F&B COST
RESTAURANT FIT-OUT & RENOVATION COST DUBAI 2026
Opening a restaurant, café, or F&B concept in Dubai is a significant investment. The interior construction and fit-out is typically the largest upfront capital expense after the lease — and the one most likely to go over budget without proper planning. This guide provides realistic cost ranges based on our 13+ years of F&B project delivery across Dubai, including franchise rollouts for Costa Coffee and concept restaurants like Brooklyn Melodies.
RESTAURANT FIT-OUT COST RANGES (2026)
■ COFFEE SHOP / SMALL CAFÉ: AED 250–400 / SQ FT — Standard counter service, basic kitchen, branded interiors, simple MEP. Typical total: AED 250,000–600,000 for a 800–1,500 sq ft space.
■ CASUAL DINING RESTAURANT: AED 400–700 / SQ FT — Full commercial kitchen with ventilation and exhaust, custom seating, feature lighting, bar area, quality finishes. Typical total: AED 600,000–2,100,000 for a 1,500–3,000 sq ft space.
■ FINE DINING / HIGH-END: AED 700–1,500+ / SQ FT — Premium materials (stone, brass, custom glass), bespoke joinery, acoustic treatment, advanced lighting control, high-spec kitchen. Typical total: AED 1,500,000–7,500,000+ for a 2,000–5,000 sq ft space.
■ CLOUD KITCHEN / DELIVERY-ONLY: AED 150–300 / SQ FT — No front-of-house investment. Focused on kitchen MEP, equipment foundations, ventilation, and grease trap infrastructure. Typical total: AED 150,000–450,000 for a 1,000–1,500 sq ft space.
■ FRANCHISE ROLLOUT: AED 300–600 / SQ FT — Standardised designs reduce design costs but franchise specifications for materials and equipment can increase per-unit spend. Typical total varies by brand requirements.
These ranges cover interior construction, MEP works, joinery, and finishing. They exclude kitchen equipment, loose furniture, branding, and technology systems.
WHERE THE MONEY GOES: COST BREAKDOWN
Understanding where your budget is allocated helps you make informed trade-offs. A typical casual dining restaurant fit-out breaks down approximately as follows:
■ MEP WORKS (30–40%) — Kitchen ventilation and exhaust hoods, grease trap installation, gas connection, electrical distribution for heavy kitchen loads, HVAC for dining and kitchen zones, plumbing for sinks, dishwashers, and floor drains. This is consistently the largest cost category in F&B projects.
■ JOINERY & CUSTOM FURNITURE (20–25%) — Built-in seating (banquettes), bar counter, host station, display shelving, kitchen pass, custom millwork, and any feature woodwork. In-house joinery workshops like Dufit’s can reduce this cost by 15–20% compared to outsourcing.
■ CIVIL & STRUCTURAL WORKS (10–15%) — Demolition of existing layout, partition walls, floor levelling, waterproofing for kitchen and washroom areas, and any structural modifications.
■ FLOORING, CEILINGS & WALL FINISHES (10–15%) — Non-slip kitchen flooring, decorative dining area flooring, ceiling design (gypsum, exposed, acoustic panels), wall cladding, painting, and feature walls.
■ LIGHTING (5–8%) — Feature pendant lighting, ambient dining lighting, task lighting for kitchen, exterior signage lighting, and lighting control systems. Lighting is where ambiance is created — it is worth investing here.
■ AUTHORITY APPROVALS & FEES (3–5%) — Dubai Municipality fit-out permit, Civil Defense approval, DEWA connection, DM Food Department clearance, building management deposit. Typically AED 15,000–40,000 depending on project scope. See our complete guide to fit-out approvals in Dubai.
KITCHEN VS DINING AREA: THE COST DIFFERENCE
The kitchen is the most expensive area per square foot in any restaurant. Commercial kitchen construction involves heavy MEP infrastructure — exhaust hoods with make-up air systems, grease traps connected to building drainage, gas lines for cooking equipment, high-amperage electrical connections, anti-slip epoxy flooring, stainless steel wall cladding, and dedicated HVAC with higher air change rates than the dining area.
As a general rule, the kitchen area costs 2–3 times more per square foot than the dining area. For a restaurant spending AED 500/sq ft on the dining area, expect AED 1,000–1,500/sq ft for the kitchen infrastructure (excluding equipment). This is why kitchen-to-dining ratios significantly affect total project cost.
HIDDEN COSTS TO BUDGET FOR
■ Kitchen equipment: AED 200,000–800,000+ depending on cuisine and volume. Not included in fit-out contractor scope but must be coordinated during construction for power points, drainage, and ventilation connections.
■ Loose furniture: Dining chairs, tables, outdoor furniture — AED 50,000–250,000 depending on quality and quantity.
■ Technology: POS system, kitchen display systems, music system, CCTV, Wi-Fi — AED 30,000–100,000.
■ Branding & signage: Exterior signage, menu boards, branded packaging design — AED 20,000–80,000.
■ Pre-opening costs: Staff training, initial inventory, marketing launch, soft opening — AED 50,000–150,000.
■ Contingency: Always budget 10–15% above your expected total. Unexpected site conditions, material price changes, and design adjustments during construction are common in F&B projects.
HOW LONG DOES A RESTAURANT FIT-OUT TAKE?
■ Small café (under 1,000 sq ft): 6–8 weeks construction + 2–3 weeks approvals
■ Casual dining (1,000–3,000 sq ft): 8–12 weeks construction + 3–4 weeks approvals
■ Fine dining (2,000–5,000 sq ft): 12–16 weeks construction + 3–4 weeks approvals
■ Franchise rollout (standardised): 4–6 weeks construction + 2–3 weeks approvals
The approval timeline runs before construction begins. Working with a contractor experienced in F&B approvals — particularly kitchen ventilation and DM Food Department requirements — can shorten this phase significantly.
RESTAURANT RENOVATION VS NEW FIT-OUT
Renovating an existing restaurant is often more cost-effective than a complete new build. If the existing MEP infrastructure (especially kitchen ventilation, gas, and grease traps) is in good condition, a renovation can save 20–40% compared to starting from shell and core. However, renovation comes with its own challenges: demolition costs, working around existing services, potential asbestos or outdated wiring, and the need for updated authority approvals even for modifications.
At Dufit Interiors, we assess whether renovation or new construction is the better investment for your specific space and budget. Our experience across both approaches ensures you get an honest recommendation, not an upsell.
HOW TO REDUCE COSTS WITHOUT CUTTING CORNERS
Value engineering is essential in F&B construction. Here are practical strategies we use to optimise budgets for our clients: optimise the kitchen-to-dining ratio (every square foot shifted from kitchen to dining generates more revenue), use quality mid-range materials instead of premium where diners will not notice the difference, invest in lighting (the most cost-effective way to elevate ambiance), choose a contractor with in-house joinery (eliminates subcontractor markups on custom furniture), design for efficient MEP routing (shorter duct and pipe runs cost less), and plan kitchen equipment procurement early to coordinate exact power and drainage points during construction.
WHY DUFIT FOR YOUR RESTAURANT PROJECT
Dufit Interiors brings 13+ years of turnkey interior construction experience to F&B projects. Our portfolio includes the Costa Coffee franchise rollout across multiple UAE locations, Brooklyn Melodies restaurant concept, Le Cercle showroom and café fit-outs, and numerous independent dining concepts. We provide the full scope: design coordination, MEP construction, custom joinery from our in-house workshop, authority approvals management, and project delivery.
Learn more about our restaurant and F&B fit-out services, view our completed projects, or read about office fit-out costs in Dubai if you are also planning a commercial workspace.