Qatari food business is expanding naturally, and Qatar has thus become a new player in the global luxury food consumption market. Heretofore defined by such foods as Majboos, Qatar’s cuisine is now defined by the fusion of the traditional and advanced food technology. The transformation is a reflection of the external influence and national pride, attracting more attention of the global food observers and gourmands.
Majboos, the spicy old rice dish composed of lamb or chicken and bulgur or wheat and topped with raisins and nuts, remains a Qatari favorite. Served during the good old times when there were parties and family reunions, the dish remains a sign of the country’s diversity and hospitality. But because Qatar is opening its arms now to the rest of the world, its food has also gone boom a few notches higher.
Foreign cooks have begun to prefer Qatar as a center for culinary arts, with restaurants in which international tastes are blended with fresh local ingredients. North African, Mediterranean, and Asian cuisine is being blended into fresh variants of the traditional Qatari cuisine. It has opened the door into multicultural cuisine with blends of a multitude of tastes.
Government policies have also been leading the charge in driving such food development, or at least so in the pre-2022 FIFA World Cup period. The government has been investing in nurturing home-grown talent, enhancing culinary education, and enhancing promotion of local chefs as part of a program aimed at enhancing industry standards. These have been leading the charge in providing a solid platform for sustainable development of Qatar’s food and hospitality sector.
In Doha and other locations, farm-to-table is also popular in the cuisine of the country. Restaurants increasingly use their ingredients from the nearby local farms, and this brings with it the ambiance of being dedicated to the quality as well as the sustainability of food. This goes hand in hand with the agricultural prowess of Qatar and offers customers a more sustainable and personal experience.
Having world-class chefs and being award-winning new restaurants, like restaurants recognized by Michelin Guide, here further solidified the place of Qatar as a culinary destination in the future. Restaurants here are especially keen on innovative presentation and new taste that further solidify the country’s reputation as a culinary destination.
Qatar’s food revolution—be it from its indigenous foods like the Majboos or upscale dining, fine dining food nowadays—is evidence of the country wanting to hold on to what’s theirs but also experience global food trends. With further investments in human capital and infrastructure, Qatar emerges as a global gastronomic benchmark to indulge by world tastes and visited places.
