Awards & Rankings
The Michelin Guide, MENA’s 50 Best and the regional awards that set the agenda for the year.
9 stories
Orfali Bros and the Rise of Dubai’s Distinctive Culinary Voices
Two Michelin stars in the 2026 Dubai guide and No. 4 in MENA’s 50 Best 2026, a year after topping the list. How three brothers from Aleppo built a restaurant that cooks from memory and travel.
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.
Get the announcement
Dubai’s 2026 Michelin Guide: A City Competing at the Highest Level
Twenty starred restaurants among 122 selected, across 38 cuisines. The fifth edition shows a guide that has nearly doubled in size since its 2022 debut.
Inside Riyadh’s 2026 Restaurant Awards: Chotto Matte Takes the Spotlight
The Nikkei restaurant in KAFD was named Restaurant of the Year at the What’s On Saudi Arabia Awards, an editors’ pick, on a night that also honoured Liza, Table;To and chef Luca Rossi.
MENA’s 50 Best 2026: Khufu’s Takes No. 1 as Dubai Holds Three of the Top Four
Khufu’s, beside the Giza pyramids, became the first Egyptian restaurant to top the Middle East and North Africa list. Kinoya, Trèsind Studio and Orfali Bros, all in Dubai, followed.
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, add newer voices to a cuisine long served in heritage settings.
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.
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.
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.
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.