Budget
Anand Vegetarian Restaurant
This is a pure veg Gujarati North Indian style restaurant. The demand for Puri Bhaji a deep fried bread and Potato and Chick Pea veg dish is so great that you will have to wait your turn but it's worth it. There is a special part for ladies and families. Friday lunch with sweets and as much Puri as you want for only at Dhs 12. Sometimes you will have to wait for 10 mins to get a roti.
Nalas Aappakadai Restaurant
Speciality for Aappam & Excellent South Indian food from the Chettinad cuisine, Chinese & Tandoor
Cettinad Restaurant
Authentic Chettinad food available at reasonable price. Also serving North Indian,Chinese,Tandoor and Mughalai food. Both vegetarian and non vegetarian foods are available. Cettinad Restaurant branch is next to the taxi station flyover traffic light, on the back isde of Brightway advertisement building, +971 24454331, +971 2 4454332
Arabian Palace
The decor is basic and the food, while cheap and filling, is forgettable, but the shisha here is excellent. Puff up a pipe, order their excellent "lemon with mint" drink and gaze at the skyscrapers.
Some of the cheapest but not necessarily good food in the city can be found at its many Indian restaurants. Portions are almost always generous, prices low, and quality excellent. Set meals of rice, fish curry, lentil curry dhal, peppery soup rasam, a vegetable side dish and perhaps a small fried fish, served on a large steel tray thali with little steel bowls for the accompaniments, can go for as low as Dhs.5.
Top end
Prego's
At the beach rotana hotel is a very good italian restaurant with a good wine selection, and an artichoke dip appetizer to die for
Rodeo Grill
At the beach rotana hotel is an excellent steak house that is a bit pricey.
Benihana
At the beach rotana hotel is the world famous teppan-yaki chain
Zen
The more widely known and older Japanese restaurant, serving traditional Japanese foods and drinks. The fine dining experience is accompanied with a great decor.
Although Abu Dhabi hosts to a wide range of palates and ethnicities, there isn't much variety when it comes to cuisine. Indian food is relatively cheap, and there are a few Chinese chain restaurants with reasonable prices. Hotel restaurants are usually the most expensive. The city is home to all manner of fast food like McDonald's and Hardees, but there is little call for most people to eat at those places.
The fun thing about Abu Dhabi is that everywhere, literally from tiny falafel shacks to the cushy hotel restaurants to Burger King, delivers to anywhere in the city. Delivery is quick and reliable, and usually doesn't cost extra.
Vegetarians will find the city's selection of meals very satisfying. Vegetable and bean-heavy native dishes, the array of splendid pure vegetarian Indian cuisine, and the ready availability of fresh salads make eating in Abu Dhabi a stress-free experience. Strict vegans may have a little difficulty communicating their precise demands, but most places offer vegan dishes and are always willing to accommodate a paying customer. The best choice for pure Vegans would be one of the many Indian veg restaurants like Evergreen, Sangeetha in Tourist Club area.
Visitors should always check the Islamic calendar to determine whether they will be visiting during the month of Ramadan. Since Muslims fast during daylight hours, restaurants are, by law, closed during the day. It is also against the law to eat or drink anything, even water, in public and tourists and non-Muslim residents have been arrested and given fines. Large hotels generally have one restaurant open during the day to serve meals to non-Muslims. During the evening, however, it's quite a different story, as the festive atmosphere of iftar breaking the fast begins and residents gather for lavish, Thanksgiving-like meals. As long as you don't mind tiding yourself over in private, the evening meals are magnificent.