Times have changed, and so too have our palettes, and with it our local culinary landscape. Coffee shops, tea lounges, shisha lounges, healthy eating, and the explosion of sushi restaurants, bakeries, and local franchises have hit the Jeddah restaurant scene with full force. Jeddah has come a long way from Kudu being the only local Saudi franchise to boast of. Today, our cuisine selection has multiplied and is actually starting to reflect and cater to our particular tastes; Deera Café blends beans that are acquired and named after regions across the Arab peninsula, while Crunchy Square reinvents the Motabag and Masoob. From saturated fatty „Americano“ style burgers to healthy eating, and the ultimate shisha experience, we‘ve come quite a way in the last decade, and this is how it‘s panned out…

Coffee Shops & Tea Lounges:

At the beginning of the decade one was hard pressed to find that perfect coffee roast or tea blend. But then, it was as if coffee and tea addicts began to harvest the coffee berries and tea leaves themselves, as specialty shops began to sprout everywhere. Now, java junkies are spoiled for choice with roasted blends from around the globe. •The Coffee House, Starbucks, Second Cup, Barnie‘s, Costa Coffee, Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf, Coffee Republic, Café Ceramique , Cilantro, Bridges, Te Amo, Teayana, Chai & Ba, Cappuccino Grand Café, Book Café, Deera Café,and the list goes on…

Restaurants & Shisha Lounges:

Permitted, banned, revolted against, then restored, permitted and once again adored. The only Saudi city to permit public consumption of shisha, as far as we are aware of, you can take away many things, but don‘t mess with a Jeddawi‘s shisha! The sheer debilitating affect the ban of shisha had on local businesses, was enough to have businessmen rally enough resistance to have the ban lifted and their right to vend the fruit vapor reinstated. •Java Lounge, Vertigo, Bubbles, Pearls, Nosh lounge, Melange lounge, Papaya, White, Campioni Sports Cafe, Fratelli, Cast & Crew, Café Lenotre, Balsamico Too.

Healthy Eating:

Although paling in popularity to fatty fast foods, shops and centers catering towards healthy eating and diet food have been gaining a loyal local following. Overconsumption has led the human race to embark upon the eternal quest for quick fix weight-loss solutions. However, in recent years, more sensible consumption has increased the popularity of organic wholesome foods, available locally and hopefully, restaurant menus will start to reflect this more.