Eat & Stay
Where to go in Dubai for a sharing-plates dinner with friends
For a sharing dinner with friends in Dubai, book Roka for a dressed-up Japanese grill, Bebabel for big Lebanese mezze, Forma when it should be cheap and easy, and Revolver if the group wants Indian. Over-order the small plates and let one person do the ordering.
For a sharing-plates dinner with friends in Dubai I keep going back to three: Roka in Business Bay for a dressed-up Japanese grill, Bebabel for big Lebanese mezze, and Forma on Al Wasl Road when it should be cheap and easy. If the group wants Indian, Revolver in The Opus is the one I would book. Order everything to the middle, lean heavily on the small plates, and put one person in charge so you do not end up with five versions of the same dish.
What actually makes a dinner work for a group?
Three things, and food is only one. The menu has to be built for the middle of the table rather than one large plate each. The room has to let you hear the person opposite, which rules out a lot of Dubai's prettiest restaurants. And a table for six has to be easy to book, because the places built for twos will quietly split your group and ruin the night.
Where do I actually eat, and what should you order?
In June 2026 I did all three of these in one stretch and posted it: late bites at Roka, family-style Lebanese at Bebabel, and pizza worth going back for at Forma.
- Roka, The Opus, Business Bay. Japanese robatayaki, which means an open charcoal grill sits in the centre of the room and most of the menu passes over it. The black cod, the lamb cutlets and a run of skewers is the order. Roughly AED 300 to 350 a head once the table has shared properly. Book ahead, and ask for the terrace in winter.
- Bebabel, Club Vista Mare on the Palm or The Dubai Mall. Of everything here, this menu asks the least of you. Hot and cold mezze in quantity, bread arriving steadily, a mixed grill landing last. Around AED 150 to 200 a head and generous with it. The right choice for friends who want to pick at things and talk for two hours.
- Forma, inside the Al Safa Art and Design Library, Al Wasl Road. The casual one, and being inside a library makes it feel like something you found rather than booked. Split two pizzas, add the burrata poppers and the halloumi panzanella, and you are at roughly AED 80 to 120 a head. My weeknight answer.
Which Indian restaurant should a group book?
Revolver, on Level 1 of The Opus in Business Bay, the Zaha Hadid building Roka also sits in. It is a modern Indian grill under chef Jitin Joshi, who came from Gymkhana in London, and everything arrives charred, smoked or grilled and meant to be passed around. I went in June 2025 and it is the Indian restaurant I send friends to when they want the food taken seriously without the meal turning solemn.
Two softer options for when the group includes parents or anyone who wants comfort rather than a concept. Bombay Bungalow at The Beach in JBR does modern Indian with the Gulf outside the window, easy for a mixed table and good at lunch too. Daftar, in Al Fattan Currency House in DIFC, is the one that tastes like home to me: north Indian cooking done properly, open through the day, and a room with a bit of old-world charm.
Where do you go for a view, or a late table?
Fuoco at Address Grand Creek Harbour is my pick when the group wants a proper night out. Small plates over fire, an open terrace on the water, and it does not open until the evening, so it never feels like a lunch venue pretending. I was invited in September 2025 and stayed later than I meant to.
For the very end of the night, Umi Kei at Jumeirah Marsa Al Arab does late ramen, which I went for in August 2025. It is not a sharing-plates dinner, it is what you eat after one, and it is worth knowing about when everyone is still hungry at eleven.
Disclosure: Revolver, Fuoco, Umi Kei, Bombay Bungalow, Daftar and Loona hosted me or invited me to those meals. My opinion is my own.
Which places are worth it but not for sharing?
Two that come up whenever I recommend restaurants, with an honest caveat. Loona at Vida Residences Downtown does a long Italian set menu, twelve courses when I went in July 2025, with scallops, caviar and dumplings. It is a date night or a birthday for two, not a table of eight passing plates. And Kinoya in The Greens is izakaya food and some of the best ramen in the city, sitting near the top of the MENA's 50 Best list at the time of writing, which means booking has become hard. Go for the ramen, not for a big group.
Where to go, at a glance
| Venue | Area | Go for | Rough per head |
|---|---|---|---|
| Roka | Business Bay | Japanese grill, dressed up | AED 300 to 350 |
| Revolver | Business Bay | Modern Indian, smoke and fire | AED 250 to 350 |
| Bebabel | Palm or Dubai Mall | Big family-style mezze | AED 150 to 200 |
| Forma | Al Wasl Road | Pizza and easy plates | AED 80 to 120 |
| Fuoco | Dubai Creek Harbour | Fire-grilled plates, terrace | AED 250 to 350 |
| Bombay Bungalow | The Beach, JBR | Indian with a sea view | AED 150 to 250 |
These are rough, food only, at the time of writing. Drinks will move the number a long way at the licensed venues.
How do you make the night run properly?
- Book three to five days ahead for the popular rooms, and earlier for a Saturday in winter.
- Say it is a group of six when you book, not a group of four who "might add two".
- Order more of the little dishes than feels sensible and fewer of the big ones. Every table wants another round of small plates and nobody finishes the mains.
- Put one person in charge of ordering, and get the vegetarian dishes named out loud early.
- Ask for a terrace table between November and March. It is the best seat in Dubai for five months of the year.
What I would skip
Booking a rooftop with a DJ and expecting a conversation. Splitting the bill six ways at a licensed restaurant without checking whether drinks were shared, which is how friendships get scratchy. Tasting menus for a group, because somebody always has an allergy or a plan. And any restaurant that will not confirm a table for six by phone.
For the daytime version of the same instinct, a long weekend table and no rush, look at my Dubai brunch guide. If you want to keep the night lighter, my notes on healthy food in Dubai cover where to order well without ruining the week. And because half the evening is getting ready, here is what to wear for a night out in Dubai, venue by venue.
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