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Sheikh Zayed Road Guide

The Best Restaurants on Sheikh Zayed Road

Sheikh Zayed Road is Dubai's skyscraper spine, and its dining lives inside the hotel towers along the Trade Centre stretch. It was once a Michelin address, but the star names have moved on, so today it is a hotel-tower strip of reliable rooms, with the fine dining now elsewhere in the city.

By the Cravd Editorial Team9 spotsUpdated October 20264 min read

1
MICHELIN Guide listing (Shang Palace)
0
Michelin stars currently on SZR
The Best Restaurants on Sheikh Zayed Road

This guide rates the SZR spots S to C from real diner sentiment and verified recognition. The headline fact: the one Michelin-Guide-listed room left on the road is Shang Palace at the Shangri-La, and the densest cluster sits inside Jumeirah Emirates Towers.

The short answer

Top of the list right now: Shang Palace. Below is the full honest ranking, S to C, drawn from real diner reviews.

No. 01 · The tiers and the prices

What you get for your money

The best for the money is Benjarong, an A-tier spot at Mid prices.

No. 02 · The ranking

The picks, ranked

  1. S · Legendary

    Shang Palace

    Shangri-La Hotel

    The standout on the road, a MICHELIN-Guide-listed Cantonese room doing an extensive dim sum spread and a signature Peking duck. The one genuine Michelin-Guide badge left on Sheikh Zayed Road.

    Cantonese and dim sumSplurge
    Save
  2. A · Excellent

    La Cantine du Faubourg

    Jumeirah Emirates Towers

    A buzzy Parisian-style brasserie from chef Gilles Bosquet that runs late into the night. A polished all-rounder and the liveliest room in the Emirates Towers cluster.

    A late French dinnerSplurge
    Save
  3. A · Excellent

    Benjarong

    Dusit Thani

    Royal and Northern Thai on the 24th floor of the Dusit Thani, with a signature Khao Soi and skyline views. A long-running, genuinely good Thai room with a setting to match.

    Thai with a skyline viewMid
    Save

The rest of the field

  1. B-tier: Ninive

    A cool-season rooftop

    Jumeirah Emirates Towers · Mid-price

    Why it’s B: Ninive

    A Levantine rooftop in a Bedouin-tent setting with shisha, open for the cool season. It held a MICHELIN Bib Gourmand in 2022 and 2023, and it remains a strong al-fresco pick for the setting.

  2. B-tier: Gohan by La Cantine

    Japanese street food

    Jumeirah Emirates Towers · Mid-price

    Why it’s B: Gohan by La Cantine

    Refined Japanese street food from the La Cantine team, doing skewers, sushi and gyoza. A solid, lively option in the Emirates Towers podium.

  3. B-tier: The Rib Room

    A classic steak

    Jumeirah Emirates Towers · Splurge

    Why it’s B: The Rib Room

    A long-standing steak and grill room with a focus on ribs. Dependable, classic hotel-tower dining for a proper steak.

  4. C-tier: Ballaro

    Italian and a buffet

    Conrad Dubai · Mid-price

    Why it’s C: Ballaro

    An Italian room with a global buffet and live cooking at the Conrad. Comfortable hotel dining, more convenient than destination.

  5. C-tier: Cave

    A wine-bar stop

    Conrad Dubai · Mid-price

    Why it’s C: Cave

    A Parisian-style wine bar doing cocktails and small plates. A relaxed stop for a drink and a bite on the strip.

  6. C-tier: Mundo

    A convenient buffet

    Jumeirah Emirates Towers · Mid-price

    Why it’s C: Mundo

    A multi-cuisine live-cooking and buffet room in the Emirates Towers lobby. Reliable and convenient, a solid everyday fallback.

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SZR used to be a Michelin address, and the flagship names have all relocated off the road.
No. 03 · Across Dubai

Where they are

No. 04

The honest shape of Sheikh Zayed Road dining

SZR used to be a Michelin address, and that is the useful thing to clear up. The flagship names have all relocated off the road: Tresind and avatara to the Marina and Dubai Hills, Hakkasan and Okku to the Palm. What is left is a hotel-tower strip of dependable rooms, with one genuine Michelin-Guide listing anchoring it.

The smart way to use SZR today is to treat it as a cluster of reliable hotel dining with a couple of genuine highlights, and to head to the Palm, Jumeirah or DIFC when you want the current star names.

No. 05

The one Michelin-Guide room, and a former Bib

Shang PalaceS at the Shangri-La is the anchor, a Cantonese room listed in the MICHELIN Guide for its dim sum and Peking duck. It is a Guide listing at the Selected level. It holds neither a star nor a Bib Gourmand, so the listing is a strong signal.

NiniveB at Jumeirah Emirates Towers held a MICHELIN Bib Gourmand in 2022 and 2023, which has since lapsed, so treat it as a former Bib. It is still a fine cool-season rooftop for the setting and the Levantine plates.

No. 06

The Jumeirah Emirates Towers cluster

The densest run of dining on the road sits inside Jumeirah Emirates Towers: La Cantine du FaubourgA for a late French dinner, Gohan for Japanese street food, The Rib RoomB for a steak, NiniveB on the terrace and MundoC in the lobby. It is the one stop on SZR where you can browse several good rooms in one building.

For the current star names that left SZR and the wider fine-dining scene, our DIFC and flagship Dubai guides cover the field.

No. 07 · Head to head

The Cantonese room, and the French brasserie

SShang Palace

ALa Cantine du Faubourg

Recognition

MICHELIN Guide listing

None, a lively brasserie

The draw

Dim sum and Peking duck

The scene and late hours

Price

Splurge

Splurge

The verdict

The standout

The night out

The densest run of dining on the road sits inside Jumeirah Emirates Towers.
No. 08 · Before you go

Frequently asked

What is the best restaurant on Sheikh Zayed Road?

Shang Palace at the Shangri-La is the standout, a Cantonese room listed in the MICHELIN Guide for its dim sum and Peking duck. La Cantine du Faubourg and Benjarong lead the next tier. All are rated in this guide.

Is there a Michelin restaurant on Sheikh Zayed Road?

Shang Palace is the only MICHELIN-Guide-listed room on SZR, at the Selected level. No Michelin-starred restaurant is on the road in the 2026 guide, because the former star names (Tresind, avatara, Hakkasan, Okku) have all relocated to the Marina, Dubai Hills and the Palm.

Where is the dining cluster on Sheikh Zayed Road?

Jumeirah Emirates Towers holds the densest run of restaurants on the road, including La Cantine du Faubourg, Gohan, The Rib Room, Ninive and Mundo, so it is the easiest single stop for options.

Is Ninive still a Michelin Bib Gourmand?

No. Ninive held a MICHELIN Bib Gourmand in 2022 and 2023, which has since lapsed, so it is a former Bib. It remains a strong cool-season rooftop for the setting and the Levantine plates.

How are these rankings made?

These tiers synthesize real diner sentiment and verified recognition, including the MICHELIN Guide, weighed against value.

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No. 09 · Your Cravings

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On this list

  • S-tier: Shang PalaceShangri-La Hotel
  • A-tier: La Cantine du FaubourgJumeirah Emirates Towers
  • A-tier: BenjarongDusit Thani
  • B-tier: NiniveJumeirah Emirates Towers
  • and 5 more