Ramen fans in Abu Dhabi have a new date for the diary: Daikan Izakaya, the casual Japanese spot already popular in Dubai and Yas Bay, opens its third UAE location at The Galleria Al Maryah Island in November 2026. It will be a licensed venue, so you can pair your bowl with a proper drink — a rarity in a city where many Japanese joints keep things dry.
The concept is built around no-fuss eating. Think ramen, yakitori and shareable plates you can drop in for on a weeknight, no occasion required. The first two branches — at Yas Bay Waterfront in Abu Dhabi and C2 City Walk in Dubai — built the brand's following, and this new site gets its own identity rather than a copy-paste fit-out.
The interiors lean hard into Tokyo references. The layout takes cues from yokocho, the city's dense drinking alleys, splitting the space into small zones that each carry their own atmosphere. There's also a nod to boro, the traditional craft of repairing and layering textiles, reworked through tiles with visible stitching and overlapping textures. The material palette runs dark and moody: lacquered wood, stainless steel, cast glass, black granite, basalt stone and even denim. The idea is that food, drinks, design and music all sit under one roof.
On the menu, expect the full Daikan range — ramen, yakitori and table-sharing dishes — plus a cocktail list with the brand's known signatures: the Natsu Martini, Goma Kaze, Genkidama and a house spritz called the Lichi Paloma.
Why it matters: Al Maryah Island has become one of Abu Dhabi's main dining and shopping districts, and a reliable, reasonably priced izakaya with a licence adds a casual counterweight to the mall's upscale restaurant row. If you're visiting the capital and staying near the waterfront, it's an easy evening stop — and with opening hours running from 12pm to 1am daily, it works for late dinners too. Worth noting for anyone who already knows the Dubai or Yas Bay branches: the new menu and interior here are billed as different, so even regulars have a reason to try this one.
