Food Blog | Oriental Dining | Al Barsha | Dubai
One restaurant that has been eagerly anticipated by the Malaysian crowd in Dubai is none other than Oriental Dining - whose chef is actually a Malaysian who built a foodie following at Oriental Restaurant Fujairah!
The restaurant serves up all your typical Malaysia zi char restaurant delights at really reasonable prices, making this a very crowded place that people have flocked to in the opening weeks.
Where it Is
Oriental Dining is located in Al Barsha, near the Mall of the Emirates. Parking is sparse and the general complaint about the location is such that parking is hard to find and that you’re unlikely to find a parallel parking lot close to the restaurant’s location.
Oriental Dining Al Barsha Cereal Prawns (AED45)
If the weather’s nice, I would say that it is just about walkable from the Mall of the Emirates (but you should make sure to exit from the right exit, because otherwise it becomes an even longer walk). A good compromise is a paid parking lot next to Citimaxx Hotel (open air parking) - we paid AED5 for parking there.
If you want to key it into GPS, you can key in Tomato Pizzeria (because that’s the restaurant that Oriental Dining took over) or you can key in the address I’m putting below:
Address: Shop 7, Saleh Bin Lahej Building - Seedaf St - Al Barsha 1 - Dubai
Phone Number: +971564431368
I’m not particularly sure about the operating hours because most of their details are directly from the staff and are not readily available online.
I need to offer a word of warning though, for all those that want to try to walk-in for dinner. Don’t. Generally, the reviews are such that this place is usually very packed and it’s almost impossible to get a seat without a reservation.
The other review I’ve seen has been that the food takes a long time IF you don’t submit your order whilst you’re making your table reservation, so I recommend you do that. My family did that and the food essentially started coming within 5 minutes.
What it Costs
Click here if you would like to see the full menu. My family ate here for AED199.50 - but do note that after we left we realised they didn’t charge us for the plum juice (AED20 for small) and 3 rice (AED5 x 3). So by right, our bill should have come up to around AED240.
We had 6 dishes to share - all small portions. The claypot curry fish head (AED40), salted egg yolk squid (AED36), sweet and sour chicken (AED25), cereal prawn (AED45), malay kangkung (AED22) and sizzling tofu (AED22).
Oriental Dining Curry Fish Head (AED40)
For 4 people, I would say that ordering 5 dishes is probably a comfortable meal. I would say 6 is more for if you’re hungry and if you miss home cooked food . But portion sizes are decent - wouldn’t really say they’re too big or small.
For around AED50 per person, you’re basically getting a really filling meal that tastes like home.
How it Tastes
Given I’ve just flown to Dubai from Malaysia a few weeks back, I would say I’m a fairly decent barometer of how much it tastes like home, and this one absolutely does.
In general, I’m a fan of all the dishes that we ordered, bar one, but I’ll go into that one last.
Salted Egg Yolk Squid (AED36)
Starting off, their cereal prawns (pictured earlier in this post) and salted egg yolk squid are really tasty. The cereal prawn has the right amount of sweetness and crispiness coming from the cereal to make a delicious exterior (one that I’m more than happy to eat the cereal on itself) and a decent prawn.
Salted egg yolk is something that my family, who have been in Dubai much longer than I have, crave for, as it isn’t as common to find in Dubai. The salted egg yolk squid isn’t chewy (I’m personally not a fan when it is chewy) and is basically what you’ll find in a Zi Char in Malaysia. Super tasty. (I think this one finished the fastest on our table)
Malay Kangkung
The Malay kangkung is generally no frills - it is what you would expect from when you order Malay kangkung in Malaysia (Chinese style of course).
Sizzling Tofu (AED22)
The sizzling tofu is one of those dishes that I can imagine will be an absolute hit in the winter just because of the nature of the dish - but as again, it is one of those dishes that has a very homely feel to it.
I would say that the sweet & sour chicken is a bit less like what I’m more familiar with - softer meat that has been in the sauce for longer - but more like the American style, crispier and sweeter. But for me, I don’t really have too many issues with this - I mean, you can rarely go wrong with sweet and sour chicken.
Sweet & Sour Chicken (AED25)
The one dish that, for me, was a miss was the curry fish head dish. I would say that the curry sauce itself isn’t as fragrant/tasty as other sauces that I’ve had. In terms of the contents, there’s lots in there from vegetables to the fish head, but I just feel as though the curry sauce itself fell a bit flat for me - I felt that the flavours and aroma could have been stronger.
Star Rating
7.5/10. It’s very clear to see why Malaysians are flocking here to eat (especially those that have been here a long time). Just by the number of times I mention the word “home” in my above review it’s quite clear that my opinion is that this is basically what you would find in Malaysia - taste wise.
The food is really tasty, the space might be a bit on the crowded side and the background noise might be a bit on the noisier side, but I’m sure that given the value, taste of home and tastiness of the dishes, that can all be pushed to the back of your mind.
This is a place selling genuinely tasty food at a decent price point for Dubai.