Beautiful Virgin Islands

Monday, Jul 14, 2025

Dubai's practical solutions for fine dining at home

Dubai's practical solutions for fine dining at home

People in Dubai are getting a taste for eating at home. We explore the rise in meal delivery kits and meals subscription services in the city.

At the start of the year, many of us look to make healthier choices whether it's being more active or trying to watch what we eat. Dubai is famous for its many international and home-grown restaurants in beautiful locations. But recently there's been a growing appetite for food to eat at home.

Meal plans


Dubai is a city powered by home deliveries from laundry to lattes. Convenience is king, even if you have to pay for it. Jessica and Kurt Davis are regular meal plan customers. They say that prices vary and that some meal plans can be quite expensive, but they change providers so they can get variety because "sometimes it can get boring". They say that diverse plans exist but often the plans operate on rotations. To them, changing providers to "try something different" is the way to go.

Founder of Root’D


The United Arab Emirate's food and beverage market is worth more than 10.8 billion euros. This includes restaurants, hotels and delivery services. 60% of smartphone users in Dubai have a food-related app, and half of them actively use it. With this increase in popularity, consumers are being presented with a vast amount of choice of meal plans. Measured macronutrients are being prepared fresh and delivered to your front door daily.

Vegan food subscription service, Root'D, launched in November and it already has over 100 users. Its founder Roy Koyess says "we've seen an increase in number of consumers joining plant-based at least for a couple of weeks, to kind of detox from the animal-based products. I think the reason for that is they're getting a lot of information about the health benefits behind cutting out certain ingredients and they're trying out vegan meals".

What are the health benefits of meal plans?


Maria Abi Hanna is a dietitian and describes people's new outlook on food to us:

"This whole holistic approach that people now are taking, which is the wellness approach, and it's not just, you know, calories in, calories out, it's really the whole combination of nutrients, vitamins, minerals, and the way of eating, whether you should be following a plant-based plan or a low carb plan. It's a huge science behind it. People are beginning to realise the importance of it for sure".

Dubai based dietitian


Delivery kits


Another subscription-style that is growing in popularity is meal delivery kits, where you make the food yourself. Olivia Manner is the founder of Hello Chef. She agrees with our meal plan customers, Jessica and Kurt Davis, that sometimes recipes can get a bit repetitive. She says that's why people feel enjoy discovering the meals they have on offer because "you're discovering something new every week, but you have your familiar favourites as well. And we tend to be more geared for the weeknights anyway. So then on the weekend, you still have plenty of room to cook your own roast".

The cost


On average, meal plans cost between 450 to 900 euros a month per person. They include 20 days of breakfast, lunch, dinner and snacks. Meal kits are in the region of 250 to 350 euros for 20 dinners. An average monthly grocery shop for one in Dubai costs between 200 to 300 euros.

Food being prepared to be delivered


A learning experience


Putting cost aside, meal kits have another upside. Keith O'Malley-Farrell is a meal kit customer. He thinks that the meal kits have helped him learn how to cook. He says "it's really easy. The first day I did it, I was a bit like, read the thing, go back, forget what it said, go back, read it again. But the second time it was like I was a professional". It also means he doesn't have to go and find the ingredients and get anything wrong. He strongly feels that he would have given up if he had to shop for the ingredients himself.

Food during the pandemic


During the coronavirus pandemic, many restaurants pivoted with new and established meal kits, seeing a swell in demand as they offered consistent food access and minimal to no contact delivery methods. It's all very practical, but as Jessica and Kurt put it, "it was great during the lockdown, but it kind of increases the monotony of the days because basically, you work, you get up and work at your desk, you get your food delivery. Food delivery is actually probably, it seems more convenient, helpful when you actually have a lot more going on outside the house".

Though the long-term profitability has some experts sceptical, there's no denying that there's a healthy appetite for meal plans in Dubai with lifestyle, dietary requirements and convenience being the driving factors.

Newsletter

Related Articles

Beautiful Virgin Islands
0:00
0:00
Close
Air India Pilot’s Mental Health Records Under Scrutiny
Google Secures Windsurf AI Coding Team in $2.4 Billion Licence Deal
Jamie Dimon Warns Europe Is Losing Global Competitiveness and Flags Market Complacency
South African Police Minister Suspended Amid Organised Crime Allegations
Nvidia CEO Claims Chinese Military Reluctance to Use US AI Technology
Hong Kong Advances Digital Asset Strategy to Address Economic Challenges
Australia Rules Out Pre‑commitment of Troops, Reinforces Defence Posture Amid US‑China Tensions
Martha Wells Says Humanity Still Far from True Artificial Intelligence
Nvidia Becomes World’s First Four‑Trillion‑Dollar Company Amid AI Boom
U.S. Resumes Deportations to Third Countries After Supreme Court Ruling
Excavation Begins at Site of Mass Grave for Children at Former Irish Institution
Iranian President Reportedly Injured During Israeli Strike on Secret Facility
EU Delays Retaliatory Tariffs Amid New U.S. Threats on Imports
Trump Defends Attorney General Pam Bondi Amid Epstein Memo Backlash
Renault Shares Drop as CEO Luca de Meo Announces Departure Amid Reports of Move to Kering
Senior Aides for King Charles and Prince Harry Hold Secret Peace Summit
Anti‑Semitism ‘Normalised’ in Middle‑Class Britain, Says Commission Co‑Chair
King Charles Meets David Beckham at Chelsea Flower Show
If the Department is Really About Justice: Ghislaine Maxwell Should Be Freed Now
NYC Candidate Zohran Mamdani’s ‘Antifada’ Remarks Spark National Debate on Political Language and Economic Policy
President Trump Visits Flood-Ravaged Texas, Praises Community Strength and First Responders
From Mystery to Meltdown, Crisis Within the Trump Administration: Epstein Files Ignite A Deepening Rift at the Highest Levels of Government Reveals Chaos, Leaks, and Growing MAGA Backlash
Trump Slams Putin Over War Death Toll, Teases Major Russia Announcement
Reparations argument crushed
Rainmaker CEO Says Cloud Seeding Paused Before Deadly Texas Floods
A 92-year-old woman, who felt she doesn't belong in a nursing home, escaped the death-camp by climbing a gate nearly 8 ft tall
French Journalist Acquitted in Controversial Case Involving Brigitte Macron
Elon Musk’s xAI Targets $200 Billion Valuation in New Fundraising Round
Kraft Heinz Considers Splitting Off Grocery Division Amid Strategic Review
Trump Proposes Supplying Arms to Ukraine Through NATO Allies
EU Proposes New Tax on Large Companies to Boost Budget
Trump Imposes 35% Tariffs on Canadian Imports Amid Trade Tensions
Junior Doctors in the UK Prepare for Five-Day Strike Over Pay Disputes
US Opens First Rare Earth Mine in Over 70 Years in Wyoming
Kurdistan Workers Party Takes Symbolic Step Towards Peace in Northern Iraq
Bitcoin Reaches New Milestone of $116,000
Biden’s Doctor Pleads the Fifth to Avoid Self-Incrimination on President’s Medical Fitness
Grok Chatbot Faces International Backlash for Antisemitic Content
Severe Heatwave Claims 2,300 Lives Across Europe
NVIDIA Achieves Historic Milestone as First Company Valued at $4 Trillion
Declining Beer Consumption Signals Cultural Shift in Germany
Linda Yaccarino Steps Down as CEO of X After Two Years
US Imposes New Tariffs on Brazilian Exports Amid Political Tensions
Azerbaijan and Armenia are on the brink of a historic peace deal.
Emails Leaked: How Passenger Luggage Became a Side Income for Airport Workers
Polish MEP: “Dear Leftists - China is laughing at you, Russia is laughing, India is laughing”
BRICS Expands Membership with Indonesia and Ten New Partner Countries
Weinstein Victim’s Lawyer Says MeToo Movement Still Strong
U.S. Enacts Sweeping Tax and Spending Legislation Amid Trade Policy Shifts
Football Mourns as Diogo Jota and Brother André Silva Laid to Rest in Portugal
×