Traditional Qatari restaurants are surprisingly hard to find, both outside of and within Qatar. Only at Souq Waqif are there a couple of truly traditional restaurants. Instead, visitors will find that most restaurants typically include some Qatari dishes on the menu.

The national dish of Qatar would have to be makboos, or kabsa, a spiced rice dish topped with marinated meat (usually lamb). It’s the Qatari version of biryani and it’s divine.

Other delicious dishes include balaleet (sweet pasta topped with a fried egg), saloona (meat broth with veggies), thareed (a meat and veggie stew with bread) and harees (wheat and meat porridge), amongst many other delicious food. Qatar is home to wildly diverse eats from all over the world so be sure to sample some of the many spectacular restaurants.

If you’d like to get a true taste of the food scene in Qatar, consider taking this food and culture tour!