Jamie Oliver's Pizzeria JLT — Restaurant in Dubai

My family and I tried Jamie Oliver’s Pizzaria today (Friday lunchtime) and went away with mixed feelings about it

Firstly, when we entered the restaurant we weren’t greeted for about 5 minutes and none of the waiters even looked up from what they were doing (which wasn’t waiting on tables or serving guests rather than just standing by the kitchen pass - which is inside the restaurant on full view).

Once we got seated, the waiter immediately left our table (luckily the menus are pre set on the table on printed A3 paper so could look at the selection as soon as we sat down) so we immediately got to looking at the menu. When he returned we ordered our food and drinks. There was no recommendation or mention of his name : basic interaction.

The garlic bread (which is delicious) came really quickly which minutes later followed up with one of our pizza orders. My family practically finished their pizza and then my order came out. I could not fault the taste or quality of the food however the service was poor and one of my pet hates is when your tables order doesn’t all come at once.

No one checked on how our mains were, offered to refresh our drinks or clear our table in a timely fashion. In fact we had to call someone over to clear our table (which was probably 15 minutes after I had finished eating). Once our table was cleared we waited even longer for someone to return to come and take a potential dessert order. We weren’t in a rush so taking our time wasn’t an issue it was just the attention we weren’t receiving was frustrating whereby several waiters were just standing by and watching rather than interacting with customers.

Another thing that put a sour taste in our mouths was that rubbish was being taken through the restaurant which isn’t nice to see! Things like that should always be done back of house as usually it’s a case of just saving time.

The manager at the end of our meal came to apologise which we appreciated and we will be returning for the food but we would expect better service on the next visit.

Some basic training is very much required (Cheesecake Factory has some of the best service I’ve seen in Dubai as a pointer) for the staff as it’s clear the investment is in with the food so if both service and food quality came together, it would be a lovely little place to dine in!

The food was fresh, tasty and hot. The combination can be hard to find these days in Dubai but we honestly couldn’t fault it.

Menu recommendations: I would recommend the garlic bread, pizza and the brownie!

Food: 4.5/5 Service: 1 Location: 2 (paid...

Today we had the chance to dine at Jamie Oliver Pizzeria in JLT, Dubai, thanks to a lovely treat from a friend. The setting was warm and inviting, and we were excited to finally try this place — especially since we had heard a lot of buzz about it and had seen Jamie’s videos on YouTube.

Let’s start with the mocktails — they were refreshing and beautifully presented. The pomegranate with mint was the absolute winner for us — bright, flavorful, and a perfect companion to the food. The pink lemonade and passion fruit with pineapple were enjoyable too, but the pomegranate one really made an impression.

From the small bites, the ultimate garlic bread deserves a special mention. We’re used to crispy versions in other places, but this one was soft, warm, and packed with flavour in every bite. It was comforting and delicious — a real crowd-pleaser.

The crispy seafood dish was just okay — not bad, but not especially memorable either.

The Shrimply Hot pizza was undoubtedly the highlight of our meal. The dough was light and fresh, the toppings generous, and the flavours well-balanced — it truly lived up to the hype and reminded us why Jamie’s pizzas are so well-loved. The fiery fries were a great side — crunchy, seasoned just right, and addictive.

The watermelon and feta salad, unfortunately, didn’t quite hit the mark. The watermelon chunks were too large, and the feta was barely present — not only was the ratio off, but the presentation didn’t match what was shown in the menu photo. The flavours just didn’t come together as expected.

The biggest letdown, though, was the mushroom penne pasta. It arrived last, and only after we reminded the staff — about 10 minutes later. It felt rushed: the pasta wasn’t cooked properly, and the sauce was overly salty, overpowering the mushroom flavour.

However, since this outing was a special treat from a friend, we chose not to mention it to the staff. We didn’t want to take away from the warmth of the gesture or dampen the mood. At the end of the day, some meals are more about the company than the criticism — and we were grateful for the moment.

But the final verdict? We’ll definitely be coming back — mainly for that amazing pizza, and to try other dishes on the menu that we didn’t get to explore this time. There’s more to taste, and we’re hopeful for a better-rounded...

Biggest disappointment in Dubai!

I went to pizzeria expecting smth really good quality, to try special pizza by Oliver and to find excellent service. �First thing the music is too loud for the cafe. It’s not the club, it’s place to seat and enjoy the food and talk to friends and family. It has already noise of talking people which is probably enough and this the most natural sound!

Because of the music I had to speak really loud to make my order and to ask waitress several times because I couldn’t hear her well. I ordered light meal (half size pizza paired with salad).

�So second is that salad was spicy. It wasn’t written in menu. I wonder why you put vegetarian sign but don’t mention spicy or allergic content. So I asked for another salad Cesar and it had nuts! Waitress didn’t ask me if I’m allergic!

�Talking of taste. The half size pizza wasn’t really looked like half pizza, and didn’t taste pizza at all! You will get kind of bruschetta, burnt on thick borders, with very few ingredients on top, dry and hard to chew! Cheese wasn’t melted and soft, it was hard! Too much of dough, too less of taste and ingredients. The Cesar had bitter and very salty taste and as I said contended nuts. Be aware what you are ordering, waitress don’t really care about that. �Overall I wasn’t satisfied with service, it’s unprofessional and made me feel like I’m in fast food. No attitude, no speed. �Despite that I paid 54aed for this meal and I think it’s overpriced. Better have Pizza Hut where you can be sure about guaranteed good taste for much less price.

I can tolerate bad unprofessional service as it’s place just has been opened but I can’t tolerate bad taste as the early beginning of the new place, sorry guys.. You can’t name pizzeria by Jamie Oliver, put the price above average just because of the famous brand name and cook smth not even ordinary level.

Don’t call this place by famous chief’s name, because this is big responsibility. You are not the best in the town as it’s written on your shirts, you are not even average at the moment. Sorry to say that.

Wish you all the success, to improve your management and to show the real high quality of taste and service of...