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50s to 90s Food & Drinks Information Interesting Kuwait

The I like it spicy guy

OK be prepared for the best post yet on this blog…

I was talking to a friend of mine about Salmiya in the 80s and one thing led to another and I was telling him how strong a brand Tikka was back then. I was telling him about the “I like it spicy” guy (pictured above) and the Tikka commercials and how if you asked anyone who grew up in Kuwait back in the 80s they would remember the commercial and even sing you the jingle. It became a classic like the Pizza Italia and Hungry Bunny commercials.

Anyway I thought to myself, wouldn’t it be cool to find out who the “I like it spicy” guy was, what happened to him and how he looked like today? Well guess what… After a bit of research and digging around I found out who he was.

The actor who played the “I like it spicy” character was Galal Zaki. He wasn’t an actor, he worked in the ad agency that came up with the idea. Like Alfred Hitchcock, Galal liked to star in his own work and that’s how he ended up becoming the Tikka guy. the picture below is of Galal Zaki which I found on Google and is dated 2007. Although a lot older now you can still see some resemblance.

Today Galal Zaki is the CEO of Perception Communication in Egypt. He was also recently awarded the Rameh IAA Lifetime Achievement Award.

Update: Here is an old Tikka commercial. It’s not the famous one but its better than nothing…


[YouTube]

Update2: And here is the more popular one…


[YouTube]

51 replies on “The I like it spicy guy”

K sorry, I was a bit too excited , yea the I like it spicy guy, its really cool you found him after all this time, seriously it is ! Hats off !

MapleLeaf_Cedar, the disappointing thing is, like the vast majority of other arab beauty pageant chicks, she got no ass.

although i do think she needs to have a dozen of cheeseburgers now that she’s won the thing..

Back then 🙁 they used to have the best ever ever ever ever ever Shawarma, nothing comes close to it.

Go to the perception website press on:
Services
Documentaries
Mena Garden City

Within the first 30 seconds you will see Galal Zaki doing the exact tikka guy pose and you’ll know for sure its him ! 🙂

whoa! hes a CEO? This is by far the best post on this blog, nice investigative work Mark.

Now for your next mission;
1. Who was the bunny in Hungry Bunny?
2. Locate the Kuwaiti who ran like hell to get some Pizza Italia and get him on the Olympic Team

Oh my god Mark .. really made me laugh, My mom used to feed us Tikka whenever we nagged for junk food. Its her way to trick us and make us feel that we are eating from outside.

I loved Tikka and still do, but the story is really interesting. Ever wondered about the voices of cartoon characters we used to watch when we grew up? Who was Cabamaro? who is Flona ? who is Hidi? who is Adnan w Leena?? always wondered how they looked?

singing the jingle to Hungry bunny and Tikka….hehehehe…i thought i was the only one who did it these days, my kids think I’m wierd, “mom pleeeeeeeeeeeease stop”

liked the second clip…..ya allah…can still remember the taste …..& dont forget wimppy….and supper bunny sandwich …used to go to salmiya branch near center piont current location

I know Galal Zaki (the “I like it spicy” guy) and was coincidentally in Cairo with him at a function on Saturday night!

I am going to send him the link to your little piece on him right now 🙂

The adverts… made me hungry! I guess tonight i’m going to order some Tikka ;p

Too bad they have increased the prices (half dinar for the meal!), started to charge us for the garlic, and i think reduced the weight of their chicken… ;/

I just saw the ads, pretty nice and risque for its time. I don’t watch any local TV, but I somehow don’t think you can get away with 3 sultry blondes singing ‘I like it spicy’ nowadays.

Takes me back to the good ‘ol ” Je soo ” ad from Samsung. They don’t make ’em like that anymore.
My, my – those were the days of our youth!
Thanks Mark for keeping memories of the Old Kuwait (avant Dubai) alive, every now and again.

I used to love watching the old KTV 2 not so much for Falcon Crest or Return to Eden, as for the Christoffle and Joy by Jean Patou ads.
🙂

Dearest Mark,Thank you so much for taking me back to the good old days:). I am still very close to the Kuwait Food Company and I would love to come over and talk about the Advertising Scene in the Region. Maybe work as your assistant. I have so much that I would love to share with people from the industry…clients, agencies, media.How I foretold 9/11 in 1985 through a conference I organised called Advista Arabia,how I named and worked on the first events mangement company in the region (AAPIC), How I launched the first ever American Wheat Quality Seal program.Social marketing in Health, Education, Environment. Corporate Social Responsibility.How I never applied for a job and always got offers because I used to tell jokes. When I was at school all I was interested in was sports and girls (and not necessarily in that order) I quickly discovered that to attract girls I had to learn to tell jokes. Please keep in touch with me. All the best, Galal “Mr Spicey”

The pepperoni ( Pizza Italia ) reminds me of my younger days and Man the Chicken Tikka Guy….ha ha …Old Memories indeed. Trust me ppl of the newer generation.Nowadays Chicken Tikka is just crapy like others.The older one was a classic one indeed !!!

@ justanothaone :

Surely, you are not referring to Zaki as the little kid?! He may well be on his way to having little grand kids his own.

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