The Pitch
The Maine sits on the lower level of the DoubleTree by Hilton at Jumeirah Beach Residence, a short walk from the JBR seafront. The room is a New England oyster bar and brasserie built by the Montreal restaurateur Joey Ghazal, and the long bar is the part that earns its place on a Dubai drinks list. The World's 50 Best Bars Discovery guide lists it as a bar, and Time Out Dubai named it Best Restaurant Bar.
Set expectations on the beer. This is not a craft tap house, and the beer list is short and conventional. The pour to come for is a cold one next to a plate of oysters, or a proper cocktail at the counter, not a rotating wall of guest kegs. Anyone after a serious flight of local IPAs is in the wrong room, and the venue does not pretend otherwise.
The Room
The fit out reads coastal brasserie. A Flawless.life review describes dark leather banquettes, subway tiles, and industrial lighting around a raw bar stacked with oysters, lobster, and seasonal shellfish. The long bar runs along one side and pulls the pre dinner and after work crowd before the dining room fills.
The Drinks
Lead with the raw bar and a cold pour. Oysters arrive shucked to order from France, Ireland, or the US, and the venue's own pairing note sends them out with a crisp white or a dirty martini. A pint of beer runs about AED 45, which sits at the upper end for the category and tells you where the priorities lie.
The cocktail list is the bar's real work. It runs modern riffs on American classics, among them a Mayflower Martini with parsley infused gin and dill oil, an Elderflower Tini, and a Tommy's Margarita. Treat the beer tap as a supporting act and order the counter accordingly.
The Crowd and Vibe
The long bar draws an eclectic crowd of young urbanites in for old fashioned cocktails, per the venue's own copy and the JBR setting. Expect a pre dinner and after work mix early, shifting to a louder dining room as the evening runs on. It reads polished and social rather than rowdy, closer to a seaside brasserie than a beer hall.
What Regulars Say
- Time Out Dubai awarded The Maine its Best Restaurant Bar title, and BBC Good Food named it Best Seafood, both recurring in the venue's coverage.
- The World's 50 Best Bars Discovery guide lists The Maine among Dubai's notable bars, weighted to oysters and cocktails rather than beer.
- Recurring note across reviews: come for the raw bar and the cocktail counter, and keep beer expectations modest.
Best Time to Visit
Early evening at the long bar for oysters and a cocktail before the dining room turns over for dinner service.
Who It Is For
Drinkers who want oysters, a martini, and a polished room, not a deep tap list or a brewery taproom.
Who It Is For
- A seafood dinner that opens with oysters and a dirty martini at the counter.
- An after work cocktail near the JBR beachfront, with the brasserie menu to follow.
- Skip it if you came for a craft tap list, cask ale, or a brewery taproom.
Pair This Bar With
For the beer The Maine does not pour, walk the self pour wall at Barrels in Dubai over in Barsha Heights. Stay on the pub trail with Lock Stock and Barrel in Dubai, then compare the Irish pour and the screens at McGettigan's in Dubai. The full craft beer bars in Dubai roundup and the wider Dubai bar guide cover the rest of the city.
