The Al Maryah Island Guide: Where We'd Actually Eat

Al Maryah Island is not where Abu Dhabi goes for a cheap meal between errands.

It's where a long lunch can become a late afternoon, where someone always knows a restaurant you've somehow not tried yet, and where the same short stretch of waterfront can take you from Cantonese duck to Japanese sushi, Lebanese-Armenian mezze or a very serious steak.

There is more variety here than the luxury-shop surroundings might suggest. You can spend the money, certainly. But there are also smart ways to eat brilliantly without treating every meal like an anniversary.

The trick is knowing which table suits the occasion. Here's our shortlist.

If You're Booking Only One Table...

🥇 Best value: Almayass, for a generous Lebanese-Armenian spread and a MICHELIN Bib Gourmand.

🍋 Best long lunch: LPM, with its Côte d'Azur cooking and a terrace worth requesting.

🥟 Best dim sum: Dai Pai Dong, especially if sharing is the point.

🍣 Best special-occasion Japanese: 99 Sushi Bar.

🥢 Best lively Japanese: Zuma.

🥩 Best proper steakhouse: Butcher & Still.

🍻 Best after-work crowd: CRAFT by Side Hustle.

For a Long Lunch That Deserves Its Own Calendar Entry

Almayass

The Galleria, Level 1 · $$

The restaurant for people who order for the whole table.

Almayass blends Lebanese and Armenian cooking without making either side feel like a footnote. Start with bright, herby itch salad, add mezze and move on to dishes such as beef manti or kebab with sour-cherry sauce. This is generous food, built for sharing rather than fussing over individual plates.

It retains a MICHELIN Bib Gourmand in the 2026 Abu Dhabi guide, which is a reminder that excellent cooking and a frightening bill need not be inseparable.

Perfect for: Family lunches, big catch-ups and taking visitors somewhere with more personality than the usual mall restaurant.

yapped Tip: Ask for a circular booth when booking as a group. They're good for lingering, and you might as well admit that's the plan.

LPM Restaurant & Bar

The Galleria, Level 1 · $$$$

Lunch as though everyone has the afternoon off.

LPM does French-Mediterranean cooking without unnecessary theatrics. Tomatoes arrive looking like the centrepiece, warm prawns come in olive oil and lemon, and the bread quickly becomes important. The bright dining room and waterfront terrace make even a fairly ordinary Wednesday feel a little more like the south of France.

Order several dishes, keep things moving slowly and don't book something tight afterwards.

Perfect for: Important lunches, polished dates and people who would rather spend on food than on a show around it.

yapped Tip: Request the terrace in the cooler months. Save a little bread for the sauce from the warm prawns.

Dim Sum, Duck and a Proper Sharing Table

Dai Pai Dong

Rosewood Abu Dhabi · $$$

The Chinese restaurant where ordering one main is a missed opportunity.

At Rosewood, Dai Pai Dong makes a persuasive case for a full table: handmade dim sum, glossy roast duck, Cantonese staples and food that gets its character from the wok as much as the recipe. The dark-wood dining room is warm rather than showy, and the menu gives you enough directions to justify more than one visit.

Brunch changes the pace. The Sunday Yum Cha is particularly useful if you want to work through dumplings rather than commit to the same order every time.

Perfect for: Dim sum devotees, families and groups who actually share what they order.

yapped Tip: Saturday Wok Hei and Sunday Yum Cha are different experiences. Check the menu and day before booking the wrong one.

For Japanese Done Properly

99 Sushi Bar & Restaurant

The Galleria, Four Seasons end · $$$$

Sushi wearing its best shirt.

99 Sushi Bar is the smart, carefully paced option. Expect a polished dining room, attentive service and seafood where the detail matters: precise nigiri, thoughtful combinations and enough ceremony to make a meal feel special without needing sparklers.

A serious dinner here can add up, but the weekday omakase business lunch offers a more approachable way to discover the kitchen.

Perfect for: Anniversaries, milestone meals and diners who pay attention to the fish.

yapped Tip: The lunch and dinner services are separate. Book the actual lunch experience if that's the value you're after.

Zuma Abu Dhabi

The Galleria, South Plaza · $$$$

For when dinner is only half the plan.

Zuma brings Japanese izakaya-style sharing to a room that feels lively even before the bar gets going. Choose across the sushi counter, robata grill and main kitchen, then allow the evening to unfold. It is polished, but not somewhere anyone is expected to whisper.

The food is good enough to be the reason you came. The energy makes staying for another drink an easy decision.

Perfect for: Groups, celebrations and evenings that need a bit of life.

yapped Tip: Book the waterfront terrace when the weather cooperates, or consider the lunch selection if you want the food without the full night-out spend.

The Big Dinner Bookings

COYA

Four Seasons, Al Maryah Island · $$$$

Peruvian food with no interest in being understated.

COYA is colourful, confident and genuinely good at making a meal feel like a night out. Start with ceviche, build towards dishes from the grill and don't treat the cocktail list as an afterthought. The room has as much personality as the plates.

It is a convincing choice when you need somewhere with a sense of occasion but don't want a hushed white-tablecloth dinner.

Perfect for: Birthdays, vibrant date nights and groups looking for more than just a meal.

yapped Tip: If you're meeting friends in the bar first, arrange that separately from dinner. Check the reservation location at Four Seasons rather than wandering around the mall entrances.

Butcher & Still

Four Seasons Abu Dhabi · $$$$

The steakhouse that fully commits to the era.

Deep booths, a handsome old-school bar and a 1920s Chicago-inspired dining room make Butcher & Still feel like a destination. The food deserves the setting: serious cuts of beef, a rich crab cake and the sort of towering chocolate dessert that you should probably share.

This is a night for someone who wants steak, not a compromise menu that happens to contain steak.

Perfect for: Steak lovers, celebrations and a proper old-fashioned bar before dinner.

yapped Tip: Don't skip the bar. It's worth arriving ahead of your reservation for a drink rather than walking straight to the table.

Flamingo Room by tashas Abu Dhabi

The Galleria, South Plaza · $$$

Pink, polished and rather more substantial than it looks.

Flamingo Room knows how to make an entrance. Beyond the stylish interiors there is real cooking to get excited about: Calamari Mozambique with peri-peri and lemon butter, seafood, pasta and plenty designed for a long conversation across the table.

It is a little dressier than your everyday lunch, without making every visit a major production.

Perfect for: Birthdays, stylish catch-ups and a celebratory lunch.

yapped Tip: Request a window table when booking. For parking, use The Galleria's South Plaza, Section E, rather than choosing an entrance at random.

Novikov Abu Dhabi

The Galleria, Level 2 · $$$$

A long seafood lunch with evening potential.

Novikov takes Mediterranean ingredients and gives them a distinctly Italian accent. Lobster linguine, seafood crudo and grilled octopus are the reasons to look at the menu, while a waterfront terrace and music change the mood as the day moves towards evening.

Come for a proper meal, not just the name above the door.

Perfect for: Seafood lunches, dressed-up dinners and visitors who like a waterfront table.

yapped Tip: Use the Luxury Collection South Entrance beside Rosewood and head to Level 2. Ask for the terrace when reserving.

When You Want Something Less Formal

CRAFT by Side Hustle

The Galleria, Al Maryah Island · $$–$$$

Beer brewed here, food with no intention of being delicate.

CRAFT is a change of pace from Al Maryah's more polished dining rooms. Small-batch beer, brisket, smoky meats and generous sharing plates make it a useful after-work destination when nobody wants to read a tasting-menu explanation.

Come with friends, ask what is pouring and save space for the food. A proper brewery is not the place to arrive having already eaten dinner.

Perfect for: Casual groups, after-work drinks and anyone who prefers a bar that makes what it serves.

yapped Tip: Check CRAFT's own events schedule for quiz nights, lunches and food specials. Old third-party round-ups sometimes show the wrong days.

If You Only Have One Evening

The sensible splurge: A drink at Butcher & Still's bar, then dinner there. If Japanese is the priority, switch the whole plan to 99 Sushi or Zuma rather than squeezing both in.

The long-lunch route: Book LPM for a waterfront lunch and leave the afternoon open. A stop at The Galleria afterwards is an option, not an obligation.

The sociable one: Start with a shared spread at Almayass, then head to CRAFT if the group wants an easy-going evening with something brewed on site.

Al Maryah is at its best when the booking suits the company. You don't need to try all ten. You just need to pick the right table.