MustEatList

Where to eat, one dish at a time. Curated places, community votes.

Theme Want to try

The best Machboos in Dubai

Also spelt machbous, majboos, makbus and machboos laham. A curated shortlist, shaped by your votes.

Editorial picks

Selected from published food guides and local reporting. How the list works

  1. Number 1.Al Khayma Heritage Restaurant

    Al Fahidi Bur Dubai and Al Fahidi

    Open
    8am to 11pm daily
    Where
    Villa 54-44, Al Fahidi Historical District, Bur Dubai

    The Michelin inspectors single out the lamb machboos, and it is built for sharing, so bring company. Book ahead at weekends; the courtyard fills with tour groups by mid-evening.

    What to orderLamb machboos, ordered for the table

    0 votes

  2. Number 2.Gerbou

    Nad Al Sheba Downtown and Business Bay

    Open
    Breakfast from 7am, lunch noon until closing
    Where
    Street 20, Nadd Al Sheba Road, Nad Al Sheba 1, at Tashkeel

    Chicken machboos arrives as a sharing plate at around a hundred and sixty dirhams, which is fine-dining money for a home dish. Book before you drive out to Nad Al Sheba.

    What to orderChicken machboos, with the corn salad

    0 votes

  3. Number 3.Arabian Tea House (Al Fahidi original)

    Al Fahidi Bur Dubai and Al Fahidi

    Open
    7am to 11pm daily
    Where
    Al Fahidi Street, Al Souk Al Kabeer, Bur Dubai

    Order the laham machboos and take it in the courtyard, not the indoor room. Breakfast crowds and tour groups own the mornings, so come mid-afternoon if you want the place quiet.

    What to orderLaham machboos, the chef's recommendation

    0 votes

  4. Al Fanar Seafood Restaurant (Al Barsha Pond Park)

    Al Barsha 2 Al Quoz and Al Barsha

    Open
    About 9am to 9pm daily, its own site disagrees
    Where
    Al Barsha Pond Park, opposite Al Barsha Mall, Al Barsha 2

    Seafood is the machboos to take here, prawn or fish or mixed, and it lands with a real hit of dried lime. The dining room is huge and noisy, so ask for the back patio.

    What to orderMixed seafood machboos

    0 votes

  5. Al Fanar Restaurant & Cafe (Dubai Festival City)

    Dubai Festival City Al Qusais, Al Nahda and Mirdif

    Open
    10am to 11pm daily
    Where
    Ground floor, Festival City Mall, Dubai Festival City

    Machboos deyay is the order, chicken on spiced rice, eaten inside a mocked-up 1960s Dubai. It sits in a mall, so weekend evenings are loud and the wait for a table is real.

    What to orderMachboos deyay, the chicken version

    0 votes

  6. Al Qbabh Seafood Restaurant

    Al Awir Al Qusais, Al Nahda and Mirdif

    Open
    Opens 11am, closing time not confirmed
    Where
    102 Al Amardhi Street, Al Awir 2, ground floor

    Emirati chefs point visitors here for machboos, so order the fish version with pickled lime and a grilled fish beside it. Al Awir is a long drive east, and closing time is not posted.

    What to orderFish machboos with pickled lime

    0 votes

  7. Al Jawareh Traditional Restaurant

    Al Qusais Industrial 2 Al Qusais, Al Nahda and Mirdif

    Open
    7am to 10pm, best dishes often gone by 1pm
    Where
    Near the livestock market, Al Qusais Industrial Area 2

    A community canteen out by the cattle market, not a destination room. Arva Ahmed's advice holds: get there before 1pm or the machboos and half the menu will have gone.

    What to orderLaham machboos, if it is still on

    0 votes

  8. Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Centre for Cultural Understanding

    Al Fahidi Bur Dubai and Al Fahidi

    Open
    Booked sittings; lunch 1pm Monday to Thursday
    Where
    Al Musallah Road, Al Fahidi Historical Neighbourhood, Bur Dubai

    Not a restaurant: a booked sitting on floor cushions where machboos arrives as part of the spread and an Emirati host answers questions. Dh145 for lunch, and no walk-ins.

    What to orderThe machboos on the cultural-meal spread

    0 votes

New votes usually appear in the counts and rankings over the next 1–3 days. Own one of these places? Tell us.