Permits & NOCs · Restaurants, cafés & kitchens

Restaurant, café and F&B fit-out approvals

For restaurant owners, café operators and franchise teams opening or rebuilding a food outlet. We design the kitchen and services around the food-safety, fire and drainage rules, then coordinate the layout assessment, Civil Defence and fit-out approvals up to opening.

In a restaurant, the kitchen decides the approvals. The dining room is mostly a standard fit-out. The kitchen brings in food-safety inspectors, fire engineers, drainage rules and, if you cook with gas, hazardous materials controls. Each of these can force a layout change if it is looked at too late.

The common story is familiar: a concept is designed around the dining experience, the kitchen is squeezed into what is left, and then the food-safety review asks for separate raw and cooked preparation, the fire review needs space for the suppression system, and the grease trap has nowhere to go. We work the other way round. Kitchen flow, services routes and equipment come first, and the front of house is designed around them.

The general fit-out route, including which authority approves your unit, is on our fit-out permits page. This page covers what is specific to food outlets.

The approvals a restaurant fit-out usually needs

Approval	Who issues it	What it looks at
Landlord or mall fit-out approval	Building owner, mall operator or developer	Design, services connections, exhaust routes, working rules
Food establishment layout assessment	Dubai Municipality Food Safety Department (mainland), or the food-safety body for the relevant zone	Kitchen flow, separation of activities, finishes, washing and storage provision
Fit-out or decoration permit	DM, DDA, Trakhees or the free zone, depending on location	Building works within the unit
Fire and life safety approval	Dubai Civil Defence	Escape, alarm, sprinklers, kitchen hood suppression, gas safety
Gas installation approval	Civil Defence, with an approved gas contractor	LPG or central gas supply, piping, detection and shut-off
Utilities	DEWA and the drainage authority	Electrical load increase, water, connection of drainage through grease traps

Dubai Municipality lists a Request for Layout Assessment for Food Establishment Licensing among its food safety services. It sits between design and fit-out: the kitchen layout is assessed before the works are built, which is far cheaper than changing a finished kitchen. Requirements are set out in the Dubai Food Code and DM's guidance on food establishment requirements by activity.

Kitchen layout and food-safety design

Food-safety reviewers think in terms of flow and contamination risk. A kitchen that passes usually shows:

A one-way flow from receiving and storage, through preparation and cooking, to service, with dirty returns and waste kept apart from clean food routes.
Separate areas or zones for raw and ready-to-eat food, for vegetable washing, and for activities such as bakery or butchery where the menu needs them.
Hand-wash basins where food handlers need them, separate from food and utensil sinks.
Suitable finishes: smooth, impervious, easy-to-clean floors, walls and ceilings, with coved junctions where required.
Enough cold and dry storage for the menu and delivery frequency. Walk-in chillers and freezers are shown on the layout.
Staff facilities such as changing areas and toilets that don't open directly onto food rooms.

The exact requirements depend on the activity: a café reheating pastries is assessed differently from a full-service kitchen or a central production unit. We check the layout against DM's activity-based requirements before it goes for assessment. For cold rooms and food storage at larger scale, see cold storage approval and food safety.

Kitchen fire suppression and Civil Defence

Commercial cooking is one of the main fire risks Civil Defence reviews in a restaurant. The fire and life safety drawings usually cover:

Hood fire suppression. A fixed suppression system over cooking appliances that produce grease-laden vapour, normally a wet-chemical system linked to automatic fuel shut-off and the fire alarm.
Exhaust ductwork. Grease ducts with fire-rated enclosure where they pass through the building, and cleaning access along their length.
Escape and occupancy. Seating numbers set the occupant load, which decides exits and travel distances. Outdoor terraces count too.
Alarm, sprinklers and emergency lighting adapted to the new layout, including back-of-house corridors and stores.

Systems are designed, installed and tested by companies approved for that work, and Civil Defence inspects before the completion. Our Civil Defence approval page explains that process across project types.

Grease traps, drainage and kitchen exhaust

Grease traps

Dubai's sewerage regulation, Local Order No. 8 of 2002, requires the private drainage of a restaurant, cafeteria, food factory, fast-food outlet, hotel or similar establishment to have grease traps that meet the competent department's specifications. They are checked when the licence is applied for or renewed. Dubai Municipality also publishes a grease trap guideline covering approved methodology and suppliers.

The design questions are practical: the trap must be sized for the kitchen's flow, reachable for regular emptying by an authorised collector without carrying waste through food areas, and connected to every relevant drainage point. In a mall or tower, the landlord may already provide a central interceptor. Confirm this before you design your own.

Kitchen exhaust and fresh air

Exhaust is often the hardest item in a street-level or tower unit. The route must reach an approved discharge point, usually high level or roof, without causing smoke or odour nuisance to neighbours or other tenants. Make-up air must replace what the hood extracts, or doors will slam and the dining room will smell of cooking. Landlords frequently fix the exhaust route in their tenant design criteria, so read them before choosing the unit.

Our MEP design service handles the drainage, exhaust and make-up air design and the coordination with the landlord's systems.

LPG and central gas in restaurants

Cooking with gas brings in Civil Defence's hazardous materials controls. The installation is designed and installed by an approved gas contractor and covers storage or supply, piping, leak detection, emergency shut-off and ventilation of the cylinder or meter area. Dubai Municipality also publishes technical guidelines for LPG cylinders.

Many newer buildings have a central gas system, and tenants are expected to connect to it rather than bring in cylinders. If your building has no gas supply, an all-electric or induction kitchen avoids a whole approval stream, and that can be worth considering for smaller concepts.

Mall units, street units and free zones

Mall units

On the mainland, units inside malls are exempt from the DM decoration permit. The mall operator's own fit-out process, its tenant design criteria, Civil Defence and the food-safety requirements still apply in full.

Street-level units

Expect more work on exhaust routes, grease trap location, outdoor seating and signage. Units over 100 m² on the mainland need the DM decoration permit.

Free zones and DDA zones

The fit-out permit comes from the zone's authority. Food-safety approval may be handled by the zone or by DM. We confirm this by location.

Outdoor seating, shisha service and shopfront signage each have their own permits. See our signage, tent and shisha permits service and the article on shisha café licensing.

Documents and drawings for a restaurant submission

Lease and licenceEjari or tenancy contract and the trade licence or initial approval for the food activity.
Landlord NOCIncluding any tenant design criteria compliance sign-off.
Kitchen layoutEquipment layout with a numbered schedule, zones, flows and storage.
Finishes scheduleFloor, wall and ceiling finishes for each food room.
Fire and life safety setEscape, alarm, sprinklers, hood suppression and emergency lighting.
Drainage drawingsGrease trap location and size, and connections from all relevant points.
Ventilation drawingsHood, exhaust route, discharge point and make-up air.
Gas drawingsSupply, piping, detection and shut-off, by the approved gas contractor.
Electrical loadEquipment loads and any request for a load increase.

From signed lease to opening day

Unit check before signing

Confirm permitted use, exhaust route, gas availability, grease trap provision and electrical capacity.

You + our team

Kitchen design first

The menu and equipment list drive the kitchen layout, then MEP and fire design, then the front of house.

Designer · kitchen supplier · MEP

Landlord and food-safety layout review

The landlord approves the design. The kitchen layout is assessed by the food-safety authority.

Landlord · food safety

Fit-out and Civil Defence approvals

The fit-out permit and DCD approval are obtained, with the gas installation approval if gas is used.

Contractor / consultant · DCD

Build, install and test

Hood suppression, gas detection, alarms and drainage are installed and tested to the approved drawings.

Contractor · specialist installers

Inspections and opening

Civil Defence and the permit authority issue their completions, and the food-safety inspection supports the licence to operate.

Authorities

Why restaurant approvals get delayed

Choosing a unit with no exhaust route. Some units simply can't host a full kitchen. Check before signing.
Ordering kitchen equipment before layout approval. Equipment that has to move can mean new drawings and new ducts.
No space for the grease trap. Retrofitting one under a finished floor is expensive and disruptive.
Mixed flows. Dirty returns crossing the preparation area is one of the most common food-safety comments.
Adding seats after approval. More seats mean more occupants, which can change the exit requirements.

How we help food businesses

Pre-lease checks on exhaust, gas, drainage and permitted use
Kitchen layouts reviewed against food-safety activity requirements
Coordinated fire, drainage, exhaust and gas drawings
Landlord, food-safety, fit-out and Civil Defence submissions, coordinated through a registered consultant or approved contractor where required
Inspection coordination through to opening

Food-safety, fire and building approvals are issued by the authorities. Our role is to prepare compliant applications and keep them moving. For a wider overview, read setting up a restaurant in Dubai: approvals needed.

Restaurant fit-out approval FAQs

Do I need food-safety approval before building the kitchen?

It is strongly advisable. Dubai Municipality offers a layout assessment for food establishment licensing so that the kitchen layout can be checked before it is built. Changing a finished kitchen is much more expensive.

Is a grease trap compulsory for a café?

Local Order No. 8 of 2002 requires grease traps for restaurants, cafeterias, fast-food outlets, hotels and similar establishments. Whether you need your own or can connect to a building interceptor depends on the building, so confirm this with the landlord.

Does a mall restaurant need a Dubai Municipality fit-out permit?

Units inside malls are exempt from DM's decoration works permit, but the mall's own fit-out approval, Civil Defence requirements and food-safety rules still apply.

Can I use LPG cylinders in my restaurant?

It depends on the building and Civil Defence's current rules. Many buildings have central gas, and tenants are expected to connect to it. Any gas installation must be approved and installed by an approved contractor.

How long do restaurant approvals take?

It depends on the landlord, the authority and how complete the kitchen design is. Food outlets have more reviewers than offices, so allow for several review stages before opening. We give a project-specific plan once we see the unit and menu.

On this page

Opening a food outlet?

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