Dubai

Samy Rathnayake

Samy Rathnayake is the Bar Manager at COYA Dubai, renowned for his warm personality and exceptional mixology skills. With over 16 years of experience, he has enhanced COYA's reputation and won the Asia and Australasia region at the Johnnie Walker Black Label Global Bartender Challenge 2023. Samy has led COYA's guest bartending events worldwide, showcasing Peruvian culture and mixology expertise in venues across France, India, Sri Lanka, Thailand and Cyprus. He is a supportive and approachable leader who inspires his team with his passion for creative and authentic bartending. Samy is well-respected in Dubai’s bartending community for his striking drink aesthetics and magnetic personality.

Guide restaurants with Samy Rathnayake participation

Coya

Smart casual

Guide to the best restaurants in the city

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What is GreatList

GreatList is an independent restaurant guide created by Alexander Sysoev. Establishments can have different formats and different audiences, but as long as the quality of their food and service is impeccable, and the atmosphere and values are outstanding — they can be added to GreatList.
Today, the guide is available in Russia and United Arab Emirates, and is available in Russian, English, and Chinese.

How the guide is assembled

The guide only lists the establishments that were selected by its team. Collaborative approach to the selection is the guide’s fundamental stance, so all the establishments have been collectively approved by the majority.
The establishments selected for the guide are allocated to one of the categories — fine dining, smart casual, city café, and bar.
The guide offers a selection of useful search filters and the encyclopedia of restaurateurs and chefs to learn the names of the heroes behind the best restaurants.

Why people trust our choice

The guide’s team consists of almost a hundred independent experts who visit the establishments anonymously and always pay for themselves. None of them are part of the restaurant industry, but they have a deep connection to it as a frequent guest. All of them are successful people who travel a lot and visit the most interesting projects around the world. This makes them extra savvy and knowlegable about gastronomic trends and classics.