Mall of the Emirates Dining Guide
The Best Restaurants in Mall of the Emirates, Rated Honestly
Most of Mall of the Emirates dining is exactly what you would expect from a big mall: familiar chains, a couple of food courts, and a run of restaurants charging a premium for the novelty of watching people ski indoors while you eat. So the honest question is a simple one. Which of these rooms is worth a special trip, and which are you visiting only because you were already shopping?
The short answer: one room here is genuinely worth going for, XU, and it is the only Mall of the Emirates restaurant in the Michelin Guide. A handful more are reliable, the ski-slope-view spots trade on the snow more than the plate, and the rest is chain food you already know. We rated each spot A to C on the food, weighed against the location and novelty premium.
As cravd testers rate these in the app, their honest tiers show up here too, from people who have actually paid the mall and the ski-view markup and can tell you if it landed.
The short answer
The top picks right now: XU, Din Tai Fung and Cipriani Dolci. Below is the full honest ranking, A to C, drawn from real diner reviews.
13
Mall of the Emirates spots rated
0
Michelin stars inside the mall
1
Michelin Guide listing (XU, Selected)
0
paid placements
The rating system
How the tiers stack up
Excellent
A confident recommendation.
Good
You’d happily go back.
Fine
It’s fine. It exists.
There is no S tier here, and that is deliberate. A shopping-mall dining floor rarely produces a best-meal-of-your-life room, so the honest ceiling is a strong A: XU on its Michelin Guide listing, Din Tai Fung on value, Cipriani on polish. The chains and the ski-view novelty spots drop to C on value. For the city's real S-tier, see the flagship Dubai restaurants guide.
The picks, ranked
- A · Excellent
XU
Kempinski Hotel, Level 2
The one room worth a special trip, and the honest peak of the mall. A refined Cantonese restaurant in the attached Kempinski, doing proper Peking duck and dim sum, and the only Mall of the Emirates spot in the MICHELIN Guide, listed as Selected in 2025. Selected means the guide recommends it, short of a star, which is exactly the honest ceiling a mall reaches.
The one destination meal hereSplurge - A · Excellent
Din Tai Fung
Level 2, near VOX Cinemas
The best-value serious cooking in the mall, and the one to be precise about. The Taiwanese dumpling house is widely rated for its xiao long bao, with queues to match. Its Michelin star belongs to the Hong Kong branch, and the Mall of the Emirates outpost is not starred, but it is still the smartest mid-price meal in here.
The best-value proper mealMid - A · Excellent
Cipriani Dolci
Fashion Dome, under the glass dome
The Venetian Cipriani group's all-day room, set under the mall's glass dome, well regarded for classic Italian and famous for the Bellini and the cakes. It carries no Dubai award, only a long reputation, and it is a splurge, but aggregate reviews rate the cooking well beyond the setting.
Polished Italian and a BelliniSplurge - B · Good
Salmontini
Level 1, near Ski Dubai
A long-running seafood and smoked-salmon room with a Ski Dubai slope view. The fish is well regarded, but the snow view is doing some of the pricing work, so it lands as a solid choice where you are paying partly for the window. Reputation-led.
Seafood with a snow viewSplurge - B · Good
Old Tbilisi
Level 1
The distinctive pick, and the mall's best value surprise. A Georgian restaurant doing proper cheese-filled khachapuri and khinkali dumplings, which is genuinely hard to find and priced fairly. Aggregate reviews run warm, and it is the one to try when you want something other than a chain.
Something genuinely differentValue - B · Good
Al Hallab
Level 1
A dependable Lebanese room for mankoushe, kibbeh and a proper mezze spread. Aggregate sentiment is steady and the value is fair, which makes it a reliable Levantine option away from the food court. A safe, solid B.
Reliable Lebanese mezzeMid - B · Good
Gazebo
Level 1
The Indian pick, best known for its Awadhi biryani, sealed and cracked at the table. Reviews are good and the pricing is sensible, so it is a dependable choice for a proper Indian meal mid-shopping. See our [best biryani in Dubai](/guides/best-biryani-in-dubai) guide for how it stacks up against the city's cafeteria greats.
A sit-down biryaniMid - B · Good
Texas de Brazil
Level 2
The Brazilian rodizio, all-you-can-eat skewered meats carved at the table. It is a fun, filling occasion, more appetite than refinement, and the aggregate reviews reflect that. Good for a group with an appetite, priced as a splurge for the format.
An all-you-can-eat meat feastSplurge - B · Good
The Lighthouse Cafe
Level 2 atrium
A pretty all-day Mediterranean cafe with a terrace under the atrium dome, from a homegrown Dubai group. The food is competent and the room photographs well, so it is a good coffee-and-a-bite stop, strong on the room and fine on the plate. Reputation-led.
A photogenic coffee and biteMid - C · Fine
The Cheesecake Factory
Level 2
The honest why-is-this-always-packed pick. Enormous portions and an enormous American menu, with queues to prove the pull is the brand. It lands at C on value: the food is fine, but you are paying a chain premium for portions the better rooms beat on quality. Fine for a hungry crowd, no reason to make the trip.
A familiar crowd-pleaserMid - C · Fine
P.F. Chang's
Mall of the Emirates
The Americanized Chinese chain, the tourist default when the group cannot decide. Competent and consistent in the way chains are, but you are paying mall-chain prices for food that Din Tai Fung and the city's real Chinese kitchens do far better. A C on value.
A safe familiar chainMid - C · Fine
Le Burger
Mall of the Emirates
A build-your-own burger chain leaning on a make-it-yourself combinations gimmick. The novelty is the draw, and the burger itself is average for the price. Fine for kids and indecision, but the concept does more work than the cooking.
A gimmicky burger buildMid - C · Fine
The food courts
Level 1 + near Ski Dubai
The mall's two food courts run the usual shawarma-to-pizza franchise line-up. They are exactly what a food court is: fast, cheap and forgettable. Fine to refuel mid-shopping, but nobody should rate them highly for the money, and none of it is worth a trip.
A quick, cheap refuelValue
Every Dubai spot, rated this honestly.
Every spot rated the same honest way. Get it in your pocket, plus your friends’ real tiers.
Mall of the Emirates has one room worth a trip, and a lot of markup for watching people ski.
What it’ll cost
The price ladder
Value
2Won’t break the bank
- Old Tbilisi
- The food courts
Mid
7A treat, not a splurge
- Din Tai Fung
- Al Hallab
- Gazebo
- The Lighthouse Cafe
- The Cheesecake Factory
- P.F. Chang's
- Le Burger
Splurge
4Special-occasion money
- XU
- Cipriani Dolci
- Salmontini
- Texas de Brazil
Across Dubai
Where they are
Kempinski Hotel, Level 2
Level 2, near VOX Cinemas
- Din Tai FungDirections →
Fashion Dome, under the glass dome
- Cipriani DolciDirections →
Level 1, near Ski Dubai
- SalmontiniDirections →
Level 1
- Old TbilisiDirections →
- Al HallabDirections →
- GazeboDirections →
Level 2
- Texas de BrazilDirections →
- The Cheesecake FactoryDirections →
Level 2 atrium
- The Lighthouse CafeDirections →
Mall of the Emirates
- P.F. Chang'sDirections →
- Le BurgerDirections →
Level 1 + near Ski Dubai
- The food courtsDirections →
The ski-slope-view novelty tax
Here is the honest core of it. A cluster of Mall of the Emirates restaurants sit alongside Ski Dubai and sell you the novelty of eating while people snowboard past the glass. Salmontini and the Apres-style lounges lean on that view, and the premium is real, so the question is always whether the food justifies the window.
Sometimes it does and often it does not. Salmontini's seafood is well regarded, so there the view reads as a bonus on top of the food. The more casual slope-view spots are the ones to treat as a novelty stop, because there the snow is most of what you are paying for.
The rooms worth a trip vs the chains
Most of Mall of the Emirates dining is franchises you already know, from Cheesecake Factory to P.F. Chang's. Only a couple of rooms justify going out of your way: XU in the Kempinski for a genuine Cantonese meal, and Din Tai Fung for the best-value dumplings in the building. Old Tbilisi is the honest wildcard, a Georgian spot you will not find in most malls.
So the simple rule is that if you want a real meal, head for XU, Din Tai Fung or Old Tbilisi. If you just need to refuel mid-shop, the food courts and chains are fine, they just will not rate highly. For the city's genuine top tables, our best restaurants in Dubai guide has the real S-tier.
Is there a Michelin restaurant in Mall of the Emirates?
Almost, and the honest detail matters. There is no MICHELIN-starred restaurant inside Mall of the Emirates. One room, XU in the Kempinski, is in the 2025 Michelin Guide as a Selected restaurant, a recommendation from the guide that sits below a star or a Bib Gourmand. That is the honest ceiling here.
Din Tai Fung is often assumed to be starred, but that recognition is for its Hong Kong branch, and the Mall of the Emirates outpost has no star of its own. For the city's genuinely starred tables, our flagship Dubai guide maps them, and our Dubai Mall guide runs the same honest tiering across the other big mall.
Where to eat well for less
If you are not there for a special occasion, the value is clear. Din Tai Fung is the smartest sit-down meal, Old Tbilisi is the best-value surprise, and Gazebo does a fair-priced biryani. None of them will empty your wallet the way a ski-view splurge will.
It is the same lesson as our best restaurants in Dubai Mall guide: in a mall, the honest value is almost never the table with the most expensive view or the most famous chain name attached.
Head to head
The room worth a trip vs the ski-view splurge
There is no Michelin star inside Mall of the Emirates. XU is in the Guide as Selected, which is the honest ceiling a mall reaches.
Frequently asked
What is the best restaurant in Mall of the Emirates?
XU in the attached Kempinski, a refined Cantonese room and the only Mall of the Emirates spot in the Michelin Guide (listed as Selected in 2025). For the best-value proper meal, Din Tai Fung is the pick, and Old Tbilisi is the best-value surprise. There is no Michelin-starred restaurant inside the mall, so the honest ceiling is a strong A.
Is there a Michelin restaurant in Mall of the Emirates?
No starred one. XU is in the 2025 Michelin Guide as a Selected restaurant, a recommendation that sits below a star or a Bib Gourmand, and it is the only Guide listing in the mall. Din Tai Fung is often assumed to be starred, but that recognition is its Hong Kong branch. The Dubai outpost has none.
Which Mall of the Emirates restaurants have a ski-slope view?
Salmontini and the Apres-style lounges near Ski Dubai look onto the indoor slope. The view is a real novelty, but it carries a premium, so it is worth it at Salmontini for the seafood and more of a novelty drink at the casual spots.
Where can I eat cheaply in Mall of the Emirates?
Din Tai Fung is the smartest sit-down value, Old Tbilisi is a fair-priced Georgian surprise, and Gazebo does a sensible biryani. The two food courts are the cheapest option for a quick refuel, though they do not rate highly for the money.
Are these Mall of the Emirates rankings sponsored?
No. Nobody paid to be on this list. The tiers synthesize real published sentiment from the MICHELIN Guide, Time Out, Best Bites UAE, the mall's own directory and aggregate sites, weighed against value, and community tiers from actual app users layer in over time.
Know someone who’d argue with this list?
Send it over. Honest ratings travel better than sponsored ones.
More honest Dubai guides
Dubai Restaurant Guide
The Best Restaurants in Dubai, Rated Honestly
The best restaurants in Dubai, rated S to C: the Michelin stars and MENA 50 Best winners that earn it, over the skyline-view scene spots you pay altitude for.
Updated Aug 2026·7 min read
Dubai Mall Dining Guide
The Best Restaurants in Dubai Mall, Rated Honestly
The best restaurants in Dubai Mall, rated A to C: which Dubai Fountain view spots are worth the markup, where the real cooking is, and the tourist traps to skip.
Updated Aug 2026·7 min read
Dubai Marina Dining Guide
The Best Restaurants in Dubai Marina, Rated Honestly
Best restaurants in Dubai Marina, rated S to C: the one two-Michelin-star table, where residents actually eat, and which waterfront views are worth the markup.
Updated Aug 2026·7 min read
Dubai Festival City Dining Guide
The Best Restaurants in Dubai Festival City, Rated Honestly
Dubai Festival City restaurants rated A to C: the Pierre Gagnaire-linked room in the Michelin Guide, the Creek-view waterfront strip, and which chains to skip.
Updated Aug 2026·8 min read
Dubai Biryani Guide
The Best Biryani in Dubai, Rated Honestly
The best biryani in Dubai, rated S to C: the AED 14 Karama and Meena Bazaar institutions that beat the hotels, by style, Hyderabadi to Malabar to Sindhi.
Updated Aug 2026·6 min read
Dubai Breakfast Guide
The Best Breakfast in Dubai, Rated Honestly
The best breakfast in Dubai, rated S to C: the iconic Emirati spread, the homegrown specialty-coffee cafes and the all-day rooms worth the trip, by style and by value.
Updated Aug 2026·7 min read
Stop trusting strangers’ ratings.
Cravd is the Dubai food list your friends actually use. Save cravings, post honest S/A/B/C tiers, and find the spots people you trust actually loved.