It’s a wrap: The 2019 JLT Restaurant Awards -#JLTdiningAwards2019

The third JLT Restaurant Awards are over and we would like to thank all our partners, sponsors, and participating restaurants for helping us to put on another incredibly successful event!

More than twice as many people voted in the #JLTdiningAwards2019 compared to 2018 and we recorded a grand total of 16,831 votes across the 18 publicly voted categories in the 2019 Awards.

The underlying mission remained the same: The Awards aimed to showcase the variety and quality of the eateries in this Dubai neighbourhood – nowhere else can you find this many different restaurants in one area – and wanted to recognise the passion, sweat, and efforts put in by the many independent restaurants in JLT.

We were also curious to see which restaurants are most popular in 2019 among JLTians – residents, office workers, and visitors in JLT, the DMCC regulated free zone in the heart of new Dubai.

2019 JLT Restaurant Awards facts:

• There were 18 publicly voted categories in the 2019 JLT Restaurant Awards. JLT-based restaurants, bars, and cafes nominated themselves for one or several categories during August and September 2019. Public online voting took place from 1st – 31st October 2019. In total, we received 70 nominations, which attracted 16,831 public online votes.  Online voting was supervised by our legal partner, Charles Russell Speechlys.
• The 2019 Awards featured two new publicly voted categories: “Best Shisha” and “Best Burger”.
• Just like in 2018, the 2019 Awards also had a “Hidden Gem in JLT” category, which gave JLT residents, office dwellers, visitors, and Dubai foodies the chance to suggest their favourite hidden gems in JLT during August and September. The five most mentioned restaurants were then put into the online voting for the “Best Hidden Gem” category. Click here to find out more about the 2019 #HiddenGemInJLT campaign.
• There were also three additional categories, which were awarded by our expert panel of judges: “Best Sustainability Initiative”, “Best Newcomer”, and “Best Overall”. You can find out more about our panel of judges on our blog.
• In 2019, we continued the tradition of “Founder’s Awards”, which we started in 2018. The 2019 Awards featured three “Founder’s Awards” - special awards given out during the awards gala by JLT Dining founder and CEO of sps:affinity – Strategic Partnership Solutions Martin Kubler.
• Following the close of online voting, we announced the top three restaurants in each category on our blog. Our expert judges then scrutinized all shortlisted restaurants to determine the winners and runners-up.
• The third JLT Restaurant Awards were open to all restaurants, cafes, and bars located in JLT, with the exception of international fast food franchises. We don’t like plastic food.
• Restaurants do not pay to enter the JLT Dining Awards and the results are purely based on online voting and the expert advice of our independent judges. The voting and judging process is audited by our legal partner, Charles Russell Speechlys. Judges, JLT Dining, and Strategic Partnership Solutions employees are forbidden from accepting “freebies” or other monetary or non-monetary rewards that could influence their decisions.
  
  
  
  Judges Awarded Categories
  
  

Best Overall	Best Newcomer (Sponsored by Repeat)
Winner: Bait Maryam	Winner: Pickl.
Runner-Up: Manzoni Bistro & Bar	Runner-Up: The Gbemi’s Kitchen
Best Sustainability Initiative (Sponsored by Liquid of Life)
Winner: Pullman Dubai Jumeirah Lakes Towers Runner-Up: Little Bangkok

Publicly Voted Categories

Best Streetfood	Best Shisha	Best Healthy (Sponsored by Fruitful Day)
Winner: Streetery Foodhall by ZEN	Winner: Own Café	Winner: Little Erth by Nabz&G
Runner-Up: Ananda Bhavan Restaurant	Runner-Up: Healey’s Bar & Terrace	Runner-Up: HAYZ – Healthy & Yummy Zone

Best Middle Eastern	Best European (Unlicensed)	Best South Asian
Winner: Bait Maryam	Winner: Somun by Rolling Pin	Winner: Little Lahore
Runner-Up: Snunu Restaurant	Runner-Up: Greek & Delicious	Runner-Up: Truck Adda Restaurant

Best European (Licensed)	Best Service (Sponsored by Monviso)	Best Brunch (Sponsored by Let's DXB / Mr & Mrs Brunch)
Winner: Mythos Kouzina & Grill	Winner: The Cavendish Restaurant	Winner: McGettigan’s JLT
Runner-Up: Couqley French Bistro	Runner-Up: Café Confetti	Runner-Up: [u]bk – Urban Bar & Kitchen

Best South-East Asian	Best Pizza	Best Chinese
Winner: Streetery Foodhall by ZEN	Winner: Cibo Italiano	Winner: Streetery Foodhall by ZEN
Runner-Up: Little Bangkok	Runner-Up: Jamie Oliver’s Pizzeria	Runner-Up: Asian Wok

Best Cafe (Sponsored by iiko)	Best Bar	Best Indian
Winner: La Cantina Café & Restaurant	Winner: [u]bk – Urban Bar & Kitchen	Winner: Kulcha King JLT
Runner-Up: Own Cafe	Runner-Up: Healey’s Bar & Terrace	Runner-Up: Ananda Bhavan Restaurant

Best Burger	Best Sweet Tooth	Best Hidden Gem (Sponsored by Charles Russell Speechlys LLP)
Winner: [u]bk – Urban Bar & Kitchen	Winner: The Cake Lab	Winner: Beirut Bites
Runner-Up: McGettigan’s JLT	Runner-Up: Il Donaccino	Runner-Up: The Leisure Deck

Bait Maryam, Ziad Kamel (Couqley French Bistro), and Own Cafe

We also like to thank our expert judges: Peggy Li, Arch. Annamaria Lambri , Giacomo Puntel, and Scott Gregory.

Last but not least, a big thank you to the team at the Pullman Dubai Jumeirah Lakes Towers, the gracious hosts of the awards ceremony! here.

Planning for the JLT Restaurant Awards 2020 has already started and you can find out more about the 2020 edition of the Awards here.

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