Close

Tastes like home

ASMA brings the flavors and ambience of your childhood home and your mother’s home cooking.

Inspired by their mother’s cooking, three Emirati siblings have created ASMA, a new restaurant in Dubai Mall that evokes the nostalgia dining experience of their mother’s traditional Middle Eastern kitchen – but with a contemporary twist. They wanted to recreate no only the warmth of home, but also the feeling of their childhood foods.

H2R Design, who are also winners during the id Design Awards in 2018, was charged with the challenge of creating the ambience of an Arabic home, but in a timeless setting. Just as the kitchen is the heart of a traditional Arabic home, it is the focal point in ASMA. Copper pans, old-style utensil and, authentic Arabic coffee pots are displayed on open shelving, just as they are in Arabic childhood homes. The traditional copper detailing is used in a contemporary way in the pizza oven and as trim on the petrol blue tiles that clad the bar’s exterior. Terracotta tiles pay tribute to old-style Middle Eastern kitchen while wood elements connect the spaces.

Wooden wicker chairs add a contemporary flair while banquette seating in desert tones promote a relaxed experience. Scenes from Jordan, Egypt, Lebanon, Syria and the UAE visually reinforce the cultural concepts. To suggest outdoor dining, one seating area gives the vibe of being in a sidewalk café where diners can watch shoppers passing by.

Enjoy a bit of comforting nostalgia in a modern heritage setting.

H2R Design added terracotta backlit panels highlighting a semi-private seating area. With the use of the warm light, shadows and curves, this seating area softens the long dimensions of the overall space.

The addition of plants and accessories on shelving were also meticulously selected to complement the genuine charm of the space adding to the humble and welcoming ethos.

H2R Design was inspired to design a space that is timeless but can also be can be perceived as a modern heritage site.

The wood wicker chairs on the bar give the space a contemporary feel, adding more warmth while contrasting against the pavement and concrete flooring and the marble countertops.

Photography: Nikola Stokanovic

The Latest

The Importance of Community-Driven Design

We speak to Joanna Varettas, Senior Associate Designer at TGP International on the story of Seed & Bloom – a café designed to nurture connection and community engagement

Finasi at Downtown Design 2025

Finasi x ROAR presents – Made in UAE

For this year's Downtown Design, Finasi and Pallavi Dean will unveil a bold new installation that blends interiors, fashion, and local identity into a living design dialogue

A Lesson in Restraint

This Palm Jumeirah home proves that luxury can be achieved with intention, rather than scale

Vote for your favourite projects at the identity Design Awards 2025

You can now choose your favourite project from the identity Design Awards 2025 shortlist

identity Design Awards 2025 shortlist: Interior Design

The shortlist is revealed for the interior design categories

What to Expect at Downtown Design

The Middle East’s leading platform for high-quality contemporary design will showcase a curated mix of international and regional brands, alongside independent designers and studios

A New Chapter of Wellness

Studio Marco Piva has designed the Eden Spa at Excelsior Palace in Rapallo, where architecture, landscape and luxury converge

Otherworldly

The new Alémais Sydney headquarters reflects the brand’s flair for colourful prints and embellishments

Between Sky and Steel

We step into a sculptural apartment in Istanbul, Turkey

identity Design Awards 2025 shortlist: All Categories

Shortlist revealed for all the categories for identity Design Awards 2025

Brimming with Warmth

Atlas Concorde’s porcelain tiles enhance the contemporary design of this villa in Bodrum, Turkey