The Best Filipino Restaurants in Abu Dhabi
Abu Dhabi has one of the largest Filipino communities in the Gulf, and the food follows: silog breakfasts from eight in the morning, turo-turo counters where you point at what you want, Cajun seafood boils eaten with your hands, and lechon on the weekends. Six places, mostly around Hamdan Street and Khalifa City.
Checked August 2026. Ratings and hours drift. Each entry links to Google Maps for live figures.
Illustrative image, not the venue. Photo: Nothing Ahead / Pexels
How we rate Filipino restaurants
Every place is scored out of 100 on five things, so the order is repeatable rather than a matter of taste.
Google rating
Public rating, with 3.5 treated as the floor.
Review volume
A 4.7 from 140 people is weaker than a 4.8 from 7,000.
Filipino specialist
A Filipino kitchen outranks an Asian menu with adobo on it.
Community word
Local forums and independent write-ups, which surface neighbourhood places.
Price
This is value food, and portion per dirham counts.
No restaurant pays for placement and none is a GulfOnline advertiser. Figures were read in August 2026 and will drift.
GulfOnline Recommends
Six picks for six different reasons, chosen on the criteria above and not for payment.
Dampa Seafood Grill
A 4.8 across 7,192 reviews, by far the largest base in the category. Seafood boiled in Cajun sauce and tipped onto the table, eaten by hand. Regulars have followed it since 2017 and say the sauce has not changed.
Lapaz Batchoy
Named for the Ilonggo noodle soup and doing the full range around it: palabok, daing silog, crispy kare-kare and BBQ ribs. Open from eight in the morning to two at night.
Pusong Pinoy
A Filipino seafood restaurant out by Etihad Plaza with platters for two that reviewers rate against far pricier rooms. Laing and chicken are the other orders, and taho to finish.
Sarap ng Kusina
One of the oldest Filipino rooms in the city, behind Grand Outlet. Chicken adobo, calamares and pancit guisado done the way people remember. Regulars note portions have shrunk as prices rose.
Marco Daniel
A 4.8 across 560 reviews, and the steak with mashed potato gets singled out repeatedly, which is unusual for this category. Crispy chicken skin, sinigang and inasal sisig alongside.
Casa Sindangan
The only place here that never closes, with OPM playing and prices that suit eating there often. Reviews split sharply on seasoning, so order sisig and lumpia rather than exploring.
The 6 best Filipino restaurants in Abu Dhabi, ranked
Ordered by score. Ratings and review counts are what Google showed in August 2026.
1. Dampa Seafood Grill
The biggest review base of any Filipino restaurant in the emirate by a distance, and the Cajun sauce is the reason. Seafood arrives boiled, sauced and tipped straight onto the covered table, and you eat it with your hands. Shrimp, mussels, corn, crab, grilled fish and garlic wings. Expect a queue at weekends and expect to get messy.
- Fatma Bint Mubarak Street, Al Danah
- Noon to 11.30pm daily
- Cajun seafood boil, crab and shrimp, grilled fish
- Best for groups, expect a wait
Illustrative image, not the venue. Photo: Mike C / Pexels
2. Lapaz Batchoy
Named after the Ilonggo noodle soup and the most complete Filipino menu on this list. Palabok, daing silog, BBQ wing lauriat, beef sisig, crispy kare-kare with shrimp paste, and BBQ ribs that reviewers describe as falling apart. Open from eight in the morning to two at night, so it works for breakfast and for after a late shift.
- Al Falah Street, Al Danah
- 8am to 2am daily
- Batchoy, palabok, crispy kare-kare, BBQ ribs
- Generous portions, fair prices
Illustrative image, not the venue. Photo: FOX .. / Pexels
3. Marco Daniel Restaurant and Cafe
The one people go to when they want Filipino comfort food and something a bit more restaurant-like. The steak with mashed potato and salad gets named again and again, which is not the usual story here. Crispy chicken skin, sinigang with a proper sour kick, inasal sisig and a thick lomi. Iced coffee latte is better than it needs to be.
- Al Khalidiyah, W9
- Check locally, hours vary
- Steak, chicken skin, sinigang, lomi
- Sago drinks by the pitcher
Illustrative image, not the venue. Photo: Nothing Ahead / Pexels
4. Pusong Pinoy Seafood
Out by Etihad Plaza and largely unknown outside Khalifa City, which is what makes it worth the drive. Seafood platters for two in rich sauces, laing, a best-selling chicken dish, and taho to finish. Portions are generous for the price. The one recurring complaint is flies in the room, which they counter with table fans.
- Al Mireef Street, next to Etihad Plaza, Khalifa City
- 10am to 10.30pm, later at weekends
- Seafood platter for two, laing, taho
- Reviewers mention flies indoors
Illustrative image, not the venue. Photo: Gu Ko / Pexels
5. Sarap ng Kusina
One of the oldest Filipino restaurants in Abu Dhabi and a lunchtime fixture for people working around Hamdan. Chicken adobo with tender meat and a properly marinated sauce, calamares with the batter still crisp, pancit guisado that is neither salty nor oily, and bitter gourd with egg. Regulars note that portions have shrunk as prices have risen, which is worth knowing before you order takeaway.
- Behind Grand Outlet, Hamdan Street
- 9am to 11pm daily
- Chicken adobo, calamares, pancit guisado
- Portions have shrunk, say regulars
Illustrative image, not the venue. Photo: Jeswin Thomas / Pexels
6. Casa Sindangan
Open twenty-four hours, which nothing else here manages, with OPM playing and a room people describe as clean and calm. Chicken sisig and lumpia are the safe orders and the pricing is genuinely low. Reviews divide sharply on seasoning, with several describing dishes as bland, so stick to what is recommended rather than exploring the menu.
- Hamdan Bin Mohammed Street, Al Danah
- Open 24 hours
- Cheapest on this list
- Seasoning divides opinion
Illustrative image, not the venue. Photo: Christian Moises Pahati / Pexels
What to order, and what it means
Silog. Any breakfast built on garlic fried rice and a fried egg, named for what comes with it: tapsilog is cured beef, longsilog sausage, daing silog dried fish. Served from early morning and eaten at any hour.
Turo-turo. Literally point-point. Cooked dishes sit behind glass and you choose by pointing. Fast, cheap, and the most common format in the city.
Sisig. Chopped pork or chicken served sizzling on a hot plate, usually with egg and calamansi. The dish most first-timers are handed.
Kare-kare. Oxtail or seafood in a peanut sauce, eaten with bagoong shrimp paste on the side. The paste is not optional; the dish is deliberately mild without it.
Palabok and pancit. Noodle dishes, the first with a thick orange shrimp sauce, the second stir-fried and closer to a chow mein.
Halo-halo. Shaved ice with ube, beans, jelly and leche flan, mixed together before eating. Halo-halo means mix-mix.
Hamdan Street and Al Danah hold most of these within walking distance. Khalifa City and Mussafah serve the communities living out there.
Illustrative image, not the venue. Photo: makafood / Pexels
Common questions
What is the best Filipino restaurant in Abu Dhabi?
Dampa Seafood Grill scores highest on our criteria, with a 4.8 across 7,192 reviews, by far the largest base in the category. Lapaz Batchoy on Al Falah Street is the pick for a full Filipino menu.
Where can I get a Filipino breakfast in Abu Dhabi?
Lapaz Batchoy serves silog breakfasts from eight in the morning, Sarap ng Kusina from nine, and Casa Sindangan is open twenty-four hours.
What is a seafood boil and where can I get one?
Seafood cooked in Cajun sauce and tipped straight onto the table, eaten by hand. Dampa Seafood Grill on Fatma Bint Mubarak Street is the place, and it is best with a group.
Where is the Filipino area in Abu Dhabi?
Hamdan Street and Al Danah hold the highest concentration of Filipino restaurants and shops, with Al Zahiyah nearby. Khalifa City and Mussafah serve the communities living further out.
Which Filipino restaurant is open late in Abu Dhabi?
Casa Sindangan on Hamdan Bin Mohammed Street is open twenty-four hours, and Lapaz Batchoy runs until two in the morning.
Is Filipino food expensive in Abu Dhabi?
No, it is among the better value eating in the city. Sarap ng Kusina and Casa Sindangan are the cheapest, and even the seafood platters at Dampa and Pusong Pinoy are priced for sharing.
Try another cuisine
Other cuisines in Abu Dhabi, ranked and scored the same way.