Saudi Cuisine

Kabsa is the dish most often named as national: long-grain rice cooked with lamb or chicken, tomato, dried lime and a spice mix, served on a communal platter with the meat on top. Mandi, from the Hadhramaut tradition and common in the south and the Hejaz, cooks the meat in a pit oven over the rice. Jareesh is crushed wheat cooked with meat and yoghurt to a porridge, a Najdi dish; saleeg from the Hejaz is rice cooked in milk and broth to a similar texture. Mutabbaq is a stuffed folded pastry sold from street windows. Dates and gahwa, pale cardamom coffee poured from a dallah into small cups, are served at every arrival and refused by shaking the cup.

What you actually see

• Kabsa - the spiced rice and lamb served on a shared platter.
• Mandi - the pit-oven meat and rice of the southern tradition.
• Jareesh and saleeg - the Najdi and Hejazi porridge-textured dishes.
• Dates and gahwa - the coffee and dates offered at every visit.

When to go

Year round. Ramadan changes everything: eating and drinking in public in daylight is prohibited, and the iftar meal after sunset is when families and restaurants come alive. Eid brings large family cooking.

Honest expectations

Restaurant food in the cities is largely Levantine, Egyptian, Indian or international; genuinely Saudi cooking is domestic. Portions on shared platters are very large. Alcohol is prohibited throughout the country. During Ramadan daytime restaurant service is suspended.

Nearby

Riyadh and Jeddah for restaurants; the bazaars for dates and coffee.