Café François, the London-born French brasserie, is expected to open in Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC) in early 2027.
This comes about through a joint venture between restaurant operator Group François and UAE-based Keybourne Hospitality Group.
The restaurant will serve breakfast, lunch and dinner seven days a week, combining French classics with influences from other cuisines. Its dining room will feature trolley service inspired by Maison François, the group’s brasserie in London’s St James’s.
Group François was founded by François O’Neill alongside operations partner Ed Wyand and executive chef Matthew Ryle. The Dubai project follows the launch of Maison François in September 2020 and the more casual Café François in London’s Borough Yards in 2024.
O’Neill said: “Café François is a love letter to the café culture we have enjoyed on our travels and we couldn’t think of a better home for its next chapter than DIFC, with its mix of people who live, work and visit Dubai. We want it to be everything a grand café should be: welcoming, fun and hospitable, somewhere to drop in for breakfast or settle in for a long dinner, with a little theatre from the trolleys. We have spent three years shaping this with our partners at Keybourne and cannot wait to welcome our first guests.”
