.36 billion
2,746 restaurants in 12 countries
KUWAIT · DELIVERY APPS
17%
the new ceiling on the commission platforms charge restaurants
- Before: up to35%
- Platform delivers17%
- Own couriers10%
From $62.2bn to $122.2bn
- 2025$62.2bn
- 2026$69.1bn
- 2031$122.2bn
01The Gulf Restaurant Economy Is Growing — but Not Every Segment Moves Together
02Americana’s 59% Profit Jump and Taco Bell’s Return to the UAE
03118 Million Orders in One Quarter: Inside Saudi Arabia’s Delivery Boom
04Gulf Restaurant Investment: Acquisitions, Expansion and a Changing Market
ARAB FOOD HERITAGE · A SERIES
Pick a country to explore · Read the series →
Ten Countries, Ten Culinary Traditions
Arab food is not a single cuisine. It is a collection of regional traditions shaped by geography, trade, family rituals and local ingredients.
01HELIOPOLIS, CAIRO
Egypt
HagougaSlow heat, rich ghee and clay casseroles: Hagouga keeps the cooking of Egypt’s countryside alive in Cairo.
SIGNATURE DISHES
Photo: HagougaRoz moammarStuffed pigeonRoqaq with duckMolokhia
02RIYADH
Saudi Arabia
Najd VillageRice, meat, grains and bread, served the communal way in floor-seated majlis rooms — the generous table of central Saudi Arabia.
SIGNATURE DISHES
Photo: xiquinhosilva / Wikimedia Commons (from Flickr), CC BY 2.0JareeshMatazeezKabsa
03AL FAHIDI, DUBAI
UAE
Al KhaymaWhere desert meets coast: rice, dried lime and dates in a courtyard of Old Dubai, with a Michelin Bib Gourmand.
SIGNATURE DISHES
Photo: Davide Mauro / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0Lamb machboosLuqaimat
04OLD CITY, JERUSALEM
Palestine
Abu ShukriChickpeas cooked slowly with tahini, olive oil and lemon on Al-Wad Street — the craft of doing a few things well.
SIGNATURE DISHES
Photo: Shlomo Rodad (שלמה רודד) / Wikimedia Commons (Pikiwiki Israel), CC BY 2.5HummusFulFalafel
05AMMAN
Jordan
HashemDowntown Amman’s table for seven decades, described by guides as open around the clock, where the attraction is familiar food rather than elaborate presentation.
SIGNATURE DISHES
Photo: Freedom’s Falcon / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 3.0HummusFulFalafelFattet hummus
06SANA’A
Yemen
Sana’a’s tableSaltah arrives in a stone pot, still boiling under a froth of fenugreek, with layered mulawah bread and zurbian, a spiced rice dish from Yemen’s south.
SIGNATURE DISHES
Photo: Maria Gropa / UNESCO / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 3.0 IGOZurbianMulawahSaltah
07BEIRUT
Lebanon
Tawlet, Mar MikhaelSince 2009, cooks from villages across Lebanon have brought their household dishes to one table — recipes as living knowledge.
SIGNATURE DISHES
Photo: Peter Feghali / Wikimedia Commons (from Unsplash), CC0 1.0Village dishesSeasonal home cooking
08OLD CITY, DAMASCUS
Syria
NaranjA restaurant in the Old City’s Al-Qaymariya quarter that took its name from the bitter orange, and became a familiar address for Syrian classics on large platters.
SIGNATURE DISHES
Photo: Jan Smith (jemasmith) / Flickr, CC BY 2.0MezzeHummusStuffed vine leaves
09MARRAKECH
Morocco
Dar YacoutA fixed-menu dinner in a palace-style riad that moves course by course, in the order of a traditional diffa, from salads to pastilla, tagine and couscous.
SIGNATURE DISHES
Photo: David Berkowitz / Flickr, CC BY 2.0PastillaTagineCouscous
10BAGHDAD
Iraq
Riverside grills, Abu Nuwas StFish opened flat and roasted upright beside the embers at the riverside restaurants of the Tigris — smoke, river air and patience.
SIGNATURE DISHES
Photo: Omar Chatriwala / Al Jazeera English / Wikimedia Commons (from Flickr), CC BY-SA 2.0Masgouf
FROM THE REGION’S KITCHENS
Recipes & Trends
Classic Gulf dishes, and the desserts being reinvented around them.
Emirati Machboos: The Rice Dish That Carries a Culinary Heritage
Fragrant rice, warming spices and the depth of loomi, the dried lime of Gulf kitchens.
Saudi Kabsa: One Dish, Many Regional Expressions
Najdi and Hijazi kabsa, compared by spice, protein and rice.
Luqaimat and Date Syrup: A Gulf Dessert with Staying Power
Crisp outside, soft within — from the traditional table to café culture.
Photo: Pshahma, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0
Kunafa Reinvented: From Cheesecake to Croissants
Why crisp kunafa strands translate so well into new dessert formats.
BEYOND RIYADH & DUBAI
Across the Region
Abu Dhabi: Erth, Hakkasan and Talea, each holding one Michelin star.
Jeddah: Kuuru, No. 6 on MENA’s 50 Best 2026 and the best restaurant in Saudi Arabia, and Kaia’s new season at Shangri-La Jeddah.
Doha: Idam by Alain Ducasse at the Museum of Islamic Art, Best Restaurant in Qatar at MENA’s 50 Best 2026.
Kuwait: Cantina, a Mediterranean restaurant with an Italian focus, No. 18 at MENA’s 50 Best 2026 and the best in Kuwait.
Oman: The Al Baleed Culinary Festival in Salalah, back for its fifth edition through November.
Beirut: Tawlet and the home cooking of Lebanon’s villages.
