Gerbou This is Dubai’s very first fine-dining Emirati restaurant. It’s the brainchild Sheikha Latifa bint Mahtoum, the founder and director Tashkeel’s design studio, gallery and art incubator. Little nods to the UAE are found throughout the restaurant and its gorgeous gardens—from camel leather chairs to light fixtures designed in the shape of henna leaves. It is most evident on the menu. Gerbou’s menu was designed by Ionel Catau. Catau added his own personal touches to the traditional Emirati flavors, ingredients and techniques. Many diners will recognize the classics—sharing mezze boards, muhammara, and fish mathrooba—served alongside courses showcasing inventive twists on local dishes and ingredients, such as falafel curry, RAK tuna carpaccio, and date salad. The chicken machboos and corn-on-corn, which is prepared at the table fresh, are two of the must-orders. The machboos is served over a fragrant saffron flavored rice with sweet dried fruit and crispy kale. A finely diced cucumber salad with spicy home-pickled achar are served as a side. The dessert selection is fantastic, but for something truly special, you should order “a Taste of Gerbou.” The dessert is designed to look like the building where Gerbou is located. Its exterior, made of creamy cream, hides a number of surprises. We won’t spoil them for you. —Sophie Prideaux
Manāo
Neighborhood: Jumeirah 1,
Price range $$
Order your favorite dish all of them—do the 11-course tasting menu
The building is located in Jumeirah. Manāo—meaning “lime” in Thai—is a space that’s effortlessly cool—dimly lit, sleekly neutral, with a center bar and an open kitchen. The soundtrack is house and adds to a relaxed, yet sophisticated vibe. The team moves in perfect sync, including one of two masterminds behind it all—chef Abhiraj Khatwani. Khatwani, who was born in Dubai, has spent time in Canada, Denmark and the UK. ThailandWhere he got his inspiration. He has now condensed this vision, after a few years of recipe testing, into a multicourse tasting menu in collaboration with Mohamad Orfali from the popular Orfali Bros. Thai inspiration is the main phrase. The usual suspects such as green curry or pad Thai are not on the menu. The menu is a fusion of Thai flavors from north to south, including tamarind, coconut, and hand-milled toasted coconut. It also has a range of spice levels suitable for Southeast Asian tastes. The menu features charred cabbage stuffed with minced shrimp, Brittany oysters with orange chili and fried shallots, coconut-smoked short ribs topped with kaffir lime, and so much more, but all there is to know is that it was in that first bite that we insisted Manāo be put on this list. —Zahra Surya Darma
