United Arab Emirates Food Guide

The short version

Two things at once, and only one of them is obvious. Almost every cuisine on earth is available here and often at a very high level, because the population comes from everywhere. Emirati cooking itself is comparatively hard to find, and it is worth looking for.

Emirati dishes to ask for

Machboos, spiced rice with meat or fish, loomi and a warm spice mix, is the anchor dish. Harees, wheat and meat cooked for hours to a smooth consistency, appears especially in Ramadan. Balaleet, sweet vermicelli under a savoury omelette, is breakfast. Luqaimat, small fried dumplings in date syrup, is the one everyone remembers.

Coffee and dates

Gahwa, cardamom coffee poured from a long-spouted pot into a small cup, served with dates. It arrives before anything else in homes, in majlis settings and at the end of meals. Accept the first cup, and shake the cup gently side to side when you have had enough.

The international side

South Asian food in particular is outstanding and is where most residents actually eat. The cafeterias and small restaurants of the older districts do it better and for a fraction of what the hotel restaurants charge, and they are the most rewarding eating in the country.

Alcohol, and where it is not

Alcohol is served in licensed venues, overwhelmingly hotels and their restaurants and bars, and it is expensive. In the emirate of Sharjah it is a different matter entirely: drinking or possessing alcohol there is illegal. Plan a meal in Sharjah accordingly, which is no hardship because the juice, the tea and the karak are excellent everywhere.

Ramadan

Daytime eating and drinking in public are restricted, and the evening meal becomes the event of the day. See festivals and celebrations.

Verify Before You Travel

The alcohol rules by emirate are on the FCDO safety and security page. Next: culture and etiquette.

Sources

• UK Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office: UAE safety and security: the Sharjah alcohol ban, the zero-tolerance drugs position, dress codes and the law on same-sex relations. Accessed 15 September 2026.
• UK Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office: United Arab Emirates travel advice: the FCDO issues no advisory against travel to any part of the UAE. Accessed 15 September 2026.