Obesity is a rising public health issue and challenge which is tightly correlated with socio-economic development paralleled with increased energy intake and sedentary behavior that subsequently cause adipose tissue accumulation. Physiological and metabolic status changes during obesity development have been suggested with low grade inflammation of gastrointestinal tract. The gut microbiota plays an essential role in regulating whole body energy metabolism and also lipid accumulation, and immunity of host. However, the detail mechanism of which the gut microbiota composition influence obesity development in humans still need deeper investigation owing to the complex pathophysiology of such disease. Recently, the consumption of phenols-rich food has been showed to have physiological function that attribute to improve gut microbiota and benefit body weight management. Here, we review the current knowledge regarding phenolic compounds that regulate the development of obesity and the importance of the axis that link dietary-induced gut microbiota change and metabolic health of host. We also discuss dietary intervention reshaping gut bacterial community to modulate obesity.