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December 13, 2025
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Dubai has one of the best dining experiences and places in the world. There is diversity and different representations of heritages and cultures, all brought together in the same place. With 2026 coming up, it's shaping up to be one of the best years to go out and give your taste buds a new taste to try. The city is open to innovation of all sorts, whether it's the ambitious architecture shown through their skyscrapers or the new concepts they bring to their dishes, there are kitchens that are Michelin worthy, with interiors that are transportive, even some globally recognized names that are pushing and keeping up with the status they have, making Dubai the new food capital. Starting from themes of Asian classics going to Tuscan coastal hidden gems, even experiential cooking with Indian flavors, these new restaurants will truly set the tone and define Dubai’s culinary arts in 2026.
So whether you have plans to book a reservation in the upcoming days or want to set your date book, gatherings and hangouts for the upcoming year, here are some new restaurants that opened in Dubai, places you absolutely need to visit in 2026. Each place has its own story, new flavors and a unique identity associated with it.
Already a name that's well known in London, Manchester, and Edinburgh, Tattu is making its debut in Dubai, bringing the same level of quality food, the same flair and taste that made it the sensation that it is today. You can expect smoky, rich and sensual interior designs lit together showing cherry blossom trees. The food served is their signature dishes that bring a great balance between contemporary Chinese flavors and present the food in an artistic way, even the cocktails served next to your food look like a work of art. Tattu is on its way to becoming a restaurant in Dubai where the city’s nightlife comes to fill their stomachs with a fine dining experience. It's a place where you don't just get to dine but get an experience that's pleasing to all the senses.
This next restaurant is one that has a design and theme that's minimalist, polished, and upscale in a more subtle manner. Kigo is here to bring a different kind of Japanese dining to the heart of Dubai. This Japanese cuisine goes way beyond the classic dishes of sushi counters or izakaya that you already know of and are familiar with. Kigo places importance on fresh flavors, putting things on the menu that are in season, sustainable sourcing, and refined craftsmanship of the highest quality. The flavors can be described as clean, balanced, and served with protein that is served in a plating manner that can only be described as something that belongs in a food magazine.
If you think you know your Indian food, think again. Mann Marzi will make you question everything you know and everything you're expecting out of the place. This restaurant is known for pushing the limits and margins of new concepts and techniques with traditional spices and flavors. This experimental cooking features items like reimagined kebabs, vibrant reinterpretations of chaat, and curries that have been slow-cooked with pairings you'd never think of. There’s also a great lineup of desserts that blends the nostalgic flavors you might know well and adds its own theatrical twist to them. Mann Marzi is a dining experience that is perfect for those who still want those flavors and spices but want a fresh and new perspective on the cooking, for those who can appreciate the innovation, artistry and boldness behind each and every menu item.
Entering the food scene as one of the most anticipated openings of the year, Mei is an Asian restaurant that brings along with its opening, a promise of refined plates that place more importance and focus on aspects like balance, beauty and execution that is on another level. You can expect dim sum that is smooth as silk, fried dishes that are delicate and full of flavor, specialty dishes that are grilled, and most importantly, all of these dishes come from a menu that incorporates flavors that travel from the East and Southeast Asia, incorporating the most important factor, authenticity. The ambience really ties everything together with the lighting that's soft, the woodwork that's warm, and a certain elegance and sophistication that makes Mei perfect for couples and a great date spot.
For those that are more keen on wanting the best ingredients, Birch is the next culinary obsession you should prepare yourself for, entering the fine dining experience in Dubai. This restaurant focuses on a concept that is inspired by Nordic living and flavors. That means there is more simplicity in how things are done here. The ingredients are selected and used to craft menu items on the basis of seasonality, the cooking is done through methods like wood fire, breads are handcrafted, many added elements are fermented and most of the dishes really just let the produce being used have the spotlight. Birch is the place you want to go to if you want a dining experience that is more calm, it's a contrast that is quite different from the rest of the extravagant dining places in Dubai but still the place is nothing short of being Michelin level.
Carbone is our next restaurant, and more than being a restaurant itself, it's also a brand name that is well known in New York and beloved by a lot of people, celebrities, critics, and even food purists who have a passion for Italian-American cuisine. This new opening in Dubai is sure to guarantee that the same flavor and quality that its well known and loved for is carried over the seas, the same indulgent spicy rigatoni vodka, veal parmesan that is massive in size, classic tableside Caesar salad, and what ties in the experience of luxury, making it feel like you're part of something really elegant is the tuxedo clad servers. This restaurant is all about the timeless classics that originally defined fine dining, but it's done in a way that is still bold, loud, and fits Dubai’s style.
The next restaurant is called Cetara, a place that has been named after the beautiful fishing village that is located on the Amalfi Coast. This new restaurant brings an elegance to the craft of coastal Italian dining in Dubai. If you want to think about the type of food being served, think of flavors like seafood that mixes in flavors of citrus, pastas made from scratch, and desserts that express the Italian personality of the restaurant, catching the true essence and charm of southern Italy. The interiors give a feeling that's breezy, colors that are inspired by the Mediterranean, and soulful coastal tastes. Cetara has made itself into a small escape in the heart of Dubai that makes you feel like you've been transported to a little village in Italy.
If you think that the dining experience that 2025 had to offer was great, then you are in for a great surprise for the upcoming year. 2026 is the year for getting the most out of the new restaurants that have recently opened and have already been guaranteed to deliver when it comes to taste and dining experience. The lineup has everything from coastal Italian to Nordic simplicity, experimental Indian to glamorous American-Italian, refined Japanese to modern Asian artistry, and reflects a city that thrives on diversity, quality, and culinary imagination.
Whether you're a foodie, a restaurant-hopper, or just someone who loves discovering what's next, these new restaurants are shaping the future of Dubai’s dining landscape one plate, one ingredient, and one unforgettable experience at a time.