Manāo Dubai is a one-star, Thai-inspired restaurant in Wasl Vita Mall, Jumeirah 1. It serves a full tasting menu of 11 to 12 courses, plus a shorter eight-course Chef’s Tasting Menu at AED 350 per person. The 11-course menu was AED 450 in 2025 reviews, and I couldn’t confirm a current figure. Manāo doesn’t serve alcohol, but it offers a five-drink house-made non-alcoholic pairing. Opening hours differ between sources, so check before you go.
Thai food is everywhere in the UAE. You’ve probably had pad thai at a mall food court and tom yum at a neighbourhood spot, and you’ve probably had both on a weeknight without thinking much about it. So what happens when a serious kitchen takes that cuisine and puts it on a tasting menu?
That’s the question Manāo answers. It does it in a small room in Jumeirah, at a price that sits well below most starred menus in the city. And it does it without alcohol, which matters in a place like Dubai.
This guide covers where to find it, what the menu looks like, what you’ll pay in dirhams, and how to book without hitting a full house. I’ve kept it practical, because most people searching for Manāo Dubai want a straight answer before they spend an evening on it.
A quick note on sources. This guide draws on the Michelin Guide, the restaurant’s own website, press coverage and published reviews, not a personal visit. Menus and prices change, so confirm details before you go.
Manāo’s Contemporary Thai Identity
Start with the name. Manāo means lime in Thai, and the fruit isn’t there for decoration. A Time Out Dubai review noted that lime shows up across the whole menu, as a squeeze, a zest or a pulp, and that it adds acidity to every course. FACT magazine described the menu as anchored by lime, rice and coconut.
Two chefs are behind it. Abhiraj Khatwani is the executive chef, an Indian chef who built his Thai cooking in the north-east of Thailand and later ran The Yellow Monkey, a casual Thai place in JBR. Mohamad Orfali, the name behind Orfali Bros, backed him. The pair describe Manāo as an ode to Thai cooking filtered through their own journeys, not a copy of street food or classic menus.
That’s a useful frame. If you’re expecting a restaurant that serves the Thai dishes you already know, this isn’t quite it. It’s closer to Thai flavours seen through a modern, personal lens.
The recognition came fast. FACT noted that Manāo earned a Michelin star within five months of opening, and that Khatwani won the 2025 Michelin Young Chef Award. The Michelin Guide lists the restaurant with one star in its 2026 edition. Platinumlist reports that it was listed at number 9 in the MENA 50 Best Restaurants for 2026, and FACT named it Restaurant of the Year 2025.
For a restaurant that seats about 34 people, that’s a lot of attention. It also explains why bookings can be tight.
Locating Manāo at Wasl Vita
Manāo is in Wasl Vita Mall, Al Wasl Road, Jumeirah 1, Dubai. One restaurant guide describes Wasl Vita as a low-rise mixed-use development, which puts Manāo away from the busier hotel dining clusters in Downtown or the Marina.
Phone: +971 4 272 2389
That setting says something about the restaurant. There’s no hotel lobby to cross and no tower lift to wait for. It’s a neighbourhood address, and if you live in Jumeirah, Al Safa, Umm Suqeim or Al Satwa, it’s very easy to reach.
Getting there:
- By taxi or ride-hailing: The simplest option. Give the driver the name, Wasl Vita Mall, and the road, Al Wasl Road.
- By car: A listing mentions valet parking. Confirm that when you book, especially on busy evenings.
- From across the city: One guide estimates roughly 15 minutes from Downtown, 20 from the Marina and 10 from DIFC. Treat those as rough numbers, because Al Wasl Road gets slow at rush hour and on Thursday and Friday evenings.
So leave some buffer. A tasting menu that starts without you isn’t a good way to begin.
A Lively Modern Dining Atmosphere
The room is small and the mood is relaxed. A Dubai restaurant guide describes it as elegantly minimalist, with a lively soundtrack and an open kitchen where the chefs act as storytellers. That last bit is a good clue to how the evening feels. You’re not hidden from the cooking.
A few details help you picture it:
- Seating: About 34 seats, according to a food blogger’s review.
- The kitchen: Open, so you can watch the team plate and send out dishes.
- Service style: A mix of front-of-house staff and chefs, who step out of the kitchen to present dishes. Time Out Dubai noted that if you’re lucky, Orfali or Khatwani might stop at your table for a chat.
- The menu: A printed menu is on the table from the moment you sit down, according to one review, so you can follow along.
- Practical facilities: Air conditioning and wheelchair access are listed by the Michelin Guide. Pets aren’t allowed.
It isn’t a hushed, white-tablecloth room. The music is lively, and the atmosphere is closer to a good neighbourhood restaurant than a formal fine-dining space. That suits couples, friends and small celebrations. If you want a very quiet room for an important conversation, it’s worth thinking twice.
Manāo Dubai Menu Guide
Manāo is built around tasting menus. You don’t browse a long list and pick starters and mains. The kitchen decides the sequence, and you eat what arrives.
Based on the Michelin Guide, the restaurant’s website and recent press, here’s how the formats break down:
| Format | What it is |
|---|---|
| Full tasting menu | 11 to 12 courses, the original Manāo experience |
| Chef’s Tasting Menu | Eight courses, launched in March 2026 as a shorter, more accessible option |
| Lunch | À la carte at lunch, according to the Michelin Guide |
| Optional supplements | Extra dishes you can add to the eight-course menu |
| Non-alcoholic pairing | Five house-made drinks matched to the menu |
The eight-course menu is the biggest recent change. Press coverage says it trims the original 12-course format into something more focused, and it’s available for dinner. A launch report said it blends signature favourites with three new creations.
If you’ve never been, the choice comes down to time and budget. The full menu gives you the complete story. The eight-course version gets you the flavour and the format at a lower price, which makes it a sensible first visit.
Thai Traditions with Creative Twists
Manāo’s dishes start from Thai ideas and then bend them. The Michelin Guide describes the menu as Thai classics with a twist, and says the dishes stay true to their roots while offering vibrant, fresh flavours with wonderful balance in the spicing.
Some examples from press coverage show how that works.
Khanom krok. In Thailand, it’s a small coconut-rice pancake, a street snack cooked in a special pan. At Manāo, it’s been served with lobster. The snack stays recognisable, but the filling moves into restaurant territory.
Miang. Traditionally, miang is a snack wrapped in a leaf, with sweet, salty, sour and spicy elements in a single bite. Manāo’s menu has included a charred cabbage version.
Curry puff. A familiar Thai and Southeast Asian snack, offered as a menu course and, in a beef version, as an optional supplement.
Sour tomato broth. A reported course that adds a deeper, savoury edge after the lighter opening bites.
Mango sticky rice. The classic Thai dessert, available as an optional extra on the eight-course menu.
Rice gets special treatment too. A review notes that Manāo presents rice as an essential part of the meal, which fits Thai cuisine, where rice isn’t a side dish but the centre of the table.
Techniques matter as well. FACT noted the kitchen uses grilling, roasting and fermentation to give the menu structure. If you grew up eating Thai food in the UAE, you’ll recognise the flavours. What changes is the care and the format.
Inside the Multi-Course Experience
A tasting menu is easy to describe and a little harder to picture, so here’s how an evening at Manāo tends to unfold.
The opening. A review of the eight-course menu says it opens with bold, flavour-forward bites that set the tone early. Think small, sharp mouthfuls that wake up your palate.
The middle. Richer courses follow. Reported ingredients include lobster, Alaskan crab, Gillardeau oysters, Wagyu, scallops and slow-cooked meats. A review of the full menu mentions a mix of humble ingredients like rice, coconut and cabbage alongside those luxury items. That mix is part of the charm. A cabbage dish and a lobster dish can sit side by side without either feeling out of place.
The finish. Sweet courses close the meal. Mango sticky rice shows up as an optional dessert on the shorter menu.
How long it takes. Reviews disagree. Time Out Dubai says the average experience runs a comfortable two and a half hours. A food blogger said the 11-course menu was served in about an hour and a half. The difference may come down to the night, the menu version and the pace, so plan for somewhere between the two and don’t schedule anything tight afterwards.
How you’ll be served. Dishes arrive from a mix of waiters and chefs. That keeps the room lively, and it gives you a chance to ask about ingredients.
Portion size. Courses are small, but there are many. One reviewer thought the full menu delivered a lot for the money. If you add supplements, you’ll leave full.
Manāo Dubai Tasting Menu Prices
Price is where Manāo stands out. Most Michelin-starred tasting menus in Dubai sit near AED 1,000 per person for food alone. Manāo has been well below that. Here’s what published sources report, in dirhams per person.
| Experience | Reported price (AED) | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Chef’s Tasting Menu, eight courses | 350 | Launched in March 2026, dinner service |
| Full tasting menu, 11 courses | 450 | Reported in 2025 reviews, current price unconfirmed |
| Curry puff with beef (supplement) | 38 | Optional extra |
| Crab shoulder (supplement) | 89 | Optional extra |
| Stir-fried oyster blade with holy basil (supplement) | 90 | Optional extra |
| Mango sticky rice (supplement) | 62 | Optional extra |
| Non-alcoholic pairing, five drinks | About 100 | Older report, confirm current price |
| Dinner for two | About 600 to 900 | Estimate from a 2026 review |
What that means for your bill. Two people on the eight-course menu spend AED 700 on food. On the 11-course menu, if the 2025 price still holds, it’s AED 900. Add the pairing and supplements, and you move up from there. The estimate of AED 600 to 900 for two fits the lower end of that range.
Other starred tasting menus in the city have been listed around AED 950 to 1,100 per person for food alone, so Manāo is one of the more approachable starred restaurants in Dubai. A food blogger who usually struggles with Dubai’s tasting menu prices called it affordable by Dubai standards. A restaurant guide listing also puts its cost at AED 500 and above per person on a general basis.
Because prices and menu versions have moved over the past year, confirm the current figures when you book. Ask whether service charge, municipality fee and VAT are included, since Dubai restaurants often add them.
Signature Thai Dishes to Try
Menus change, so this is a snapshot of dishes reported in press and reviews rather than a guaranteed list.
- Charred cabbage miang: A modern take on the leaf-wrapped snack, balancing sweetness and heat.
- Lobster khanom krok: The coconut-rice pancake with lobster, also noted for sweet and spicy balance.
- Curry puff: Available as a course and as a beef supplement.
- Sour tomato broth: A savoury, tangy course that follows the lighter openers.
- Wagyu, scallops and slow-cooked meats: Mentioned as part of the eight-course menu.
- Gillardeau oysters and Alaskan crab: Reported on the longer menu.
- Stir-fried oyster blade with holy basil: An optional supplement, built on a classic Thai flavour.
- Crab shoulder: Another optional extra.
- Mango sticky rice: The classic dessert, offered as a supplement.
If you’re deciding on supplements, the holy basil dish is the most familiar choice for anyone who grew up eating pad kra pao. It’s a good way to taste how the kitchen handles a flavour you already know. The crab shoulder is worth considering if you like shellfish and want something richer.
A practical note for shellfish allergies. Lobster, crab, oysters and scallops all appear in reported dishes. If you have an allergy, tell the restaurant when you book.
Balancing Heat, Sourness and Sweetness
Thai cooking has a way of balancing flavours that can be hard to describe if you haven’t thought about it. A good Thai dish tries to hit sweet, sour, salty and spicy at once, and sometimes bitter and funky too. If one element dominates, the dish feels off.
Manāo is built around that idea. Lime brings the sourness. Chilli brings heat. Coconut and sugar bring sweetness. Fermentation adds depth.
Reviewers keep coming back to balance. A report on the eight-course menu says the khanom krok and miang courses deliver a balance of sweetness and heat. The Michelin Guide praises the wonderful balance in the spicing. The restaurant also seems to treat acidity as a through-line, with lime appearing in many courses.
What does that mean at the table?
- Early courses tend to be sharp and bright, with acid doing the work.
- Middle courses bring richness and depth, so the acidity gives way to savoury flavours.
- Later courses ease back toward sweetness.
If you’re sensitive to spice, say so when you book. Many diners in the UAE have different heat tolerances, and a kitchen that cares about balance will usually want to know. I couldn’t find a published policy on adjusting spice levels, so ask directly rather than assume.
House-Made Non-Alcoholic Pairings
This is the part of Manāo that stands out most in the UAE context. The restaurant doesn’t serve alcohol, according to the Michelin Guide. Instead, it offers a five-drink non-alcoholic pairing, made in-house, to go with the menu.
That isn’t a token soft drink list. The Michelin Guide’s inspectors said the experience is perfectly paired with five non-alcoholic drinks, created and made in-house. FACT noted that the restaurant encourages the pairing of juices and house ferments, including kombucha and kvass, made with indigenous spices. A review of the restaurant adds that Manāo has developed a complete pairing programme in-house, and that techniques like fermentation and clarification help the drinks match the food.
For a lot of diners in Dubai, that’s a real advantage. If you don’t drink for religious or personal reasons, you won’t feel like you’ve been handed the second-best option. And if you do drink, the pairing is worth trying, because the drinks are built around acidity and fermentation, which suits Thai flavours.
An older report puts the pairing at roughly AED 100 on top of the menu price. That figure may have changed, so confirm when you book. If the price holds, the pairing adds very little to the bill compared with a wine pairing at most starred restaurants.
If you want a glass of wine with dinner, this isn’t the place. But it’s the rare tasting menu where skipping alcohol doesn’t cost you anything.
Lunch Choices and Dinner Experiences
Manāo has been mostly a dinner restaurant, but the lunch offer has been shifting.
Dinner. The tasting menus are the main event. The full menu and the eight-course Chef’s Tasting Menu are both dinner experiences, and the eight-course menu was described as available for dinner only when it launched.
Lunch. The Michelin Guide’s 2026 listing says the restaurant serves tasting menus of 11 or 8 courses, alongside an à la carte menu at lunch. One article from April 2026 says the restaurant extended its lunch service to cover the full weekend. A restaurant guide with a 2026 Michelin listing shows lunch on Saturday and Sunday, from 12 PM to 3 PM.
If you like the idea of a lighter, more flexible meal, a weekend lunch could be the way to try the restaurant. À la carte lets you choose dishes instead of committing to a full tasting menu.
Which to pick:
- For the full experience: dinner, with the 11-course menu.
- For a lower price: the eight-course menu at AED 350.
- For a relaxed weekend meal: lunch, if it’s running when you visit.
- For a first visit: the eight-course menu is a sensible start.
Because the lunch hours have changed recently, check the current schedule when you book.
Booking Your Manāo Visit
A few things will help you get the table you want.
Where to book. The Michelin Guide’s page offers online booking, and a restaurant guide says Manāo takes reservations through SevenRooms. You can also call +971 4 272 2389 or use the contact details on manao.ae.
How far ahead. Time Out Dubai said the restaurant was fully booked most nights when it first took off, and advised reserving well in advance. That was an older report, but with a 34-seat room and a Michelin star, it makes sense to book as early as you can, especially for Thursday, Friday and weekend slots.
Tell them what you need. If you have allergies, dietary restrictions or a spice preference, say so at booking. A tasting menu is planned in advance, and last-minute changes are harder.
Ask about valet. A listing says valet parking is available. Confirm it for your date.
Confirm the menu version and the price. The full menu and the eight-course version both exist, and prices have moved over the past year. Ask which is running on your date and what’s included.
Think about timing. Because the experience can take between one and a half and two and a half hours, plan the rest of your evening around it.
Arrive on time. Tasting menus work best when you start together with the rest of the room. I didn’t find a published late-arrival policy, so ask if you’re worried.
Opening Hours and Dining Tips
Hours are one area where sources disagree, so here’s the full picture.
| Source | Days and times |
|---|---|
| Restaurant website (older version) | Tuesday to Sunday, 7 PM to 11 PM, closed Monday |
| Michelin Guide 2026 listing | Closed Monday, dinner Tuesday to Friday 7 PM to 11 PM, lunch Saturday and Sunday 12 PM to 3 PM |
| A restaurant guide listing | Tuesday to Saturday 6:30 PM to 11 PM, Sunday 12 PM to 11 PM |
| An April 2026 article | Lunch extended to cover the full weekend |
The pattern is clear enough. The restaurant is closed on Mondays, serves dinner on most other days, and has been offering weekend lunch. But the exact times vary, so check the current schedule on manao.ae before you go.
Dress code. Smart casual, according to a restaurant guide and a Dubai restaurant directory. A Jumeirah neighbourhood setting means you don’t need anything formal, but beachwear and gym clothes aren’t a good idea.
Dining tips:
- Book early and confirm the menu and the price.
- Mention allergies, especially to shellfish.
- Try the non-alcoholic pairing, since it’s designed as part of the meal.
- Ask the staff about dishes. The chefs often present courses themselves.
- Keep Monday off your list, because the restaurant is closed.
- Check hours during Ramadan and public holidays, since schedules often change.
Halal and dietary questions. I couldn’t find a published halal statement. Manāo doesn’t serve alcohol, which will matter to some diners, but ask the restaurant directly if halal sourcing is important to you.
What Guests Often Want to Know
1. Where is Manāo Dubai?
In Wasl Vita Mall, Al Wasl Road, Jumeirah 1, Dubai.
2. Does Manāo have a Michelin star?
Yes. It’s listed with one star in the 2026 Michelin Guide Dubai. It earned its first star within five months of opening.
3. How much does the tasting menu cost?
The eight-course Chef’s Tasting Menu is AED 350 per person. The 11-course menu was AED 450 in 2025 reviews. Confirm current prices.
4. Does Manāo serve alcohol?
No. The Michelin Guide lists it as not serving alcohol. The restaurant offers a five-drink house-made non-alcoholic pairing instead.
5. How long does the meal take?
Reports range from about one and a half hours to two and a half hours.
6. What are the opening hours?
Closed Mondays. Dinner is usually Tuesday to Sunday, with weekend lunch reported. Times vary by source, so check manao.ae.
7. Is there a dress code?
Smart casual is recommended.
8. How do I book?
Through the Michelin Guide’s booking link, SevenRooms or by phone on +971 4 272 2389.
9. Is there valet parking?
A listing says yes. Confirm when you book.
10. Can I order à la carte?
The Michelin Guide says there’s an à la carte menu at lunch. Dinner is built around the tasting menus.
The Appeal of Thai Tasting
Manāo works because it doesn’t try to be something it isn’t. It’s a small restaurant in a Jumeirah mall, run by two chefs who like Thai food and wanted to cook it in their own way. That sounds simple. It’s also rare.
The practical picture is easy to summarise. You’ll find it in Wasl Vita Mall in Jumeirah 1. The eight-course menu costs AED 350, the full menu has been about AED 450, and the house-made non-alcoholic pairing is part of the appeal. Book early, because there are only about 34 seats, and check the hours since they’ve shifted.
For Dubai diners, there’s a bigger point here. A Michelin-starred meal doesn’t have to cost AED 1,000 a head, and it doesn’t have to involve alcohol. If you’ve ever wondered whether a Thai tasting menu could feel as thoughtful as any other, Manāo gives you a clear answer.
Confirm the menu and the hours, tell them what you can’t eat, and let the kitchen take it from there.
I’m passionate about food and the rich culture of the UAE. I’ve spent years exploring authentic Emirati dishes and diverse cuisines from across the region. Through Habibi Menus, I want to make it easy for everyone to discover real restaurant menus, learn about traditional flavors, and enjoy the best food the UAE has to offer. I focus on sharing clear, simple, and helpful information so everyone can understand and enjoy the local food culture. When I’m not working on the site, I love visiting new restaurants and trying different dishes with my family and friends.