SPECIAL LOMI RESTAURANT BY: CHEF TOM

Name: SPECIAL LOMI RESTAURANT BY: CHEF TOM
Address: Reef Mall - Salah Al Din St, Deira, Dubai, AE
Telephone: +971581079471

Deira

Filipino restaurant Open now 0 581 079 471

Special Lomi Restaurant by Chef Tom is a Filipino restaurant in Deira centred on self-described authentic Batangas cuisine. Reviews point to the Batangas Lomi and dishes such as Bulalo as the main reasons to visit, with a cosy, casual setting for dine-in meals.

Reputation Score

3.7

★★★★☆

191 ratings

Call Website Directions

The Good Stuff

Showing 2 of 6

Batangas Lomi

Several diners describe the Batangas Lomi as rich, authentic and reminiscent of home, with generous toppings and well-cooked noodles.

Comfort Food

Bulalo has been praised for rich broth and tender meat, while Gotong Batangas was described as non-fishy and good with rice.

Let's go!

What to Eat at SPECIAL LOMI RESTAURANT BY: CHEF TOM

Foods and drinks mentioned in reviews of SPECIAL LOMI RESTAURANT BY: CHEF TOM, ranked by positive reviews minus negative reviews. Zero-score items have no net positive feedback; their labels distinguish neutral-only from mixed feedback.

Food 4

Bulalo Net +4

“My mom and I truly enjoyed our meal – the bulalo and t-bone steak were absolutely delicious, I can’t lie!”
Fried chicken Net +2

“The food is good specially the fried chicken, crispy outside and juicy inside.”
Leche flan Net +2

“Yum! But they only had leche flan for desert!”
Miki chami Net +2

“Just tried Miki Chami on a whim and wow… it’s actually sooo good 😍 A little sweet, mild spicy, super saucy – exactly my kind of flavor!”

Honorable mentions (24)

Lomi Net +1

“Tried Lomi from Batangas for the first time (where I’m currently living in the Philippines), and I have to say — the taste was really good!”
Authentic batangas lomi Net +1

“Authentic Batangas Lomi, Gotong Batangas and Batangas Bulalo are just a name of few. Service is fast and the food is delicious. Must try!”
Automatic batangas lomi Net +1

“I love their automatic Batangas Lomi. Service was amazing. We will definitely come back again soon.”
Balaybay 3 Net +1

“Although there was a slight mix-up with our order—we received Balaybay 3 instead of 2—it wasn’t an issue as all the selections were delicious.”
Batangas goto Net +1

“We ordered the fried chicken feet, which were tender and easy to eat, the Batangas goto, and the miki chami, which were both delicious.”
Batangas lomi overload Net +1

“Me and my friends was in the restaurant last Sunday and as a Batangueña , I highly recommend their Batangas Lomi Overload - I can say that CHEF TOM BATANGAS RESTAURANT have the best lomi here in UAE..”
Batangas style lomi Net +1

“My first time to try Batangas style lomi. It was very thick for my liking but as per my friend that is just how the lomi is done in Batangas. Everything tastes great too. Just enough salt and seasoning.”
Beef pares Net +1

“For my own opinion. The best for me is the Beef pares. No one can beat them for this dish. i've been eating Pares for different kinds of shops but for them it is one of the better Pares that I've tried. Just try it. For sure you will like it.”
Caldereta Net +1

“He’s caldereta was really tasty and it brings back momeries of Kasalan and fiesta in the Philippines.”
Calderetang kambing Net +1

“The Bulalo was rich with tender meat, and the Calderetang Kambing surprisingly had no gamey taste.”
Chicken tocilog Net +1

“This time we ordered Tapsilog and Chicken Tocilog. It was very satisfying and the meat are tender compared to other tapa which are too dry and hard to chew😄.”
Chicken tower Net +1

“And as well as their Chicken Tower it’s also a must try .”
Finger food half portion Net +1

“Also we ordered the Finger food half portion and it's also good.”
Lomi overload Net +1

“Their Lomi Overload stood out—notably, even without pork (since we’re in the UAE), they pulled it off with alternatives, and the taste was still comforting.”
Lumpia Net +1

“The food was amazing—especially the lumpia! Best I’ve had in Dubai. Tastes like the real OG version: crispy, flavorful.”
Pancit palabok Net +1

“The pancit palabok was good, but the chicken feet (the reason we came back) were very tough and difficult to eat; we couldn’t even finish them.”
Rellenong bangus Net +1

“We ordered Rellenong Bangus and it was really damn good! I was not expecting the size at talaga naman siksik na siksik! Panalo!”
Sisig Net +1

“Sisig and SLR T-bone steak were among our faves.”
Sizzling pares with bone marrow Net +1

“I also enjoyed the Sizzling Pares with bone marrow—indulgent and flavorful—and their Gotong Batangas, which was hindi malansa and perfect with rice.”
Slr t-bone steak Net +1

“Sisig and SLR T-bone steak were among our faves.”
Special miki gisado Net +1

“Yummy and recommended special miki gisado the taste is good and the service is great and very accommodating thank you surely to come back again.”
Tapsilog Net +1

“This time we ordered Tapsilog and Chicken Tocilog. It was very satisfying and the meat are tender compared to other tapa which are too dry and hard to chew😄.”
Chicken skin Net 0

Mixed feedback

“The only good things here were the iced tea and the chicken skin.”
Fried chicken feet Net 0

Only neutral feedback

“We ordered the fried chicken feet, which were tender and easy to eat, the Batangas goto, and the miki chami, which were both delicious.”

Drinks 2

Cucumber lemonade Net +1

“And don’t even get me started on their cucumber lemonade 🍋🥒 so refreshing, especially in this weather.”
Iced tea Net +1

“The only good things here were the iced tea and the chicken skin.”

What to Avoid (8)

Food 8

Bbq meal wing part Net −1

“Ordered a bbq meal wing part in Diera branch, c'mon, it's so hard! Your food is made to order, you should fulfill the excitement of your customers since they're waiting for it.”
Goto Net −1

“Only the *goto* servings were small compared to other Filipino restaurants (my husband noticed!), but totally worth it for the taste.”
Gyoza Net −1

“To make matters worse, the staff didn’t even know the difference between gyoza and siomai.”
Half platter Net −1

“We ordered the half platter and asked the server how many people it was good for. He hesitated but said “3 persons.” Waiting time was supposed to be 20–30 minutes, but it ended up taking 40 minutes. For 80 AED, we only got 5 pcs of isaw, 8 pcs of calamari, less than 5 pcs of chicken feet, and the rest was mostly breading.”
Inihaw na isaw Net −1

“The only issue then was that the inihaw na isaw wasn’t grilled properly.”
Short bone steak Net −1

“We ordered the short bone steak — the rice was hard to chew, and the meat was overly sweet.”
Siomai Net −1

“To make matters worse, the staff didn’t even know the difference between gyoza and siomai.”
Special lomi Net −1

“Ordered special lomi online but it has something on it, looks like a metal scrubber cleaner.”

Tips for a Better Visit

Showing 2 of 4

Avoid Rush. Try visiting outside busy hours: reviews describe long waits and missed orders, especially during late-night or peak service.

Check Availability. Ask what is available before ordering; one table received siomai instead of unavailable gyoza, while another found several menu items unavailable.

Plan the visit

Practical details

Reef Mall - Salah Al Din St

Al Muraqqabat - Deira, Dubai

0 581 079 471

Mon	12:00 AM – 12:00 PM
Tue	12:00 AM – 12:00 PM
Wed	12:00 AM – 12:00 PM
Thu	12:00 AM – 12:00 PM
Fri	12:00 AM – 12:00 PM
Sat	12:00 AM – 12:00 PM
Sun	12:00 AM – 12:00 PM

Get directions

Common Concerns

Showing 2 of 5

Long Delays

Multiple diners reported waits of 40 minutes to over an hour, including a double lomi order that never arrived.

Order Mix-ups

A diner ordered fried gyoza but received fried siomai, with staff insisting it was gyoza instead of explaining that the item was unavailable.

Customer-reported prices

These are customer-reported mentions, not a current price list. Prices may have changed.

almost 40AED

bone marrow

“Like the bone marrow is there with little amount of meat on the sizzling plate for almost 40AED”

Google review · August 2025

DXB
LOCAL

The Bottom Line

Special Lomi Restaurant by Chef Tom is a Deira Filipino restaurant for Batangas-style comfort food, with Batangas Lomi as the clearest draw. Reviews also highlight Lomi Overload, Bulalo, Gotong Batangas, silog meals and beef pares. Several diners say the flavours recall home, and the Lomi is praised for rich seasoning, generous toppings and properly cooked noodles.

Others found the broth too thick or fishy, so expectations may depend on your preferred Lomi style. The strongest supporting dishes are not limited to noodles. Bulalo has been described as rich with tender meat, fried chicken as crisp outside and juicy inside, and Miki Chami as sweet, mildly spicy and saucy.

The restaurant itself is often called clean, cosy and home-like, but it can be small, crowded and noisy. One review also mentioned loud music. Service is the main reason to plan carefully.

Multiple customers reported 40-minute waits, orders arriving after later tables, or food not arriving at all; delivery feedback also mentioned late delivery and poor packaging. Ask about preparation time and menu availability before ordering, particularly during busy hours. Prices are viewed unevenly: some found portions filling, while others considered dishes expensive for their size.