About UMAMI Japanese Cuisine

Far East Urban Cuisine

In the rapidly growing cities of East Asia, lifestyle is busy and quickpaced. The food culture has adapted to this momentum, sparking a fast food movement that emphasizes efficiency yet maintaining quality and preserving the traditional essence.

Throughout the major modern cities in the Far East, trendy restaurants seamlessly combine traditional cuisine with a modern edge. From a technologically advanced Dim Sum Café in Hong Kong to a standing only ramen shop in Shinjuku, the traditional cuisines of the Far East have evolved and combined to create new perspectives on dining. The fact is, East Asians are eating their own food very differently today. Many of these new offerings began as fusion foods which evolved and became so widely accepted that they are no longer considered “fusion” but everyday urban food. These items are celebrated and consumed on such a large scale in East Asia that they have collectively been combined into what is known as the Far East Urban Cuisine.


From There to Here

UMAMI is one of the five tastes, together with sweet, sour, bitter, and salty. This fifth taste, popularly referred to as “savoriness”, is the essence of East Asian cuisine and the key element in creating fast yet enjoyable meals.

The array of dining experiences that the Far East offers is extensive. Having surveyed the current Dubai food court offerings in the area of East Asian cuisine, we have carefully compiled a collection of food items either never seen in the Dubai food scene before or have not been represented correctly by current food court operators.

As opposed to many existing East Asian concept QSR’s that focus on generally traditional cuisines, we will be presenting our customers with everyday urbanized items that have been tested and proven to be more popular with today’s consumers.

We believe these offerings will be an exciting and fresh addition to any existing food court in the region. The point is not just simply introducing new items but to introduce new items that Dubai customers will love and come back for more.


Company History

Since its opening in 1980, Chinese Palace Restaurant in Dubai’s Al Ghurair Centre has been widely acclaimed by countless customers for its authentic Chinese cuisine and friendly service. After establishing an excellent reputation in the food industry, Chinese Palace Restaurant pioneered its first fast food unit in Burjuman Centre’s Bustan Food Court, the first food court established in the region. The fast food version of the restaurant was met with tremendous success and positive feedback. To meet high customer demand, more fast food restaurants opened throughout the region, and the Chinese Palace Restaurant Group was formed to include Panda Chinese Restaurant, Mongolian Barbecue Restaurant, Umami Far East Urban Cuisine, and Koryo Korean Restaurant.