Casual & Fun Family Friendly Places to Eat in Abu Dhabi

Travelling with family? Abu Dhabi says bring it on! No-one loves a big family group more than this town, and its restaurants and cafes are geared up to cater for kids. 

Got a fussy eater, or one who likes the tastes of home? The emirate's dining scene is an international hotpot of restaurants, serving the best local dishes as well as all the favourites from across the globe. 

Read to discover the best places to eat in Abu Dhabi, catering for all diners, big and small, for fast or fine dining.  

Abu Dhabi’s first Emirati restaurant, Al Fanar, has been carrying the torch for local cuisine since it opened in 2011 (pun alert: Al Fanar means ‘the lantern’). 

Expect your table to be loaded with dozens of small dishes of local delicacies such as machboos; mutton or chicken cooked with lemon, cinnamon and cardamon and served over fragrant rice. The charcoal grilled whole sea bass is another crowd fave, while jesheed – crumbled baby shark cooked with coriander and rice, is the quintessential Emirati seafood dish. For more familiar fare, order the omnipresent kebab and mixed-grill platters. 

The vintage-style restaurant does a cracker breakfast of shakshouka (eggs cooked in a rich tomato sauce), and vegetarians get a lot of love in the menu. The total kid pleasers, legaimat, are Emirati-style donut balls slathered with date syrup or the pistachio kunafa brownie.  

Set beside Ferrari World in Yas Mall, you can’t miss the (stuffed) camel and jeep out the front. Photo op! 

Location: The Fountains, Yas Mall, Yas Island. 

Is Italian cuisine the world's greatest comfort food? Yes, yes it is. The Gabbiano Italian Restaurant in Novotel Abu Dhabi Gate serves up all your Italian faves, from burrata to bruschetta, seafood to spaghetti, without having to leave your hotel. Open for lunch and dinner, in the cool of the evening, take a seat on the terrace and order a drink from the restaurant's menu, which has a strong showing of Italian wines and aperitifs.

Stepping out, Abu Dhabi crushes hard on Antonia, voted the best pizza joint in the emirate. Expect dough that's been fermented for 72 hours, piled with toppings and sold by the slice, so your crew can pick and choose. The signature is the Crostino, a heavenly slice loaded with veal ham and mozzarella. 

Chef-owner Simone Federici learned to cook at his nonna's knee, and serves up the light with the heavy - from sea bass carpaccio to punchy carbonaras.  

Address: Mamsha al Saadiyat, Al Zeina at Al Raha Beach & The Galleria at Al Maryah Island. 

When it's hot in Abu Dhabi, the hot go shopping. The UAE's malls are legendary, and are packed with family entertainment and food courts that punch way above your average mall-food expectations. They're also open long after traditional shopping hours. 

The biggest mall in Abu Dhabi, Yas Mall, is home to nearly 70 restaurants and cafes, from barbeque pits to Turkish cuisine, Parisian macarons and Thai dishes. Cruise the Yas Food Hall for chocolate-fed wagyu steaks and lobster, but also family-friendly gourmet hot dogs and Chinese wontons. 

For classic holiday fare, head to Seven Dawgs for the hottest hot dogs in town. Try the Classic CornDawg or the Sweet Saints of Fire; it also dishes up Tater Tots and breakfast burgers, no judgement here.  

Location: Yas Mall, Yas Island. 

It gets hot in this town, but Abu Dhabi has the answer: expect fresh, healthful mango or pomegranate juices on most menus, while the local favourite is sweetened lemon with mint.

Danish juice gurus Joe & the Juice live up to their name,  a re-fuelling spot with their signature juices; think turmeric tonics or green goodness, as well as protein shakes alongside sandwiches and sweetly (sneakily healthy) slices. 

Location: Marina Mall & Yas Mall, Yas Island. 

Got kids in tow that need an energy hit? Abu Dhabi thrives on crazy shakes, and the local outpost of New York cult shake maker, Black Tap Craft Burgers & Shakes, delivers. Yes, it serves gourmet burgers and wings, but you’re really here for the Brooklyn Blackout, a choc shake with mini choc chips, choc brownies and a bit more choc, or the girly “I-want-a-unicorn” rainbow Cotton Candy – notable mention for the Nutella and Oreo shakes. Their slushies will cool even the hottest tot. 

Location: Mamsha Al Saadiyat, Saadiyat Island.  

For juice and views to match, rehydrate with a whole coconut or shake the jet lag with ginger shots at beachfront Feels. This all-day breakfast cafe's clean food is a favourite with locals, open early and closing late, with views over the aqua waters. Come for the salad bowls, stay for the acai. Want local flavour? Order the Abu Dhabi Shake, with ice cream, peanut butter, and quintessentially Arabian dates (ssssh, it's vegan and healthy, but no-one will ever know!) 

Location: Mamsha Al Saadiyat, on Saadiyat Island. 

Start you day off right at these places to get a family-friendly breakfast in Abu Dhabi.

Kids, dogs, groups - Art Market welcomes all comers. A favourite with the locals, it delivers on all fronts - great coffee, moreish food and top views. And if you like your breakfast with a splash of art and music, the award-winning cafe flips the tunes and showcases Abu Dhabi-based artists on its walls. 

The menu includes kid-sized breakfasts of fruit and yoghurt, oats and, because it's holidays, croffles with whipped cream (that's the lovechild of a croissant and a waffle). Come for your smashed avo fix and ethically sourced coffee; no-one's judging if you order the Ferrero Rocher latte. 

You can even paint while you wait for your meal; the cafe brings the paints and canvas, you bring the inspiration.  

Location: Pier 113, Yas Bay Waterfront.  

If you want to know what makes Abu Dhabi tick, it’s shawarma. Hot bread striped from the grill, marinated beef or chicken finely sliced, lashings of garlic sauce, salad if you must. It’s a quick bite on the go for busy families, or sit down and savour at Zahrat Lebnan (Lebanese Flower), which locals say is one of the best places to eat in Abu Dhabi. 

Serving up the classics since 1983, if too much garlic is never enough, add the garlic-marinated chicken dish shish tawook to the order, otherwise go for simplicity done well, with a rotisserie chicken accessorised with fries, toum (garlic sauce), hummus, and pickles.  

Location: Zahrat Lebnan, 58 Al Qahirah St - Al Khalidya.

With an onsite pool, three restaurants, and connecting rooms, Novotel Abu Dhabi Gate is tuned into the needs of travelling families.
 

Kickstart the day by cruising the breakfast buffet at Horizon Line Restaurant, and end it with a drink in the hotel's Belgian Beer Cafe. The Euro-cafe serves up hefty rib-eye steaks as well as mini sliders for littler diners. Otherwise, fall back on the classics and go Italian at Gabbiano Italian restaurant. 

For the full holiday vibe, pull up a lounger and kick back at the pool bar with kid-friendly snacks and adult-friendly drinks poolside.  

The four-star hotel has 224 rooms including connecting rooms and one-bedroom apartments with kitchenettes, perfect for young families juggling jet-lagged toddlers. 

Location: 222 Al Maqta St, Rabdan.