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Late last week the Capital Markets Authority (CMA) issued a circular banning crypto payments, investment and mining.

Kuwait is currently one of the cheapest countries in the world to mine bitcoin. It is estimated that last year the cost of mining in Kuwait was just $1,400 per BTC when bitcoin was worth more than $40,000 at the time. But, the high power consumption of mining doesn’t seem to be the reason for the ban. According to an article on Yahoo Finance, the reason behind the ban is money laundering. Countries are required to put up guardrails to prevent money laundering but I guess it’s easier to just ban it completely.

What does this mean if you already own cryptocurrency? My best guess is that it would make transferring large sums of money from abroad into your account in Kuwait more difficult. If you transfer large amounts of money you need to explain where it’s coming from and I don’t think you can tell the banks anymore that they’re from your crypto investments. Maybe a banker can clear this up for us.

Update: according to a reader the circular doesn’t apply to individuals.

Back in February I drove down to Riyadh to watch the Jake Paul vs Tommy Fury fight and I had a blast. I thought I posted about my experience but seems like I didn’t for some reason. It was such a well put together event and I ended up getting really great VIP seats for not so much money. It also gave me access to the premium hospitality area where there was lots of food, a terrace to watch the fights from if I wanted to but it also allowed me to be up close to the fighters during their walkouts. The fights were great, the venue was great, everything about that trip was perfect.

A few days ago Tyson Fury, the world heavyweight champion announced that he will be boxing UFC heavyweight champion Francis Ngannou this coming October in Riyadh. I’m assuming it’s going to be held in the same open air venue as the Jake Paul fight and I’m 100% going to try and get tickets for this fight once they go on sale.

If you want a great experience this October, as I said last time, Riyadh is just a short 6-hour drive down. My VIP ticket last time cost me 60KD and it was really really worth it but tickets last time started from just 15KD. Tickets aren’t on sale yet but I’ll repost once they are.

Fatcap is a new restaurant that opened in Kuwait City and is focused on char-grilled food. They currently have two cheeseburgers available, the Fatcap Burger with a marrownaise sauce, and an OG burger with mustard, ketchup, and pickles. There are also various sides to choose from including farm fries, cajun fries, sweet potato fries, and onion rings. Finally, they also have a nostalgic chocolate cake for dessert.



I hadn’t tried a new burger place in such a long time so I was pretty excited to try Fatcap. A friend at work had been telling me about their burgers for some time because of their killer marrownaise sauce. He wasn’t wrong, I tried both their burgers and it was hard to pick a favorite. 



The restaurant is located in Sharq, right next to Bao and Lavan (Google Maps). It’s a cute place with around 7 tables and plenty of parking. Because they’re focusing on quality they don’t have delivery only dine-in and pick-up. They’re open daily from noon till 11:30PM. Closed on Sundays.


Check them out @eatfatcap

MrBeast Burger is a burger concept by the super popular internet personality MrBeast. If you haven’t heard of him, he has over 165 million subscribers on YouTube and is mostly known for his extravagant stunts and challenges videos.

MrBeast Burger is popping up in Kuwait tomorrow (July 7) and for one day only. Talabat will be hosting MrBeast Burger and they’ll be going live around 11AM. Delivery will be to most of Kuwait except for Mangaf, Sabahiya and Jahra.

The burger reviews online are pretty mixed, but based on MrBeasts popularity, I’d assume Talabat are going to be pretty busy tomorrow.

The Armenian national carrier, Fly Arna now flies direct to Kuwait twice a week. The flight from Kuwait to Armenia is only around 2 hours long and ticket prices start at 82KD.

I went to Armenia back in 2020 and loved it although I might be a bit biased since I’m half Armenian. The food was amazing, there was a lot to see, and the city gave off a great vibe. I’d put a travel guide together although I’m not sure it would be accurate since I went just pre-Covid so might have to head there again for a few days again just to revisit some places.

If you’re looking for a new, interesting and close destination to fly to, this is it. To book a ticket or check the prices, visit flyarna.com

MyHome is an app that offers a variety of home services you can order ranging from AC maintenance and plumbing work to painting, electrical, and anything else you might require. One useful feature they also offer is their hourly cleaning service.

I know from personal experience that it’s not easy to find a part-time cleaner to come over and clean the house on a regular basis which is why I think this service is really useful. Starting at 18KD for 4 hours, MyHome will send over a small team to your house with all the materials and equipment needed to clean your place. Their service encompasses everyday cleaning tasks such as carpet vacuuming, floor sweeping, surface wiping, and more.

MyHome’s attention to detail is paramount which is why their staff undergo rigorous training and must follow a comprehensive cleaning checklist to ensure a level of cleanliness akin to caring for one’s own home. It’s also why they’re able to offer a “MyHome Guarantee”. If a customer is unsatisfied with the cleaning, MyHome will redo the cleaning job the following day.

If you’re looking for a long-term solution, MyHome also offers a monthly cleaning package ranging from 4 visits a month up to 16. Additionally, MyHome can also provide you with a deep cleaning service that can effectively tackle embedded dirt, stains, and hard-to-reach areas.

As an exclusive deal to my readers, MyHome is offering a 24.8% discount on the monthly packages for 248AM readers until July 15, 2023. Simply use the code 248AM on checkout to apply this deal. myhomeapp.io

Those of you who remember when the Korean supermarket Singarea was in Dajeej might remember they had a very cool Korean restaurant upstairs. That restaurant closed in 2012 and since then Singarea has moved out of Dajeej and opened several stores around Kuwait including their most recent one at Boulevard in Salmiya. When I first visited that location, I noticed they had an area in the back for a small restaurant and I got excited since I used to be a fan of the one in Dajeej. Yesterday morning the owner of Singarea got in touch with me and invited me to pass by for a tasting.

The whole invitation thing happened quickly and last minute since I’m traveling this weekend and we were trying to make it work before I left. I even struggled to find a friend to come a long but luckily I did because there was a lot of food to try. Since I was a fan of the previous Singarea restaurant, I didn’t really ask any questions about the place, I just headed there not knowing what to expect but figured it would be the run of the mill Korean restaurant.

But, when I got there and sat down, a few things caught my attention. The first were the expensive Devialet Phantom II speakers hung around the restaurant, then I noticed the heavy brass side plates on the table with handmade lacquered chopsticks. I didn’t think of it much until they brought out the first dish and my friend was like Mark, I think this is fine dining.

They didn’t have a menu because it was still being worked on so they brought out dishes for us based on their recommendation. The first dish was a custard egg with seafood, something I’ve never had before and the presentation looked pretty fancy. Right away they captured my interest and I was now really intrigued about the place. One by one the dishes started coming out, we got a grapefruit yuza salad next, then a seafood pajeon, tteokbokki (the best rice cakes I’ve had), both a beef and seafood Albap served bento box style, and more. It was a lot of food and a lot of different and exciting flavors to try. The seafood pajeon (the pancake like dish) is now probably my favorite Korean dish ever, it was so good and bursting with so many different flavors, it’s the dish thats going to keep me going back. But really everything we tried was visually interesting and delicious except for probably the galbi steak dish which I felt needed some sauce on the side to dip into.

Once we were done I sat with Penny the owner of Singarea, a young trendy looking guy with long hair and cool kicks. His father opened Singarea in Kuwait over 40 years ago and now he’s taken it over. He explained to me his concept of wanting to serve premium Korean dishes but without the high prices usually associated with it. He’s starting off small (the restaurant has only 6 tables) but has the ability to expand later. They hadn’t finalized the prices or menu yet when I visited, but they’re aiming for an average paycheck of around 8-10KD per person.

KI:WA (or just Kiwa) is aiming to open next week on June 1st. It’s located at the back of the Singarea store in Boulevard next to the lake, and they’ll be open for both lunch and dinner. You can stay posted on the restaurant and the opening by checking @singareamarket or @kiwa.q8

Update: So turns out the galbi steak dish came with a pepper cream sauce but I didn’t see it since it was hidden from my sight behind the dish 😅

The Aware Center is holding a Grand Mosque tour in English this coming Saturday, May 13th at 10:00 AM.

The tour will take you through the Arabic calligraphy exhibition, the main prayer hall, and the Emir’s hall.

Dress Code: No sleeveless shirts nor shorts for men, and full-length cloaks and headscarves for women

Parking: Available at gate 5

Meeting Point: Main Gate of the Grand mosque opposite Burgan Bank

Meeting Time: 9:45 AM

These tours aren’t held every weekend and aren’t always in English so don’t miss it if you’ve been meaning to go. Registration is required but this is a free tour. To register click here.

CARI is a food delivery app that promises to deliver your food within 30 minutes. Since I first posted about them back in October, there have been significant changes to the app.

Firstly, many new restaurants have joined the platform and are now part of the 30-minute delivery guarantee. These include BBT, Chucks, RHS, Marble Slab Creamery, Arabica, Domino’s Pizza, Johnny Rockets, DOH, Vigonovo, and others.

CARI has also managed to secure some popular restaurants exclusively on its platform, such as BFTP, Shrimp Pot, Holy Katsu, and Bob’s. Additionally, CARI has introduced a new feature called the “Delivery Box,” which is a secure box installed outside your home to keep your food hot after delivery. If you’re interested in getting one of those, you can contact them through their DM.

It’s worth noting that all deliveries on CARI are free of charge.

Lastly, if you’re a fan of McDonald’s, you are in for a treat! McDonald’s is on CARI and for the first time ever, McDonald’s is free delivery!

If you want to find out more about CARI, their website is getcari.com and their Instagram is @get.cari

Walking around malls is a great way to hit your steps goal, especially if it’s too hot outside or if you don’t live near any walking tracks. But how many steps is each lap of a mall, and how many calories do you burn? To find out, I visited various malls around Kuwait and completed one lap of each while tracking my steps and calorie burn using my Apple Watch.

While my data isn’t scientific, I established some rules to ensure consistency. I did one lap only and I started and ended my walk in the same spot. I did not travel up or down escalators, but I did travel to the different phases and extensions if I could do so without changing floors. I also tried to walk at the same brisk pace. Your data might differ from mine, but it should be good enough to give you a rough idea of what to expect.

I’ve ranked my top six favorite malls based on a number of factors, including steps per lap, parking availability, overall convenience, the width of the mall floor, and visual stimulation during the walk. Here are my top 6:

#1 The Avenues
3,211 steps
33min 5sec
2.52km
174cal

#2 360 Mall
1464 steps
16min 14sec
1.19km
85cal

#3 Assima
569 steps
5min 51sec
0.43km
30cal

#4 Souq Sharq
706 steps
6min 25sec
0.48km
35cal

#5 Al Kout Mall
549 steps
5min 29sec
0.40km
27cal

#6 Marina Mall
664 steps
7min 58sec
0.56km
38cal

If you’re looking for something fun and different to do this coming holiday weekend, drive down to Riyadh for the Paul vs Fury fight. Jake Paul, the popular YouTuber turned boxer is fighting Tommy Fury, the brother of two-time heavyweight boxing world champion Tyson Fury. The event is on February 26th and ticket prices start at just 15KD.

Riyadh is just 6 hours away by car and there are plenty of things to do there. If you want fight tickets, click here.

The Palestinian Culture Center has been operating in Kuwait since the early 1970s. Every year they hold an exhibition with the aim to keep this vibrant culture alive and support underprivileged women and children in the camps.

This year the heritage exhibition will mark the launch of Palestinian Cultural Week. Starting today till Thursday, the Palestinian Culture Center will be holding its exhibition at the Women’s Cultural & Social Society in Khaldiya from 10AM to 8PM.

The exhibition will have hand-stitched dresses, shawls, and cushions for sale, as well as handmade ceramics, books, and food aimed to preserve the Palestinian national identity and showcase how it adapts to modern times.

Below is the schedule of the rest of the events this week:

For more info check out @palestiniancc

The annual camel racing tournament starts this Saturday, February 4th, and will last until February 9th. If you’ve been meaning to go to the races but have been putting it off, now would be the best time to go.

There will be races every morning and afternoon except for the last day when it will only be held in the afternoon. Below are the start times of the races:

Sat Feb 4 – 8AM and 3:30PM
Sun Feb 5 – 8AM and 1:30PM
Mon Feb 6 – 8AM and 1:30PM
Tue Feb 7 – 8AM and 1:30PM
Wed Feb 8 – 8AM and 1:30PM
Thu Feb 9 – 3:30PM

There is no entrance fee and you can either watch the races from the track stands or drive up to the starting lines and watch the start of the races.

Here is the location on Google Maps.

This might come in handy one day, a reader recently lost one of his license plates and decided to share the process of getting a new one in case it happens to anyone else. Here are the steps he had to take:

1. Go to the police station and get a police complaint

2. Go to your traffic department and get an application typed by the typing center there (tell them you need to get a new license plate). You will need your civil ID copy, a copy of the car registration, and the original copy of the police complaint from the first step

3. You’ll need to purchase a stamp, the amount depends on the type of license plate you have

4. You need to go to the department head and get his signature and stamp. He will also ask you to write your name, number and sign the paper.

5. After getting your paper signed you will have to go to one of the computer counters. They will enter your details and then call you and ask you to take photocopies of two papers and go to the license plates room. Make sure you don’t have any fines before giving them your papers or else they’ll give them back to you and ask you to go pay your fines first

6. The license plates person will give you a small sheet of paper with details attached to the photocopies you gave them

7. Take the paper and then head to the Assima traffic department in Shuwaikh and head to the license plate factory there which is on the ride side of the main building (Google Maps)

8. Give the paper to the guy at the reception and he will ask you to get a signature from the manager. When you get that signature give the paper back to him

9. He will ask you to wait and 5-10 minutes later you’ll have your new license plate

Thanks Uzair

Bonjiri, the Yakitori bar by Chef Maryam Alnusif (Mimi) last night became the second restaurant from Kuwait to make it to the Middle East & North Africa’s 50 Best Restaurants list. Bonjiri came in the No.50 spot, a few spots behind White Robata which came in 42nd but still an amazing accomplishment considering all the competition in the region.

If you’ve never been to Bonjiri before, check out my review here. For the full top 50 list, check out @theworlds50best