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Key insights:
- 48% of vegan and vegetarian diners in the UAE eat out at least once a week, noticeably higher than the 41% of omnivores.
- 67% of omnivores lean on friends and family for recommendations, while that drops to 50% among meat-free diners.
- 59% rely on social media to spot new dining options, making it the top source for veg/ vegan diners.
New YouGov Profiles data shows that vegan and vegetarian diners differ from omnivorous consumers in how often they dine out and how they discover new places to eat. While vegans and vegetarians make up a smaller share of the urban UAE population (20% vs. 29% of omnivorous), they appear to be more engaged with restaurant dining than those with no dietary restrictions.
Among urban UAE residents aged 18+, 48% of vegan and vegetarian diners say they eat at restaurants at least once a week, compared with 41% of omnivorous consumers.
Restaurant discovery patterns further differentiate these groups. The most pronounced gap lies in recommendations from friends and family, which remain the dominant source for omnivores (67%) but are relied upon less by vegan and vegetarian diners (50%). Instead, plant-based consumers turn more frequently to food blogs and websites (37% vs. 33%), advertising (38% vs. 34%), and exploring local areas (35% vs. 39% among omnivores).
Social media also shows a notable difference in emphasis: 59% of vegan/vegetarian diners use it to discover new places - the highest in this group, compared with 64% of omnivores. Online reviews are used at similar levels (45% vs. 42%), but the larger gaps across other channels indicate that vegan and vegetarian diners rely on a broader mix of discovery sources rather than depending heavily on personal recommendations.
Methodology: YouGov Profiles is based on continuously collected data through rolling surveys, rather than a single limited questionnaire. Figures are drawn from responses collected between November 2024 and November 2025, using a 52-week dataset updated weekly. Profiles data for the UAE is urban-representative and weighted by age, gender, and nationality group (e.g., Emirati, Arab expat, Asian expat, Western expat) to reflect the country’s population structure.