Em Sherif Sea Café

A Michelin-Recognised Lebanese Table on Al Maryah Island; Worth Booking for a Special Occasion

This is a Michelin Plate recipient for 2025, which places it in credentialed territory for Abu Dhabi dining. At the $$$ price point; mid-to-upper range without reaching the heights of a $$$$ room, it delivers a Lebanese seafood experience that is genuinely hard to replicate at the same tier in the city. If you are weighing whether to book for a celebration meal, a date, or a business dinner with someone who will notice the surroundings, the answer is yes.

What the Room Delivers

The setting does real work here. Em Sherif Sea Café sits inside the Rosewood hotel on Al Maryah Island, the interior is a deliberate departure from the standard hotel-restaurant aesthetic. Portuguese Azulejo hand-painted wall tiles line the walls, a reference that connects the room to a Mediterranean coastal sensibility without tipping into theme-restaurant territory. The space is light and contemporary, the far-reaching water views across the island make it one of the more atmospheric dining rooms in Abu Dhabi for daytime or early evening meals. For a brunch or weekend lunch occasion, the combination of natural light, water outlook, considered interior detail puts this room ahead of most mid-tier competitors in the city.

The ambient energy leans calm rather than high-energy. This is not a loud, late-night venue. For a special occasion where conversation matters, a proposal dinner, a business meal with a client, or a celebratory lunch, the noise level works in your favour. If you want a buzzing, high-energy room, this is probably not your first choice. For a composed, occasion-worthy experience, it is a strong fit.

The Menu Angle: Seafood-Forward Lebanese Sharing

Menu is seafood-focused and built for sharing, which is the format Lebanese cuisine is designed for. The Michelin Plate recognition, awarded for good cooking at a consistent standard, signals that the kitchen is executing at a credible level. The name itself, meaning "mother of Sherif" in Arabic, is a direct reference to the original Beirut branch that opened in 2011, so there is an established lineage here rather than a concept built from scratch for a hotel opening. That heritage matters when you are paying $$$ per head: it means the menu has been tested and refined over time, not assembled to fill a hotel F&B; calendar.

Seafood counter at the entrance is worth pausing at when you arrive. It is both a practical preview of what is available and a signal of the kitchen's confidence in its produce. Lebanese cuisine at this level is built on a wide variety of sharing plates, mezze, fish preparations, grilled options, the menu reflects that breadth. For a brunch or weekend afternoon format, this sharing structure works particularly well, allowing a table to move through multiple dishes without the rigidity of a set tasting sequence.

If you are comparing this to other Lebanese options in Abu Dhabi, venues like Almayass, Grand Beirut, Li Beirut, Beirut Sur Mer, and Byblos Sur Mer each occupy different positions in the Lebanese dining spectrum here. Em Sherif Sea Café holds a distinct position by combining a Michelin credential, a hotel-quality room, a seafood-led menu, a combination none of those alternatives currently match at the same price tier.

For global context on the Lebanese dining category, Amal in Toronto, Byblos in Miami, and L'Arabesque in Geneva all operate in similar $$$ territory, as do Faraya in Wemmel, Maza'j in Auderghem, Beity in Chicago, and Base Kamp by Aïnata in Courchevel. Em Sherif Sea Café's Michelin recognition gives it a formal credential that most of those international peers do not hold.

Practical Details

Reservations: Booking difficulty is moderate, this is a Michelin-recognised venue inside a Rosewood property, so do not assume walk-in availability on weekends or for the brunch service. Book at least one to two weeks ahead for weekend slots. Budget: $$$ per head, placing it below the $$$$ tier of venues like Talea by Antonio Guida or Bord Eau by Nicolas Isnard, but expect to spend meaningfully for a full sharing-format meal. Dress: Smart casual at minimum given the Rosewood setting, the room is designed and the clientele will reflect that. Group size: The sharing format suits tables of two to six well; larger groups should confirm private dining availability when booking. Location: Inside the Rosewood hotel, Al Maryah Island, Abu Dhabi Global Market Square.

Who Should Book

Em Sherif Sea Café is the right call for a special occasion lunch or dinner where you want a room that does the work visually, a menu format that keeps the table animated, a Michelin-backed kitchen to justify the spend. It is a stronger choice than most alternatives at this price point if Lebanese cuisine is the category you want. If you are after French fine dining at $$$$ or a more casual Mediterranean option, look elsewhere, Bord Eau by Nicolas Isnard handles the former, Mika handles the latter at a lower price point.

For broader Abu Dhabi planning, see our full Abu Dhabi restaurants guide, our Abu Dhabi hotels guide, our Abu Dhabi bars guide, our Abu Dhabi wineries guide, and our Abu Dhabi experiences guide. For a sense of what high-end regional dining looks like in this part of the world, Trèsind Studio in Dubai is a useful reference point for how hotel-based fine dining can reach serious culinary heights.