The season brings a rich spectrum of festive dining in Dubai, expressed through theatrical performance, French Mediterranean warmth, desert celebrations and alpine evenings beneath open skies. The city’s culinary landscape takes on a distinctly seasonal character, shaped by venues that interpret the holidays through music, design, flavour and atmosphere.
These experiences highlight how festive dining in Dubai continues to evolve, offering settings that balance creativity with a sense of occasion. Each one presents its own approach to the season, from immersive shows to quiet desert evenings, demonstrating the breadth of celebrations across the city.
The Winter Nest
Just a short distance from Sonara Camp, The Winter Nest introduces an alpine-inspired take on festive dining in Dubai, shaped around lantern-lit pathways, wooden textures and open-sky views of the desert. Evenings begin with a winter cocktail at sunset before guests settle into a chalet-style setting for a menu centred on fondue, raclette and pierrade. The experience balances seasonal nostalgia with the quiet landscape surrounding the camp, offering private chalets for groups seeking a more secluded celebration. It is a thoughtful contrast to the city’s urban festivities, defined by calm, candlelight and shared dishes.
Quick Summary:
- ❄️ Style: Alpine-inspired desert dining
- 🍽 Key dishes: Fondue, raclette, pierrade
- 🌅 Atmosphere: Sunset cocktails and lantern-lit setting
- 💸 Pricing: From AED 650; private chalets from AED 4,000
Krasota Dubai
Krasota Dubai offers one of the most distinctive expressions of festive dining in Dubai, presenting The Nutcracker as an immersive, multi-sensory performance. The experience unfolds across seven chapters, each supported by cinematic visuals, original musical scoring and a signature dish crafted for that act. Snowfall sequences, shifting nocturnal scenes and graphic reinterpretations of the classic story frame the meal as a continuous narrative. Performances run from late December into January, including a special New Year’s Eve edition with added live elements before guests step onto the terrace for midnight views of Burj Khalifa fireworks.
Quick Summary:
- 🎭 Style: Immersive gastronomic theatre
- 📅 Seasonal schedule: 26–31 December, continuing in January
- 🍽 Format: Seven-chapter experience with signature dishes
- 🎆 NYE element: Special performance and terrace fireworks access
- 💸 Tickets: AED 2,100 per person
krasota.art, @krasota.restaurant.dubai
DREAM Dubai
DREAM Dubai approaches festive dining in Dubai with a sense of spectacle, pairing a cinematic dinner show with seasonal dishes created for the holidays. The venue presents an entirely new production throughout December, blending choreography, live music and high-impact visuals that shape the evening from the first performance to the finale. The limited-edition festive menu features dishes such as truffle burrata, herb-crusted rack of lamb and a signature bûche de Noël, while the JBR skyline forms the backdrop to the experience. It is a vivid interpretation of the season, designed around rhythm, colour and atmosphere.
Quick Summary:
- ⭐ Style: Immersive dinner show
- 📍 Location: Address Beach Resort, JBR
- 🎄 Seasonal highlight: New festive production with live performance
- 🍽 Menu notes: Truffle burrata, homemade casarecce, herb-crusted lamb
- 💸 Pricing: From AED 1,000 per person
dreamdxb.com, @dreamdubaiofficial
La Petite Maison Dubai
LPM Dubai channels Alsace’s holiday character through décor, seasonal dishes and a series of menus presented throughout December. As festive dining in Dubai broadens in style each year, the restaurant’s approach is rooted in French Mediterranean flavours shaped for the season. Weekday festive lunches introduce delicacies such as foie gras terrine, scallop risotto and hazelnut chocolate tart, while Christmas Eve and Christmas Day are marked by a generous sharing menu centred on seafood, winter produce and classic techniques. Soft lighting, detailed table settings and the fragrance of fresh herbs create a warm, convivial atmosphere within DIFC.
Quick Summary:
- 🍽 Cuisine: French Mediterranean
- 📅 Seasonal offering: Festive business lunch and Menu de Noël
- 🎄 Highlight dishes: Sea food tower, duck confit, vanilla cheesecake
- 💸 Pricing: Set menus from AED 135–640
Tasca by José Avillez
At Tasca, festive dining in Dubai draws on Portuguese hospitality, shaped around family-style dishes, live music and views of the Arabian Gulf. Christmas Eve is marked by an intimate dinner built on marinated seafood, seasonal ingredients and signatures from the restaurant’s repertoire. On Christmas Day, the Almoço de Natal introduces a relaxed, sunlit interpretation of Portuguese holiday dining, complete with sangrias and freshly baked pastéis de nata. The setting brings together sea views, contemporary design and a warm, understated sense of occasion reflective of Lisbon’s coastal rhythm.
Quick Summary:
- 📍 Location: Mandarin Oriental Jumeira
- 🍽 Style: Portuguese sharing menus
- 🎄 Seasonal services: Christmas Eve dinner, Christmas Day brunch
- 💸 Pricing: AED 495–550 per person
mandarinoriental.com, @tascadubai
Sonara Camp
Sonara Camp brings festive dining in Dubai into the desert, where Christmas Eve and Christmas Day unfold among dunes illuminated with soft lighting, firepits and seasonal décor. Guests arrive via a desert drive before exploring activities such as gingerbread house decorating, a mini festive market and a dedicated children’s area. The evening centres on a three-course sharing menu served alongside live entertainment and the camp’s well-known fire show. As the sky darkens, the surrounding dunes and shifting colours form a serene contrast to the city’s fast-paced celebrations.
Quick Summary:
- 🏜 Setting: Desert festive experience
- 🍽 Menu style: Three-course sharing menu
- 🎄 Activities: Santa’s grotto, market, children’s zone
- 🔥 Entertainment: Signature fire show
- 💸 Pricing: From AED 640–1,200
