Healthy Eating in Abu Dhabi: Mina Fish, Dates, Mezze and the New Healthy-Menu Rule

What does Abu Dhabi eat, and where does it shop?

Abu Dhabi’s food starts at the port. The Mina Zayed market, which its vendors describe as one of the oldest in the Gulf, began with four shops given free by the municipality under Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan, Gulf News reported in September 2026. Date sellers there have traded for 30 years or more, and chefs from Saadiyat’s restaurants still buy produce from the stalls.

Next door is the fish market that opened in July 2022. Gulf News counted 104 fresh fish stalls, eight dry fish stalls and 44 cleaning stations, plus eight restaurants that grill whatever you have just bought. At opening it ran from 7 AM to 9 PM on weekdays and to 10 PM at weekends.

Around that sits the food of everyone who lives here: Emirati rice and fish, Lebanese and Syrian grills in Al Khalidiyah and on the Corniche, Kerala and Pakistani cafeterias in Al Zahiyah and Mussafah, Filipino kitchens in the older downtown blocks, and delivery to every tower on Reem and Al Raha. You can eat well from any of them if you know where the calories sit.

What changed on Abu Dhabi menus in 2026?

Abu Dhabi now requires tourism-licensed restaurants and cafés to offer healthy dishes on every adult menu. The rule, based on the SEHHI nutrition standards of the Abu Dhabi Public Health Centre, took effect on 1 July 2026, and full enforcement began on 1 October 2026 after a three-month grace period, Aletihad reported in August 2026.

• Adult menus must include at least one healthy option in every category: starters, mains, desserts and so on.
• Children’s menus must have at least 50% of listed items that qualify as healthy.
• Calories on menus are the longer-running goal. In 2022 the Public Health Centre trained staff at 600 food outlets registered with the Department of Culture and Tourism to display calories and macronutrients, Gulf News reported.

Does seeing the number help? A study of 5,002 UAE residents, reported by Khaleej Times in July 2026, found that diners in Abu Dhabi ordered an average of 114 fewer calories per meal when menus showed calorie counts, and 94% supported calorie labelling. So when a Yas Bay or Saadiyat menu shows a SEHHI dish, start there.

How much protein is in fish from the Mina market?

Fish from the Mina market gives you more protein for fewer calories than any other dinner in Abu Dhabi. USDA’s cooked grouper, the hammour on every Gulf menu, has 118 kcal, 24.8 g protein and 1.3 g fat per 100 g. Kingfish, or kanaad, is a Spanish mackerel; USDA’s cooked Spanish mackerel has 158 kcal and 23.6 g protein. USDA has no entries for safi or shaari, so treat them like any lean white fish.

The cooking method matters more than the fish. The same 150 g of prawns is 148 kcal grilled and 363 kcal breaded and fried (USDA FDC 175180 and 171970). When you buy at Mina and hand your fish to one of the market’s grill restaurants, ask for it grilled with lemon and spices rather than fried, and take the rice plain.

How many dates can you eat if you want to lose fat?

Dates are dense: USDA lists Deglet Noor dates at 282 kcal and Medjool at 277 kcal per 100 g, almost all of it sugar. A 30 g handful is about 85 kcal. That is a fine pre-workout snack, and three or four with gahwa, the unsweetened Arabic coffee at about 1 kcal per 100 ml (USDA FDC 2710375), is the Emirati welcome in every majlis.

The trouble is the bowl that sits on the table all afternoon. A 100 g serving of dates from a Mina stall is 282 kcal and only 2.5 g of protein. If fat loss is the goal, put a portion on a saucer, eat it with coffee, and put the box away.

• Before training: two or three dates 30–60 minutes before a session give you quick energy without a heavy stomach.
• After training: pair dates with protein, such as Greek yogurt or laban, rather than eating them alone.
• At iftar: the u.ae government portal advises breaking the fast with dates, then eating freshly prepared food slowly.

What’s in a Lebanese grill and mezze night in Abu Dhabi?

A Lebanese grill night in Abu Dhabi can be lean or heavy depending on three choices: chicken or lamb, how much bread, and whether the fries arrive. USDA’s chicken shish kebab with vegetables is 104 kcal and 13.0 g protein per 100 g; the lamb version is 162 kcal and 12.0 g. A skinless grilled chicken breast, like the shish tawook skewers without the garlic sauce, is 151 kcal and 30.5 g protein.

A 150 g side of fries is 434 kcal, more than a 300 g plate of chicken kebab at 312 kcal. Vine leaves look light but are 168 kcal per 100 g, mostly from the oil. Mutabbal is 183 kcal per 100 g, so a 60 g scoop on your bread is about 110 kcal. Fill the table with salad, grilled meat and one round of bread per person, and order the fries only if someone really wants them.

Luqaimat, lentil soup and the Ramadan table

Luqaimat, the fried dough balls soaked in date syrup that appear at every Abu Dhabi iftar and wedding, are the richest thing on the table. USDA has no luqaimat entry; its doughnut holes, the nearest fried-dough match, are 426 kcal and 22.9 g fat per 100 g before any syrup. A 50 g plate is about 213 kcal.

Lentil soup, shorbat adas, is the opposite. USDA’s lentil soup (FDC 2707462) is 60 kcal and 3.8 g protein per 100 g, so a 300 g bowl at iftar is about 180 kcal with 11.5 g of protein. It fills you up and puts water back in after a long day without food.

In practice that means a lighter session in the hour before iftar, a fuller one after suhoor if you train early, and protein at both meals. Our session window runs from 4:30 AM to 6:30 PM UAE time, so both fit, and you can move sessions with 24 hours’ notice as the month’s rhythm changes.

Can you eat at a Mussafah or Al Zahiyah cafeteria and still lose fat?

Yes, if you order the curry and rice and skip the fried sides. USDA’s chicken curry (FDC 2706437) is 107 kcal and 6.5 g protein per 100 g, and its fish curry is 93 kcal and 4.9 g. A 300 g bowl of fish curry with 250 g of plain rice comes to about 600 kcal with 21.5 g protein. That is a solid lunch, but light on protein, so add an egg or a portion of grilled chicken.

• Ask for the rice plain. On USDA’s numbers, rice cooked with oil adds about 56 kcal to a 250 g plate.
• Choose fish or chicken curry over mutton when you want the lighter plate.
• Count fried snacks as a meal, not a side: 150 g of breaded fried prawns is 363 kcal on its own.

A fat-loss day of Abu Dhabi food, about 1,400 kcal

This day uses food you can buy anywhere in Abu Dhabi and lands at about 1,400 kcal with 134 g of protein. Treat it as a template, not a prescription: add a second Arabic bread or 100 g more rice if your coach sets a higher target.

A muscle-gain day of Abu Dhabi food, about 2,600 kcal

1. 1

   Breakfast: about 487 kcal, 33 g protein

   250 g Greek yogurt with 60 g of dates and one 60 g Arabic bread. Have it an hour before a 6 AM session in your building gym.

2. 2

   Lunch: about 769 kcal, 55 g protein

   A 200 g grilled kingfish steak with 300 g of rice cooked the usual way, with oil. The Mina grill restaurants or any Emirati kitchen will do it.

3. 3

   Snack: about 314 kcal, 42 g protein

   150 g of grilled prawns in an Arabic bread wrap, with pickles and no garlic sauce.

4. 4

   Dinner: about 771 kcal, 72 g protein

   200 g of grilled chicken breast, 250 g of plain rice and 80 g of mutabbal, ordered from a Lebanese grill on the Corniche or delivered to Reem.

5. 5

   Late: about 265 kcal, 12 g protein

   A 300 g bowl of lentil soup and 30 g of dates. Day total: about 2,600 kcal and 213 g of protein.

For prices, see what a personal trainer costs in Abu Dhabi. For the Corniche, TrainYAS and the marathon, see how to stay fit in Abu Dhabi. Our Abu Dhabi coaching page has session times and booking, and the UAE page covers every emirate.