Savoury dishes to try

On tables across the Arabian Peninsula, laden platters pile with spiced rice and slow-stewed meats. Fragrant with the wafting scents of the local spice souq, the Qatari national dish machboos is scooped with the right hand of eager diners all over the country. A staple of the Gulf and an encapsulation of the culinary influences that shape Qatari cuisine, machboos is a rice dish layered with saffron and cardamom, topped typically with lamb or chicken. If you’re disinclined to eat in the traditional hands-first style, scoop up your portion with khubz ragag. The thin, crepe-like bread common across the Peninsula.

You can try another typical dish, thareed, to taste another meal which incorporates thin bread and hearty meat. It’s comprised of crispy, unleavened bread doused in the juices of the roasting lamb and prepared with smoky local spices. It’s also worth experiencing the unique texture of Madrouba, a spiced chicken dish with intentionally overcooked rice, which resembles a savoury porridge. If you want to go all out for a special occasion, order the Quzi. It’s a feast, comprising an entire lamb slow cooked in Arabian spices and served up over a bed of rice, onions, nuts and raisins.

Sweet dishes to try

Paired with fragrant teas or offered in seemingly endless servings at the end of celebratory meals, sweet treats are ubiquitous in Qatar. Perhaps best known among them is luqaimat. Crisp and golden on the outside, doused in decadent sugar syrup, the doughnut-style fried treats are comprised of flour, yeast, saffron and cardamom. Served alongside thick Arab coffee, it joins the typical treats served up at cafes across the Gulf and the Levant. Emblematic among them is the Palestinian knafeh, a spun pastry soaked in sugar syrup and layered with cheese. It’s commonly found across Qatar, balancing out the bitter notes of the endlessly flowing coffee.

If you’re looking to indulge in a dessert, in between sweet snacks, try Aish El-Saraya. Commonly found across Qatar, though originating in Egypt, the no-bake pudding is made with bread and butter. It doesn’t quite pass for a classic British bread pudding, though. It’s laced with cardamom and topped with crumbled pistachio. Umm Ali, another Egyptian dessert, is also very popular in Qatar. Another bread-based dish, the sweet but hearty pudding is flavoured with dried fruits and almonds. Though it’s a favourite year-round, expect to see extra servings during celebratory ceremonies or national holidays.

Drinks to try

Few things are as omnipresent across the Arabian Peninsula as coffee. It flows in every home from ornate pots, its fragrance wafts across the souq. Traded between Ethiopians and Yemenis since the inception of the coffee bean, its heritage is prehistoric in the Gulf. Visit one of the contemporary coffee shops that have popped up across Doha, serving modern takes on the Arabian classic, and request a cup of qahwa.

Not as pervasive but also beloved, tea is also commonly drunk in Qatar. Try karak tea, a spiced tea with milk that is popular across the Gulf. It’s not dissimilar to masala tea, carried to the region by the migrant workers who emigrated from Pakistan and India in the 21^st century. Travellers to Turkey or the Levant will also recognise the laban, or ayran, that is popular in Qatar. Try a local twist on the classic yogurt drink, balah bel laban, which incorporates dates and honey.

Where to try Qatari food

Bayt Sharq
Sadu cushions still line the majli of Al Khulaifi Heritage House, and mashrabiya windows cast geometric shadows on the walls. Conserving Qatar’s traditional architectural style, the verdant central courtyard of the protected building has been repurposed into an airy café. Visit Bayt Sharq at breakfast to try balaleet, a saffron-infused vermicelli dish. 

Parisa Souq Waqif
The glimmering gold and glass walls of Parisa’s glitzy dining room resemble the grandiosity of the palaces of the Shah’s Tehran. Yet in its most opulent modern era, the grandeur of Persia’s architecture still paled to its rich and intricate cuisine. Visit for typically Iranian slow cooked stews and saffron-basted charcoal meats.

Gahwetna
Thick Arabic coffee flows from gleaming dallah pots in Gahwetna, a specialised coffee shop serving light bites alongside steaming cups. Try a tannour bread, baked in clay pots utilised across the gulf, topped with typical ingredients like honey, almond, sumac and pomegranate, or throw tradition to the wind and add pepperoni or jalapeños.

Jiwan by Alain Ducasse
Located within the walls of the National Museum of Qatar, Jiwan, too, takes visitors on a journey through Qatari heritage. Serving spiced lamb slow cooked in the Arabian style and snapper caught off the Doha shore, simmered in a saffron broth, the restaurant endeavours to celebrate the abundance that comes with the country’s distinct landscape. 

Chapati and Karak
The unassuming array of al fresco diners perpetually perched outside Chapati and Karak might not give the right impression of their immense success. Recently exporting their classic Indian dishes to London, setting up in a swanky Knightsbridge residence, it’s best to visit the favourite spot of Doha locals in their home city.

Walima
The luxurious patio which tops the Mondrian Doha comes with panoramic city views, packed guest lists for the popular weekend brunches, and local DJs keeping the crowds entertained. Truly fusion in its cultural fashion, the trendy spot serves a medley of Mediterranean dishes with the uncommon option to drink alcohol alongside your meal.