The Best Middle Eastern Food in Qatar
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The best Middle Eastern food in Qatar, according to the experts: the Michelin Guide and The 50 have both weighed in, and their honors are what rank this list. Fenyal comes out on top, and the good stuff runs deepest in Doha.
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Jiwan and Em Sherif Café hold the next two places. The Michelin Guide shows up on more of this list than any other guide, with The 50 next.
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Rank 1. Fenyal
Middle Eastern
The bread oven announces Fenyal before you open the door, which is about the most honest form of advertising there is. This casual all-day café on Gewan Island runs from breakfast through dinner, serving traditional Qatari staples at prices that keep locals coming back without thinking twice. Falafel, lamb kofta, fresh juices, and qahwa poured from a dallah fill the menu, with a saffron baked custard to finish. It holds a Michelin Bib Gourmand.
The awards
- Michelin Guide Michelin Guide: Bib Gourmand
- Michelin Guide Bib Gourmand
A Tie
Two places have the exact same Score, so they share #1. We don't pick a winner we can't back up.
- #1 Fenyal (this place) 74.256
- #1 Jiwan 74.256
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Rank 1. Jiwan
Modern Middle Eastern
A restaurant on the fourth floor of the National Museum of Qatar, inside a building shaped like a desert rose, with a terrace that looks out over the Corniche and the port. The kitchen takes traditional Middle Eastern cooking and quietly modernizes it, leaning on slow-cooked lamb and date-forward combinations built for sharing. A Michelin Bib Gourmand for a place with that view feels like a minor miracle of pricing.
The awards
- Michelin Guide Michelin Guide: Bib Gourmand
- Michelin Guide Bib Gourmand
A Tie
Two places have the exact same Score, so they share #1. We don't pick a winner we can't back up.
- #1 Fenyal 74.256
- #1 Jiwan (this place) 74.256
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Rank 3. Em Sherif Café
Lebanese
The all-day kitchen at this Lebanese café runs on family recipes pulled into something sharper, mezze plates arriving steadily from mid-morning onward. Em Sherif has built a following across the Middle East on that formula, and the Doha outpost fits the pattern: stuffed grape leaves, warm chickpeas, sausages with pomegranate molasses, all against décor that photographs well without trying too hard.
The awards
- The 50 The 50: The 50 Discovery
- The 50 The 50 Discovery
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Rank 4. Desert Rose Café
Middle Eastern
The awards
- Michelin Guide Michelin Guide: Selected Restaurant
- Michelin Guide Selected Restaurant
A Tie
Four places have the exact same Score, so they share #4. We don't pick a winner we can't back up.
- #4 Desert Rose Café (this place) 68.544
- #4 Em Sherif 68.544
- #4 Loris 68.544
- #4 SAWA by Sanad 68.544
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Rank 4. Em Sherif
Lebanese
The covered terrace looks out over Lusail's skyline, which is reason enough to book ahead. Em Sherif is a Lebanese restaurant that has spread across the region, and the Doha outpost leans into the full experience: plush interiors, generous spreads, and a menu built entirely around sharing. Puffy bread, muttabbal, stewed fassoulia, the works. Come with a group or prepare to order too much, which, honestly, is the point.
The awards
- Michelin Guide Michelin Guide: Selected Restaurant
- Michelin Guide Selected Restaurant
A Tie
Four places have the exact same Score, so they share #4. We don't pick a winner we can't back up.
- #4 Desert Rose Café 68.544
- #4 Em Sherif (this place) 68.544
- #4 Loris 68.544
- #4 SAWA by Sanad 68.544
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Rank 4. Loris
Lebanese
The Pearl waterfront sets the scene, but inside Loris it's all Lebanon, from the plush décor to the sharing plates that anchor the menu. It's a Lebanese restaurant in the traditional mold: hummus, kebabs, and the kind of food that tastes like someone's grandmother is back there somewhere. The aish el saraya is the dessert to finish on. Step outside after and the harbor walkway does the rest.
The awards
- Michelin Guide Michelin Guide: Selected Restaurant
- Michelin Guide Selected Restaurant
A Tie
Four places have the exact same Score, so they share #4. We don't pick a winner we can't back up.
- #4 Desert Rose Café 68.544
- #4 Em Sherif 68.544
- #4 Loris (this place) 68.544
- #4 SAWA by Sanad 68.544
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Rank 4. SAWA by Sanad
Contemporary Lebanese
The awards
- Michelin Guide Michelin Guide: Selected Restaurant
- Michelin Guide Selected Restaurant
A Tie
Four places have the exact same Score, so they share #4. We don't pick a winner we can't back up.
- #4 Desert Rose Café 68.544
- #4 Em Sherif 68.544
- #4 Loris 68.544
- #4 SAWA by Sanad (this place) 68.544