The story
Orfali Bros is a contemporary Middle Eastern restaurant at D92, Jumeirah 1, Dubai, awarded one Michelin Star in 2026. The three Orfali brothers, originally from Aleppo, opened it in 2021 and run it as a family kitchen.
Mohammad Orfali leads the savoury side as head chef. His younger brothers Wassim and Omar work one floor above in the pastry kitchen, both trained in the French tradition but with different styles. The team says Aleppo is its foundation, not its limit, and the cooking draws on fermentation, wild ingredients and a full-time research lab. In 2025 the restaurant also re-entered The World's 50 Best Restaurants list at number 37.
Three set menus are offered: Aromas of Aleppo (AED 295), The OG Menu (AED 350) and The Voyage Menu (AED 795). The OG begins with a corn bomb of 36-month Parmigiano Reggiano and huitlacoche, then moves to a spicy burghul salad with Aleppo chili paste and a smoked eggplant bayaldi with makdous muhammara. Braised lamb neck with bone marrow and yogurt closes the savoury run. The Voyage adds baklava with caviar, king crab with garum and a wagyu kibbeh mishwieh. Menus change with the seasons.
The space is open and casual, with a two-storey kitchen that looks over the dining area. Outdoor seating is available, and the restaurant serves dinner from Wednesday to Monday.
Recognition
Details
History
High quality cooking
Double top:The Orfali brothers from Aleppo, Syria, have created a genuinely unique dining experience in multi-cultural Dubai, guiding their unpretentious bistro to the top of the Middle East & North Africa’s 50 Best Restaurants ranking for three consecutive years, and now re-entering The World’s 50 Best Restaurants list in 2025. Opened in 2021, the impact of Orfali Bros during its short lifetime to date cannot be underestimated. Treble trouble:There are three brothers, all of them in the kitchen. Oldest brother Mohammad is the head chef, primary communicator and driving force in this family affair. An established TV cook and restaurant chef in the Middle East, he has taken ingredients, techniques, traditions and influences from across the world and used them to create his own take on Arabic cuisine. While Mohammad runs the savoury kitchen, two younger brothers, Wassim and Omar, hover one storey above in their own pastry world. Both are classic pâtissiers in the French mould, but with contrasting approaches, leading to a stellar selection of pastries, buns, éclairs and desserts that pepper the menu. Singular menu:Anything goes, as long as the Orfali brothers love to eat it. They mix traditional Syrian staples with pan-regional favourites, European culinary tropes with Asian ingredients to create a menu that defies categorisation. ‘Rules are meant to be bent and broken, with respect to our tradition,’ is one of team’s mantras. Local heroes:This distinctive neighbourhood eatery in Dubai’s Wasl 51 neighbourhood comprises an open, casual space dominated by the two-storey kitchens overlooking diners. From here, through perseverance, brilliant storytelling and a blend of nostalgia and innovation, the Orfalis have captured the imagination of the local and international dining public.
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