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GENERAL INFORMATION
Visitors from many parts of the world
along with a multi-ethnic resident community
have ensured that a sophisticated and
innovative food culture has developed
in the UAE. Almost any type of food is
available, from classic European to Pacific
Rim. You can eat Mexican, Polynesian,
Japanese, Chinese, Thai, Korean, Indian,
Pakistani, Persian, Italian and French
cooking, and more, at some of the finest
restaurants in the Middle East.
International fast-food chains, serving
the standard fare of hamburgers, chips,
pizzas etc (McDonalds’s, Pizza Hut,
Pizza Inn, Hardee’s, Wimpy, Dunkin’
Donut) are also located in the larger
cities.
Kentucky
Fried Chicken seems to be a particular
favourite. International theme restaurants
such as TGI Friday’s, Planet Hollywood,
Fashion Café, Hard Rock Café
and Henry J Bean’s are all represented
in the Emirates.
If you
cannot find anything to suit in that list,
small ethnic cafés and corner stalls
are ubiquitous. Shisha cafés offer
an opportunity to smoke a shisha (hubble-bubble
pipe) and serve food, coffee, tea and
fruit juices and corner stalls serve sharwarmas
and other sandwiches.
Gulf and
Middle Eastern food is also available
in a wide variety of venues, from expensive
restaurants to local cafés. Fresh
fish from the Arabian Gulf is always good.
Try lobster, crab, shrimp, or grouper,
tuna, kingfish, red snapper, grilled,
stuffed, or fried with spices.
But it
is not just a question of variety, make
no mistake the food is generally good
and the standard of service is high.
Pork
Muslims are prohibited from eating pork
so it is not included in Arabic menus.
Hotels frequently have substitutes such
as beef sausages and veal rashers on their
breakfast menus. If pork is available,
it is clearly labelled as such.
Alcohol
Alcohol is generally only served in hotel
restaurants and bars (but not in Sharjah).
Exceptions
are some clubs (e.g. golf clubs) and associations.
Restaurants that are not associated with
hotels are not permitted to serve alcohol.
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