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A couple of days ago the Talabat service went down and rumors started circulating that they were hacked. Now Talabat have released a statement saying that wasn’t the case:

We assure our customers and partners that all data remains fully secure despite false social media rumors. A temporary technical issue was resolved quickly, and there was no compromise of payment or personal information.

Bader Al-Ghanim, VP & Managing Director – talabat Kuwait.
@Talabat

I don’t have any of my credit cards saved in the app since I use Apple Pay to pay, so I wasn’t concerned anyway.

As you’ve probably noticed, news outlets today are reporting that Kuwait Airways was ranked the 20th best airline in the world, but they all seem to have missed the bigger story. It ranked over 30 spots higher than both Emirates and Cathay Pacific, two of the most highly awarded airlines.

AirHelp, the organization specializing in air traveler rights, released its annual airline rankings, and Kuwait Airways came in 20th place. Interestingly, this is the same organization that ranked Kuwait Airways the 3rd worst airline in 2019 and Kuwait Airport the 2nd worst airport. After that ranking, Kuwait Airport mysteriously vanished from their list and hasn’t returned since.

AirHelp’s airline rankings are based on service quality, punctuality, and passenger treatment during disruptions. The top three airlines for 2024 are:

1 – Brussels Airlines
2 – Qatar Airways
3 – United Airlines

Here’s how Kuwait Airways compared to other well-known airlines:

20 – Kuwait Airways
24 – KLM
30 – Virgin Atlantic
31 – Lufthansa
33 – British Airways
53 – Wizz Air
55 – Emirates
56 – Turkish Airlines
63 – Cathay Pacific
81 – Gulf Air

Tunisair ranked last at 109th place.

I’m a huge fan of Kuwait Airways, as you probably know by now, but it’s hard to take this ranking seriously when both Emirates and Cathay Pacific rank lower than Wizz Air. For the full list, click here.

As I do every year, below is the list of Ramadan buffets, updated for 2025. It’s technically not only buffets since I also include set menu’s, but since I’ve been using the same post title for over a decade, I’m not about to change it now.

If there has been an increase or decrease in price compared to the previous year then I’ve also highlighted that.

Below is the full list divided into two parts, hotels and restaurants. If I missed a place let me know in the comments, especially really cheap/affordable buffets. Last year I had Big C on the list, they had the cheapest buffet at KD1.900 but looks like they closed down or something. IKEA increased their buffet price this year from 2.950 to 3.950 so really need some more affordable places to add. So if you know of a place where the buffet is less than KD5, let me know in the comments.

HOTELS

Al Jahra Copthorne Hotel & Resort – Taima’a Restaurant
Buffet Price: KD9.5 (+0.500)
Telephone: 24590000

Courtyard by Marriott – Atrium
Buffet Price: KD15 (-1.000)
Telephone: 22997000

Crowne Plaza – Al Ahmadi Restaurant
Buffet Price: KD17 (+1.000)
Telephone: 1848111

Crowne Plaza – Al Noukhaza Restaurant
Buffet Price: KD17
Telephone: 1848111

Crowne Plaza – Sakura Restaurant
Buffet Price: KD18.950 (+0.950) (Thursdays Only)
Telephone: 1848111

Four Seasons – Jawaher Tent
Buffet Price: KD27 (+1.000)
Telephone: 22006000

Four Seasons – Li Beirut
Set Menu: KD28
Telephone: 22006000

Grand Hyatt – Stambul
Buffet Price: KD20
Telephone: 22007698

Grand Majestic Hotel
Buffet Price: KD8
Telephone: 22254700

Hilton Garden Inn – The Avenues
Buffet Price: KD20
Telephone: 22262000

Holiday Inn – Ayam Zaman
Buffet Price: KD13.950 (-2.000)
Telephone: 1847777

Jumeirah Messilah Beach – Asateer Tent
Buffet Price: KD24 (+2.000)
Telephone: 22269600

Jumeirah Messilah Beach – Garden Cafe
Buffet Price: KD26 (+2.000)
Telephone: 22269600

Marina Hotel
Buffet Price: KD17 (+1.000)
Telephone: 22230030

Millennium Hotel – Lamar International Restaurant
Buffet Price: KD15
Telephone: 22050505

Movenpick – Free Zone – Bays Restaurant
Buffet Price: KD15 (+1.100)
Telephone: 22055700

Movenpick – Al Bida’a – Breeze Restaurant
Buffet Price: KD15
Telephone: 22253100

Park Inn by Radisson
Buffet Price: KD18
Telephone: 22068540

Radisson Blu – Al Bustan Restaurant
Buffet Price: KD18.5
Telephone: 25673000

Safir Hotel – Fintas
Buffet Price: KD11.9 (-2.000)
Telephone: 25455555

St Regis – Diamond Ballroom Tent
Buffet Price: KD30 (+2.000)
Telephone: 22422055

Symphony Style Hotel
Buffet Price: KD14 (+2.000)
Telephone: 25770000

SVN
Buffet Price: KD19
Telephone: 1876777

The Regency Kuwait – Silk Road Restaurant
Buffet Price: KD24
Telephone: 25766666

Waldorf Astoria – Oxio
Buffet Price: KD28 (+1.000)
Telephone: 24774414

RESTAURANTS

Almayass
Set Menu Price: KD11.5
Telephone: 25761001

Assaha Lebanese Restaurant
Buffet Price: KD12.750 (+0.250)
Telephone: 22533377

Babel
Set Menu Price: KD14.950
Telephone: 22081111

Dar Hamad
Buffet Price: KD16
Telephone: 22275555

Dean & Deluca
Set Menu Price: KD10.950 (+1.200)
Telephone: 22242224

Em Sherif
Set Menu Buffet Price: KD25
Telephone: 90977997

Gulf Royal Chinese
Buffet Price: KD8.5
Telephone: 22622770

IKEA
Buffet Price: KD3.95 (+1.000)
Telephone: 1840408

Jihan Khanah
Buffet Price: KD10
Telephone: 1819991

Kuwait Towers
Buffet Price: KD13 (-2.000)
Telephone: 24965500

Leila Min Lebnen
Set Menu Price: KD15
Telephone: 22996414

Mughal Mahal – Hawally
Buffet Price: KD7.45
Telephone: 22626782

Naranj
Buffet Price: KD12
Telephone: 22268666

Paul
Set Menu Price: KD12.5 (+2.000)
Telephone: 22208204

Vapiano
Set Menu Price: KD7.950
Telephone: 22597171

Villa Fayrouz
Buffet Price: KD12
Telephone: 22650052

Wok and Grill
Buffet Price: KD3 (+0.005)
Telephone: 64440089

I’ve been in Sri Lanka now for close to a week, and it’s pretty insane, and I don’t think in a good way.

I landed here on the 20th and checked into the Uga Riva Hotel in an area called Negombo that’s around 20mins from the airport. It’s kind of a getaway spot and the experience was pretty great although the amount of bugs was just pretty crazy.

I rented a car for my stay and the first two minutes of driving out of the rental lot were the most chaotic 2 minutes of my driving life. Firstly, other than the fact everything is the opposite here, steering on the right, the lanes are the opposite, the driving is pretty wild. Like I learned how to drive in Lebanon and find the experience driving there very relaxing even though most people find it chaotic. The driving in Sri Lanka on a scale of 1 to 10 is like a 7 or 8. Lebanon would be like a 6. People are completely carefree and everyone just relies on everyone else not crashing into them. It’s like organized chaos? The only people who seem to drive differently are bus drivers who drive with full confidence as if they’re the only people on the road and everyone else will get the fuck out of the way. We all really do get the fuck out of their way.

Anyway, first place I stayed in was great. Then I headed down south to an area called Ahangama. I was meant to stay at a place called Dreamsea for the first few days. The reviews online were really great, the place looked amazing in the photos, but once I checked in I was like wtf were all these reviews about? I mean just basics like the room door wouldn’t close, the bed had dried blood stains, room had bugs all over, bathroom looked very dirty. Basically it was horrible and I wouldn’t spend the night there. Thankfully I had booked another spot around a 15 minute drive from that resort for my last 4 nights called Trebartha East. It’s a small hotel located on a hill inside a cinnamon plantation. I whatsapped them asking if they had any rooms available right away and they had one, so ended up checking in a few days early and been staying there ever since.

The place is incredible, every morning I wake up and feel like I’m on a safari in the middle of the jungle. There is nothing around me except a jungle. I love it here, I’m actually sitting by the infinity pool writing this post out overlooking a valley where at any given moment there are a heard of water buffalos with white cranes grazing, or peacocks just casually strolling. It’s very surreal and beautiful. I wake up to the most beautiful views and the hotel has like 4 rooms so it feels very private and we are very secluded from the chaos thats just a 15min drive away.

But everything else here seems to be such a hit or miss. You can’t trust any reviews since most were left I assume by backpackers who have very low expectations or requirements? I’d head to a restaurant that has 4.6 rating on Google but walking by the kitchen I’m like no fucking way I’m eating here. Thankfully I’ve found a few spots that were surprisingly great.

I’ve also gotten the hang of driving here. You just need to be alert the whole time, at any moment you can hit a motorbike, Tuktuk, bus, tourist, grandma, dog, cat, cow, school kids, dog, cyclist, dog, or dog. No one ever gets out of the way, you’re always expected to maneuver around them, dogs included who just want to sleep on the side of the road. Their main road here is just two lanes, their inside roads are one lane, and I swear at one point google took me up a walking path cuz I could barely fit my tiny SUV on it and thankfully didn’t come across a Tuktuk coming the opposite way.

It’s been such a wild experience, totally love or hate moments with nothing in between. I can’t wait to get back to Kuwait.

The Kuwait Annual International Camel Racing Championship is back, taking place from February 20 to 25, 2025 at the Kuwait Camel Racing Club. This year’s event promises to be bigger than ever, bringing participants from GCC countries, the Arab world, and even Europe.

This year will mark the 23rd edition of the championship which has become an important event in Kuwait’s sporting and cultural calendar. The races bring people together from different backgrounds and have become a celebration of heritage, competition, and tradition.

Race Schedule – Kuwait Camel Racing Championship 2025
Location: Kuwait Camel Racing Club
Dates: February 20 – 25, 2025

Day 1 – Thursday, February 20, 2025

Morning Races (8:00 AM) – 4 KM
Evening Races (3:00 PM) – 4 KM

Day 2 – Friday, February 21, 2025
Morning Races (8:00 AM) – 5 KM
Evening Races (2:00 PM) – 5 KM

Day 3 – Saturday, February 22, 2025
Morning Races (8:00 AM) – 6 KM
Evening Races (1:00 PM) – 6 KM

Day 4 – Sunday, February 23, 2025
Morning Races (8:00 AM) – 8 KM
Evening Races (1:00 PM) – 8 KM

Day 5 – Monday, February 24, 2025
Morning Races (8:00 AM) – 8 KM
Evening Races (1:00 PM) – 8 KM

Day 6 – Tuesday, February 25, 2025 (Final Day)
Main Championship Races (2:30 PM) – 8 KM

If you’ve never been to a camel race before then this is a good time to do so. Entry is free and you can find the location on Google Maps by searching for “Kuwait Camel Racing Club“.

I just realized today is my 22nd blogging anniversary. I published my first post on February 6th, 2003 on qHate.com which I just realized is currently down. Turns out I changed hosts and forgot to point the domain to the new one.

Super strange that blogger.com is still online it’s the software and host we had used back then to blog from. I just logged in to make sure that Feb 6 was when I first started blogging and was surprised it worked.

22 years, still blogging.

update: qHate is back online and miskan is also online.

I try not to post too many food posts back to back, but this one couldn’t wait. According to a source of mine, La Petite Maison (LPM), the popular high-end French Mediterranean restaurant, is planning to open in Kuwait. Supposedly, the same company that brought Beefbar, Ferdi, and Philippe by Philippe Chow to Kuwait is now bringing LPM.

Since opening in London in 2007, LPM has expanded to 10 locations worldwide, including Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Riyadh, and Doha.

I reached out to both parties for confirmation. The Kuwait-based company told me they’d update me in a couple of weeks, while LPM said they can’t confirm anything for Kuwait just yet.

“Just yet” sounds promising, so hopefully, an official announcement is coming soon. For now, I’ve filed this under a rumor. @lpmrestaurants

Update: According to a reader who just messaged me, looks like LPM are coming to Kuwait because they were in negotiations for a seaside location.

This past week I managed to watch two good movies, A Different Man and Juror #2. A Different Man was such a strange beautifully shot film, it was something really different to watch and like The Substance, it was a great change from the usual.

Juror #2 on the other hand was a good film as well, with an interesting story, but not the kind of film that will stick with you or you’d remember a week later.

Finally, I started watching Dexter: Original Sin. Wasn’t sure I’d like it but it stars Christian Slater, Patrick Dempsey and Sarah Michelle Gellar so hard not to like. This Dexter is the origin story and takes place in the 90s. I’m three episodes in and liking it so far. Christian Slater is so good, I really miss watching him.

Let me know in the comments what you recently watched or planning to watch.

Movies at the Cinemas
The movies below are now showing at the local cinemas:

New This Week:
A Complete Unknown (7.7)
Dog Man (8.4)
Flight Risk (5.6)
The Last Ronin (6.1)
The Prosecutor (7.2)
Werewolves (4.4)

Other Movies Showing:
Alarum (N/A)
Buffalo Kids (6.6)
Den of Thieves 2 (6.6)
Home Alone (classic) (7.7)
Into the Deep (4.2)
Moana 2 (7.1)
Mufasa: The Lion King (6.7)
Nosferatu (7.8)
Paddington in Peru (6.8)
Sonic the Hedgehog 3 (7.5)
The Damned (6.1)
Wicked (8.1)
Wolf Man (5.9)

The numbers in brackets refer to the IMDB rating at the time of publishing.

The Ministry of Interior has recently revised the fines for traffic violations, which will take effect in April. With so many updates, it’s hard to cover them all, so I’ve highlighted the ones I think are most important. You can check them out on my instagram account here.

I’ve reworded some of the violations to make them easier to understand, but if you’d like to see the full list in its original terminology, you can find it here.

One thing I found interesting is on the last page of the fines list on the MOI account where it says:

A Fine of 1000-2000KD
Anyone who, by using a device or means of communication or otherwise, captures one or more pictures, or a video or audio clip, or publishes any of them during the commission of any of the crimes stipulated in this law.

They are basically criminalizing the act of documenting or sharing media related to a crime in progress. I’m assuming its meant for the guys who post videos on tiktok of them racing or performing stunts. But it’s not clear if this also applies to bystanders capturing a crime. For example, if I see a car parked on a curb and I post a tiktok video showing it and complaining about it. Will I be fined?

Thursday, January 23
Custom Auto Show
Family Fun with IKEA at Boulevard
The Scientific Center Green Market
Salhiya Nights Market
The Social Market

Friday, January 24
Custom Auto Show
Plugged in Music Fest
Children of the Time Machine
Family Fun with IKEA at Boulevard
The Scientific Center Green Market
Salhiya Nights Market
The Ascend Rock Climbing Games

Saturday, January 25
Qout Market at The Oasis
Custom Auto Show
Children of the Time Machine
Family Fun with IKEA at Boulevard
Classical and Romantic Songs Opera
The Scientific Center Green Market
Urban Sketchers at Al Bahar Village
Squid Game at Mishref Park
The Ascend Rock Climbing Games
Salhiya Nights Market
AAW Run for a Cause!
Charm Studio at Solelab

The Shop & Ship app got a major update yesterday. It’s mostly a visual update since the old app looked so dated, but there are also some new features which were previously only available on the website.

I haven’t explored it yet completely but from my short experience with it I noticed a couple of things. Firstly when you launch the updated app for the first time and log in, it will ask you to update you permissions to allow the app to track you. No thanks, just click on cancel. The other thing I noticed is you can now claim packages through the app, something that wasn’t possible before. Claiming packages is for those rare occasions where the person that shipped your item didn’t put your mailbox number or maybe put the wrong mailbox number. If your shipment arrives and doesn’t show up on your mailbox for a few days, you can place your tracking number int he claim package area and it will check and see if they got a package with that tracking number.

Another thing I noticed is a new “Package Alert” option. This allows you to speed up the processing time by filling out details of a package you’re expecting (courier, tracking number, item value, invoice copy) before it arrives.

So far though I really like the app, looks better and feels a lot snappier.

Not sure if the website is new or not but @q8nitro has been posting about it recently so I just found out about it. It’s a much better site than Q8Car thats for sure, and the cars on it are more interesting. Only weird thing is that I don’t think they remove cars after they’ve sold. There are cars there listed back in 2019, not sure why they’re just leaving them since it makes the overall website less useful and misleading. Link

I called basically every Japanese restaurant in Kuwait to see if they had all you can eat sushi and I just found the following four spots:

Sushi Restaurant at Courtyard
KD 8.990 Every Tuesday

Genki Sushi
KD 9.950 Every Sunday & Monday

Oishii Sushi
KD 18.5 Every Monday

Sintoho
KD 20 Every Tuesday

If you know of another spot that I might have missed, let me know in the comments so I can add it.

Qout Market, the market that started the whole markets trend in Kuwait is back again for a new season.

This year, Qout Market is happening at a brand-new location, Mishref’s Oasis, with the first one taking place on Saturday, January 25th.

Stay updated on the new season by following @qoutmarket

So just a quick update related to my post yesterday.

Aramex just called me now, at first she said that she is calling me to verify my delivery information. So right away I called her out on it and told her what information exactly are you verifying? For the past 4 days everyday you’ve been updating the tracking info saying there is missing delivery information and yet there is no way for me to contact you. What exactly is missing?

She then backtracked and said she misspoke, and she is actually calling me to verify my phone number because the driver went out for delivery yesterday and tried calling my numbers and couldn’t reach me.

I told her it was bullshit and they’re lying. I told her nobody tried calling me yesterday and to check the drivers phone if that is the case. I didn’t hold back, I told her all week long the issue was the address wasn’t correct, then suddenly the address is fine and the driver is out for delivery but I’m not picking up? It’s all lies.

Update: As predicted, magically they now have the proper delivery information and my shipment will most likely be getting delivered now.