Opinion: We Need More Restaurant Pop-ups in Qatar
We need an injection of creativity and "newness" to boost the food scene.
It’s a fact - Qatar's dining scene is pretty much dominated by big brands and hotels. And honestly, there is nothing wrong with that. This approach has given us some great restaurants like Nobu, LPM and more.
But it also comes with drawbacks, particularly with “corporate” hospitality brands, there's very little wiggle room for creativity, bravery and change.
Which is why we need to encourage more popups - international, regional and yes, local- to make their way to Doha’s food scene in 2024.
Pop-ups are a relatively low risk way to generate buzz and excitement around a new restaurant menu or concept. But importantly, they can also be used as a way to test out new ideas before opening a permanent restaurant.
From a chef or a brand perspective, these can be a most creative and inspired dining as the chefs that run them aren’t bogged down by the minutiae (staffing, funding, marketing, approvals) that can plague brick-and-mortar restaurants.
We’ve had a handful of "limited” popups in recent months - Top Chef MENA winner and Jordanian chef Ali Ghzawi at Alba and an expensive Carbone Beach supper club popup. There’s even been a Benihana popup at Banana Island.
While a visiting guest chef is a kind of pop-up, I mean something more creative and a bit dangerous (OK not so much dangerous but you get my point).
Like perhaps a Filipino restaurant doing a pop-up in a fine dining setting.
Or a fine dining chef turning their hand to a street food style pop-up.
Or a secret supper club style set up where you only find out by word of mouth.
The possibilities are endless - we’re just limited by imagination and a desire to push the boat out. Leave a comment below and let me know what kind of pop-up you would like to see in Qatar.
Thanks for reading, you can follow me on Facebook, Instagram or subscribe to my weekly Qatar food scene newsletter here.
And if you enjoyed this post - please share it wth someone who will also appreciate it!
Very aptly put Rachel Morris, this is the need of the hour. Qatar's food scene is getting monotonous, people are jumping in each others wagon and only following the trend, starting from Cafes to Burger places to fried chicken to the latest ones doing dopplegangers of mcd style products. Innovation, Creativity and Risk taking have become a rarity here. What I would like to see are concept based Restaurants, going regional with the Pop Culture Cuisines for eg. Goan Cuisine with its rich seafood culture being showcased or Kolkatta's world famous street foods going out there and making a statement. These are the kinda foods that'll create Nostalgia for some or throw open a range of flavors for the others to try ... God Speed to Us!
The situation was more or less the same in Dubai pre COVID IMHO. Something about COVID kind of changed the scales. The homegrown talent have emerged victorious more or less, but recently in 2023 and 2024, the hotel restaurant is back on the rise with big openings like the Atlantis and O&O Zaabel (which everyone tells me is EXTREMELY quiet….). Pop ups and collabs are great places to cut one’s teeth, take risks and get feedback.