8 Dessert Cafes in Dubai Actually Worth the Calories

Dubai has more dessert cafes than any one stomach can handle, and most of them are not worth the trip. Gold leaf on a cheesecake does not make it good, and half the best dessert places in Dubai round-ups online are just recycled press releases. So here are eight dessert cafes in Dubai that earn their calories, not just their hashtags, with verified prices, hours and locations so you're not wasting a taxi ride on a place that's closed.

1. Brix Café

Brix sits inside Jumeirah Fishing Harbour, right next to 3Fils is one of the best dessert place in Dubai and it is run by pastry chef Carmen Rueda, a two-time World Chocolate Masters runner-up. This is not a place for a quick cupcake. The café side serves an all-day menu of croissants and a genuinely excellent Basque cheesecake, while next door, Brix Journey runs a dessert-only tasting menu four courses, non-alcoholic pairings, under an hour, and every course tells a story instead of just tasting sweet. If you only have room in your day for one "proper" dessert experience in Dubai, make it this one.

Location: Shop 1, Jumeirah Fishing Harbour, Al Urouba St, Jumeirah 2
Hours: 7am – 11:30pm
Price: AED 95 for two
Must Order: Basque cheesecake

2. Scoopi Café

The Scoopi reputation was formed thanks to the Black Diamond ice cream sundae, which contains Madagascar vanilla bean, Iranian saffron, Italian black truffle and 23-carat gold shavings, in a Versace bowl that is yours to keep after finishing it off. It will cost you almost AED 3,000 which sounds insane but precisely what the place is about. If you care about getting value for money, this dish might be not for you. Otherwise, enjoy this one-of-a-kind Dubai experience. If you would like to save some money, the standard menu is reasonable enough.

Location: Jumeirah Beach Road, Jumeirah 3
Hours: Sat–Wed 1:30pm–12:30am, Thu 1:30pm–2am, Fri 2pm–2am
Price: AED 40–50 per person
Must Order: Black Diamond, Mocha espresso waffle cone

3. Bageri Form

Tucked into Building 4 of Dubai Design District, Bageri Form runs an open kitchen so you watch the buns come out of the oven while you order. The cardamom bun, which is a Scandinavian classic reworked with Arabian cardamom, is the reason people make the trip out to d3, and it's not close. Pair it with their cold V60, sit outside, and you'll understand why design district regulars treat this as a second office.

Location: Building 4, Dubai Design District (d3)
Hour: 7am–7pm
Price: Pastries typically AED 15–25 each
Must Order: cardamom bun

4. Amorino

Amorino is French-Italian rather than Emirati, but it’s here due to the fact that it performs basic things in a perfect way: 22 flavours imported from Italy, absence of colouring, and organic eggs and farm milk. The special touch is made by a rose-shaped cone, when gelato is laid with the help of spatula making it look like a flower. It’s photographed even better than it tastes, which is uncommon for the city.

Location: Souk Madinat Jumeirah, ground floor, Al Sufouh
Hour: 10am–11pm
Price: AED 25–35
Must Order: pistachio and stracciatella in a rose cone

5. Saya Café

Saya, also known as Saya Brasserie, is the pink-and-floral cafe that shows up on every Dubai Instagram feed, and it has five branches now for a reason: the desserts hold up next to the decor. The honey cake and the smetannik (Russian sour cream layer cake) are the standouts, though reviews are split on the latter if you're not used to the tang. Go for the aesthetic, stay because the cake is actually decent.

Location: City Walk
Hours: 9am–1am
Price: AED 100 per person
Must Order: Honey cake, Rose gold lemonade

6. Brunch & Cake

Brunch & Cake is primarily a brunch establishment, but it’s the on-site bakery that brings customers back and allows you to pre-order a whole birthday cake for AED 250. The brightly lit rooms filled with plants are packed on the weekends, so weekdays are when you’ll actually be able to get a seat.

Location: Pavilion, Jumeirah Islands
Hours: 8am–11pm
Price: AED 60–95
Must Order: A slice from whatever's in the bakery case that day

7. Hummingbird Bakery

Hummingbird started in London in 2004 and has been serving its signature American-style bakes in Dubai for years now, with branches across the city including City Walk. Red velvet is what put them on the map, and it's still the move - dense, properly frosted, none of the artificial-tasting buttercream you get at knockoff cupcake stands. Reviews on the whole-cake orders are more mixed than the cupcakes, so stick to the classics if you're buying for a crowd.

Location: City Walk, Al Wasl
Hours: 10am–11pm
Price: AED 40
Must Order: Red velvet cupcake

8. Kulfilicious

Kulfilicious in Karama does the same gold-dusted dessert trend as the five-star hotels, except its Gold Malai Kulfi runs around AED 120 for two - a fraction of what you'd pay at a mall restaurant for the same idea. This is dense, milk-forward Indian kulfi done properly, and it's the best argument in this whole list for the idea that price and quality in Dubai's dessert scene don't always move together.

Location: Karama, Dubai
Hours: 1pm-12am
Price: AED 120 for two
Must Order: Gold Malai Kulfi

Skip the places built only for a photo and go where the dessert holds up once the picture's taken. Brix for a real occasion, Bageri Form and Kulfilicious for the best value in the city, Scoopi if you want a one-time Dubai story to tell.