Head-to-Head · Dubai
Fi'lia Dubai vs CLAP
Two Dubai rooftops, two different nights. Book Fi'lia for Sara Aqel's honest female-led Italian; book CLAP for Keizo Seki's DIFC Japanese theatre.
The Verdict
Fi'lia is the quieter, smarter dinner. On the 70th floor of SLS Dubai in Business Bay, chef Sara Aqel runs the region's first female-led Italian kitchen, with a menu split across grandmother, mother and daughter cooking. The carbonara is built the honest way, with guanciale, egg yolk and Pecorino and no cream, and the firewood Margherita with Fior di Latte belongs in the UAE's best-pizza conversation. It scores 8.9 for food and 9.2 for the room, and it carries a Michelin Guide listing after two Bib Gourmand years.
CLAP is the spectacle. On the Gate Village 11 rooftop in DIFC, chef Keizo Seki, formerly of Nobu Tokyo and Hakkasan, runs a 1,000-square-metre Japanese room of raw concrete, suspended lanterns and a central robata grill. The sushi counter, the A5 Miyazaki wagyu striploin and the yellowtail serrano are the dishes to order, and a resident DJ turns the back of the room into a scene after 10pm. It scores 8.9 for food and 9.3 for the room, the pick when the evening is the event.
Scores, Side by Side
| Score | Fi'lia Dubai | CLAP Dubai |
|---|---|---|
| Food | 8.9 / 10 | 8.9 / 10 |
| Atmosphere | 9.2 / 10 | 9.3 / 10 |
| Value | 8.7 / 10 | 7.8 / 10 |
Which One for Which Occasion
| Occasion | Editorial Pick |
|---|---|
| First date | Fi'lia DubaiIntimate, soft-lit, quiet enough to talk before the sunset view. |
| Birthday or big group | CLAP DubaiSharing platters, a robata scene and a DJ as dessert clears. |
| Business lunch | Fi'lia DubaiA weekday set lunch from AED 105 in a calm Business Bay room. |
| Impress out-of-town clients | CLAP DubaiThe DIFC rooftop and Burj Khalifa view do the talking. |
| Value weeknight dinner | Fi'lia DubaiFine Italian priced for weekly use, not a monthly splurge. |
Price Comparison
The gap is wide. Fi'lia is the value table: a weekday business lunch from AED 105, a signature sharing menu at AED 545 per couple, and a la carte dinner around AED 400 to 650 per person. CLAP sits a tier up, at AED 700 to 950 per person for a standard dinner, AED 1,200 for the counter omakase and AED 1,500 for the Premium Wagyu Experience. Weigh them against the best Italian restaurants worldwide and the best Japanese restaurants worldwide.
How to Book
Fi'lia takes reservations through OpenTable and SevenRooms via SLS Dubai, and the sunset tables on the terrace go first, so book before dusk from October to April. CLAP books through its own site and on +971 4 569 3820; reserve before 8pm if dinner is the priority, after 9pm if the scene is, and at least two weeks out for groups of six or more.
Start the wider map from the Dubai dining guide, and for occasion fit see the best restaurants for a first date, a birthday and to impress clients. For more Dubai match-ups see Fi'lia vs Torno Subito and CLAP vs Sumosan, or browse the compare index.