Ula Dubai - a Mediterranean beachside restaurant in the Palm Jumeirah

Introducing Ula, a new beachside restaurant situated at the very end of Palm West Beach where Dukes the Palm sits. It replaces West 14th – one of the first restaurants we visited many years ago when we were fresh to the Dubai dining scene. I had seen images of Ula online and was quite excited to check it out. Went over on a school night to meet a friend for an early review with what I did think was a valid reason – “Ula sits on a prime location for sundowners – you have to capture it during sunset.”

Was I right or wrong? Read on.

Where exactly is Ula?

Get off at Dukes the Palm, and walk towards the beachside. Don’t worry, there are signs everywhere. If you are super lazy you could attempt to get a buggy. Alternatively, if you are already strolling along the Palm West Beach boardwalk, walk towards the very end of the trunk and you will see Ula.

How’s the place like?

A large part of the lounge is still under construction but the main outdoor terrace is complete.

The interior design is based on earthy colour tones – soft beige ropes as canopies draped over bare wooden beams and columns. You’ll see bird cages and what feels like upside down bird nests for light fittings. It’s all very…. mediterranean. Reminded me a little of Twiggy….

The main feature which you will see appear more and more on socials is the central tree sitting in the middle of the bar itself. It’s open to sky at this point – an interesting design – which I am sure they have thought it through as to how to deal with that 5 days of rain we get in Dubai a year.

Let’s talk about the food in Ula.

Ula is currently in its soft opening phase and offers an ‘Ula Experience Menu’ for a really good price of 500 AED for 2 – including 2 drinks (yes, cocktails too!).

Have a look at Ula’s menus here.

It’s a set menu where starters are all brought to the table. We initially thought we had to choose an item of the 5 – and was quite pleased to hear that it was all for us to feast on. Served to the table altogether – delicious grilled halloumiwith lemon oil, crispy calamari with saffron aioli, a very beautifully presented heirloom tomato salad (can I request that all salads in Dubai have flowers added to them?) and of course – their bread served with tzatziki and ‘melitzanosalata’ which is aubergine, pepper and herbs.

My dining companion and I were more or less full by the end of the starters. Shouldn’t have eaten all that bread 😉

For mains, we had the truffle pizza, whole wheat fusilli and souvlaki to share. The greek spiced chicken was a tad too salty for both our likings but tasty nonetheless. Same with the truffle pizza – this was served with burrata, mixed mushroom (a lot of it) and fresh truffle. Maybe it’s a mediterranean thing – the level of sodium? We ended up taking home the whole wheat fusilli , which I happily had for lunch the next day (together with the kids, which I did not bring to Ula… ). They loved it,.

To highlight here that 2 out of the 3 options for ‘Second Course’ is vegetarian – which is a plus for all the vegetarians out there 😉

Are kids allowed at Ula?

On the website, it has mentioned that kids under 16 are allowed accompanied by their parents, though they will have to leave by 8pm. Fair call.

They should a) be in bed by then and b) keep the venue quiet and romantic for those coming out for a date night 😉

Did you say there is a pool right next to it?

Currently^Nov2021 their day pass is :

100 AED weekdays, 50AED redeemable in F&B.
200 AED weekends, 100AED redeemable in F&B.

Oh and guess what? Kids under 12 go for free!

Overall thoughts.

New to the Palm, I can see Ula being a hotspot for the residents and those who love their Mediterranean food. Let’s not forget those who love taking shots for the gram as it is definitely a beautiful beach bar, particularly at sunset.

Check it out soon, as the Ula Experience Menu is definitely a really good deal – you will likely bring home some to have the next day 😉

I hear they do breakfast in the weekends as well?