Category: Kuwait

Condé Nast Traveler just published their list of “The 11 Best Restaurants in Kuwait” on their website. Here’s what they picked, in no particular order:

• B+F
• Dandoosh Restaurant
• Better Diner
• Milk Bun
• Freej Swaileh
• Lï Beirut
• Selera Kita Restaurant
• Midar
• Cocoa Room
• Amiti Noura
• Shawarma Mishref

Seems like an odd list. I definitely would’ve included Phet Phet, Matbakhi, and Oak & Smoke. Having two burger spots and two shawarma places also feels repetitive for such a short list.

Pictured up top is Li Beirut.

Originally from California, Claudia Farkas Al Rashoud has been working in Kuwait since 1979, when she became the first professional female photojournalist for the Arab Times newspaper. Claudia still has all the negatives and slides from the photos she took and has been incredibly kind in digging through her archives to find images I’ve requested. I sent her a fairly long list of the most random subjects I’m interested in, and so far she hasn’t blocked me, which is good news!

The first batch of photos I’ll be sharing from her archive are of Entertainment City during its construction.

Claudia had taken photos and written a number of articles on Entertainment City for the Arab Times and other magazines. At the time, Entertainment City was the first theme park in the region and Kuwait’s most complex construction project, so it was big news. The design was handled by VTN, an American consulting firm, while construction was a joint venture between the Kuwaiti company International Contractors Group (ICG) and Castelli of Italy.

The park was divided into three main areas: Arab World, International World, and Future World. The contract was valued at KD 16,845,281, with around KD 1.8 million allocated to just two rides, Sinbad the Sailor and the African Boat Ride. Construction began in February 1979 and was commissioned by the Ministry of Public Works. At the time, it was one of the most ambitious and impressive projects ever undertaken in Kuwait. The park even featured Kuwait’s first railway line, which ran for two kilometers.

The photos she has are from different points in time, starting from the construction phase to after the park was completed. The aerial shots of the construction site were taken from the Space Needle in Future World. You can check out all the photos on my Instagram account.

If you’re interested in more of Claudia’s photos, her books are available for sale at the CAP Bookshop in Shuwaikh. Claudia is also the co-founder of Touch of Hope, the Kuwait’s largest animal shelter. @claudia_alrashoud

Here’s my 2025 list of pools in Kuwait that offer day passes. This list is strictly “singles friendly,” except for two pools that have ladies-only days or families-only access on weekends.

Arabella Beach Hotel
Telephone: 22277744
Timings: 10am to 7pm
Weekdays 25KD
Weekends Not Available

Argan Al Bida’a Club
Telephone: 22263115
Timings: 8am to 8pm
Weekdays 30KD
Weekends 35KD (Families Only)

Copthorne Al Jahra Hotel & Resort
Telephone: 24590000
Timings: 9am to 7pm
Weekdays/Weekends 10KD

Crowne Plaza
Telephone: 1848111
Timings: 6am to 10pm
Weekdays/Weekends 20KD

Four Seasons Hotel
Telephone: 22006000
Timings: 8am to 6pm
Weekdays/Weekends 40KD (70KD Couple)

Holiday Inn & Suites
Telephone: 25760000
Timings: 6:30am to Midnight
Weekdays 20KD
Weekend 29KD

Hyatt Regency Al Kout Mall
Telephone: 23931234
Timings: 8am to 8pm
Weekdays/Weekends 25KD
(Ladies only days on Mondays and Wednesdays)

Marina Hotel
Telephone: 22230030
Timings: 9am to 6pm
Weekdays 35KD
Weekends 40KD

Millennium Hotel
Telephone: 22050505
Timings: 9am to 6pm
Weekdays/Weekends 25KD

Mövenpick Hotel Resort AlBidaa
Telephone: 22253100
Timings: 8am to 8pm
Weekdays 25KD
Weekends 30KD

Park Inn by Radisson
Telephone: 22068500
Timings: 8am to 8pm
Weekdays/Weekends 15KD

Radisson Blu (member invite required)
Telephone: 25673000
Timings: 6am to 11pm
Weekdays 20KD
Weekends 30KD

SVN Club (member invite required)
Telephone: 1876777
Timings: 6am to Midnight
Weekdays 30KD
Weekends 40KD

Symphony Style Hotel
Telephone: 25770000
Timings: 9am to 5pm
Weekdays 20KD
Weekends 25KD

Waldorf Astoria
Telephone: 24774444
Timings: 10am to 6pm
Weekdays/Weekends 45KD (includes 15KD food voucher)

Found this driving license from 1961 for sale. It’s number 2061, I wonder if that means there were only 2000 drivers on the roads back then?

A couple of weeks ago the Ministry of Interior announced that expats are now able to get a physical driving license printed for a KD 10 fee. A lot of people were asking what the process was, and thanks to the Reddit user InsecureInflux, there are now instructions. Here are the steps he took to get his physical driving license:

• Go to your respective Muroor.
• Visit the typing section and request a physical license.
• Provide your civil ID and license; they’ll type out a form for you (fee: KD 1).
• Take the form to one of the counters inside; they’ll give you a paper with your license details.
• Take both papers to the stamping officer; pay KD 10 for the stamp.
• Obtain the manager’s signature on the stamped papers.
• Submit the signed papers at one of the counters.
• Wait approximately 10–15 minutes to receive your printed license.

Expo 2025 officially opened yesterday in Osaka, Japan under the theme “Designing Future Society for Our Lives.” The event will focus on innovation, sustainability, and global collaboration, featuring pavilions from countries and organizations from around the world.

The Kuwait Pavilion is one of the most anticipated ones, designed by the architectural firm LAVA (Laboratory for Visionary Architecture). The structure is envisioned as a “Visionary Lighthouse,” symbolizing Kuwait’s embrace of Arab culture, arts, and social initiatives.

Kuwaiti chef Khaled AlBaker (@chefkb) is currently in Japan as the head chef for the Kuwait Pavilion, and he just sent me some photos he took. Khaled helped set up the menu for the pavilion’s restaurant, Sidra, which features classic Kuwaiti dishes like machboos and mourabian among other things. The restaurant is open to all visitors who want to try Kuwaiti food. According to him, getting everything ready wasn’t easy since most of the chefs there aren’t trained in Arabic cuisine, and sourcing the right ingredients was a challenge. But in the end, they managed to make it work.

The Kuwait Pavilion has four exhibition rooms that take you on a multi-sensory journey through Kuwait’s past, present, and future. The experience ends with a massive dome projection that’s supposedly pretty epic. Expo 2025 runs until October 13, so if you’re in Japan over the next six months, you can pass by and check it out.

For more details on the Kuwait Pavilion, you can head over to their Instagram @kuwait_expo2025

Expats will now be able to get a physical copy of their driving license. Sounds weird that this is something new but until recently the Ministry of Interior had stopped printing driving licenses for expats, we only had access to a digital copy. Not a big deal if you just drive in Kuwait but the digital copy wouldn’t be accepted anywhere else in the world. This means if you traveled you wouldn’t be able to rent a car which sucks.

Thankfully the MOI has now changed their mind and allowing us to get printed driving licenses again. Mine expires next month which is perfect timing. The only caveat is that we now have to pay 10KD to get a physical copy which I don’t think is an issue. Source

Service Hero recently revealed the results of its 2024 Customer Satisfaction Index, and the top brands in Kuwait have been named (based entirely on you).

If you’re not familiar with Service Hero, it’s the region’s only consumer-powered index, measuring how happy people are with the service they receive across different industries. It’s been running in Kuwait since 2010 and follows strict international research standards, so the results are credible and transparent.

Over 28,000 assessments were collected from customers across Kuwait, rating brands in categories like satisfaction, complaint resolution, loyalty, and more. This isn’t a popularity contest, it’s a data-driven reflection of how brands are actually performing. Here are the winners:

Entertainment: Vox Cinema
Islamic Banks: Boubyan Bank
Retail Banks: National Bank of Kuwait
New Car Sales: Toyota
Car Service: Chevrolet
Private Hospitals: Royal Hayat Hospital
Delivery Apps: Jahez
Restaurants: Mais Alghanim
Fast Food: Pick Yo!
Clothes: Centrepoint
Electronics: X-Cite
Health Clubs: Oxygen Health Club
Home Furniture: Home Centre
ISPs: Zain
Mobile Operators: Zain
Cafes: The Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf
Airlines: Qatar Airways
Supermarkets: City Hypermarket

I don’t think there is anything on the list above that felt out of place, it’s not like Aramex won best delivery courier or anything controversial like that. Link

A couple of weeks ago, Kuwait Flour Mills introduced coffee at some of their branches, and it’s been causing quite a bit of drama. Why? Because of the prices. KFM is selling espresso and Americano for 500 fils, and a latte for just 750 fils. That’s around half the price, or even less, compared to most coffee shops.

They aren’t skimping on quality either. KFM are using proper grinders (Eureka) and coffee machines (IBERITAL) to pull the shots, and their beans are from 48 East who also provided the training.

I passed by the Yarmouk branch this morning to see what the fuss was about, but the line was so long I decided to drive to their Fahad Al Ahmad branch instead. It also had a line, but a much shorter one. I tried both the hot and iced latte and although they weren’t better than the coffee I make at home, it definitely was better than most coffees in that price range.

Some coffee shop owners are upset about the pricing and have been voicing their frustration online. Since Kuwait Flour Mills is government-owned, they feel it’s unfair for them to sell coffee this cheap.

It costs me around 360 fils to make an espresso at home using beans from %Arabica, so it definitely costs coffee shops and KFM even less with wholesale pricing. So are coffee shops being greedy, or is KFM undercharging?

Personally, I think the hype might hurt some coffee shops for now, but eventually people will go back to buying coffee from their favorite (and usually most convenient) spots.

I’m always incredibly jealous of the kinds of photos Bader Alshaiji (@badshaiji) has access to. Thankfully, he loves sharing as much as I do. When I saw he had photos I’d never seen before of the Kuwait Towers under construction, I reached out and asked if he could send them over to me so I could share them as well.

These are rare photos I’ve never come across before, at least not in this quality. They were taken between 1971 and 1975 and show the construction of the towers, including when they caught fire in 1973.

Check them all out on my instagram account @248am, and make sure you follow @badshaiji if you’re interested in old historical photos of Kuwait.

The World Happiness Report 2025 is out and Kuwait has dropped out of the top 20 list. Last year, Kuwait was the 13th happiest country in the world, but this year, it has dropped to 30th. I think the lowest Kuwait ever ranked was 48, while 30-34 is where it usually ranks. Last year was the highest spot Kuwait ever hit but sadly it didn’t last long.

The results are based on surveys from people in more than 140 countries who are answering questions regarding their overall satisfaction with their lives. The study also takes into account six key variables including GDP per capita, social support, healthy life expectancy, freedom, generosity and corruption.

The top three happiest countries in the world haven’t changed since last year. It’s still:

1- Finland
2- Denmark
3- Iceland

The happiest country in the Gulf is UAE coming in 21st place. For the full report, click here.

The Expat City Ranking for 2024 by InterNations is out and Kuwait is back to being the least friendly for expats. According to InterNations, Kuwait has constantly placed in the bottom 10 since the list started all the way back in 2014:

As in 2023, Kuwait ranks last (53rd out of 53 countries) in the Ease of Settling In Index. In fact, it has consistently placed in the bottom 10 since the first year of the survey in 2014.

Only about a quarter of expats in Kuwait (26%) feel welcome there (vs. 63% globally). Rather, around half don’t feel at home in the country (49% vs. 23% globally) and say it’s difficult to get used to the local culture (47% vs. 21% globally). Expats rank Kuwait dead last when it comes to Local Friendliness (53rd), and less than a quarter (22%) are happy with their social life there (vs. 52% globally).

And although 57% of respondents in Kuwait say they’ve already been there for five years or more (vs. 48% globally), the majority (53%) is still only friends with fellow expats (vs. 37% globally). This is possibly because making local friends is difficult: over three in five expats (61%) agree, 20 percentage points more than the global average of 41%.

Costa Rica on the other hand was ranked the friendliest place for expats in 2024. For the full list and more details, click here.

Here are some important Ramadan timings. If you have more to add, share them in the comments!

Banks: 10AM to 1:30PM (not including airport)
Government: 8:30AM ~ 10:30AM to 1:00PM ~ 3:00PM

360 Mall: 10AM to 4PM and 8:30PM to 1:30AM
Al Khiran Mall: 10AM to 4PM and 8:30PM to 1AM
Al Kout Mall: 10AM to 4PM and 8:30PM to 1:30AM
Avenues Mall: 10AM to 4PM and 7:30PM to 1:30AM
Boulevard: 10AM to 3PM and 8:00PM to 1:00AM
Marina Mall: 10AM to 4PM and 7:30PM to 1:30AM
Salhia Complex: 10:00AM to 4:00PM and 7:30PM to 1:30AM

Cinescape: 8:30PM
GrandCinemas: 8:00PM
Sky Cinemas: 8:00PM
VOX: 7:00PM

Al Shaheed Park: 5AM to 12AM
Abdullah Al-Salem Cultural Centre: 8PM to 11PM (Closed on Sundays)

Ace Hardware: 10:30AM to 12:00AM
IKEA: 10AM to 4PM and 8PM to 1:30AM
Lulu Hypermarket: 8AM to 3AM
Xcite: Open 24 hours in Al Rai, Fahaheel, and Hawally

Illustration by @windowsofuae

Yesterday morning, workers removed all the plastic barriers along the second phase of the Gulf Road waterfront project that starts at the SVN resort and extends to the Green Island. With the barriers gone, the waterfront is now open to the public, making it accessible to both runners and cyclists.

Similar to the first phase, the waterfront was given a complete facelift with new sidewalks, dedicated jogging and bicycle paths, as well as new lights, bins, benches and more.

The total length of the bike lanes and running track from SVN to just past the Kuwait Towers is now around 7.5KM. I used to love riding that route since it was a great workout, so I’m glad they opened it while the weather is still good.

Last night Forbes Middle East revealed their annual list of Middle East’s 100 Most Powerful Businesswomen and 7 businesswomen from Kuwait made the list for 2025. Similar to last year, what is really impressive is that 3 of the top 5 most powerful businesswomen are Kuwaiti.

Here are the most powerful women in Kuwait:

2. Shaikha Khaled Al Bahar
National Bank of Kuwait Group (NBK Group)

4. Wadha Ahmad Al-Khateeb
Kuwait National Petroleum Company (KNPC)

5. Dana Nasser Al Sabah
Kuwait Projects Company (Holding) – KIPCO

17. Nadia Bader Al-Hajji
Petrochemical Industries Company (PIC)

22. Henadi Al-Saleh
Agility

54. Elham Mahfouz
Commercial Bank of Kuwait (Al-Tijari)

58. Donna Sultan
KEO International Consultants

Forbes considered the following when creating their list:

• The impact that the leader has had on the region and the markets that she serves.
• The achievements and performance of the leader during the last year.
• Their role within the company.
• The size of the business in terms of revenues, assets, AUM, market capitalization, and number of employees.
• Sustainability and CSR initiatives.
• Years of industry experience and the time the leader has served in their current role.
• The other roles they currently hold.
• Leaders of family businesses were excluded.

For the full top 100 list, click here.