Restaurateurs expect rise in iftar diners after first week of Ramadan

AMMAN — With Ramadan in full swing, the Kingdom’s restaurant sector is expected to bounce back during the holy month, said President of the Jordan Association for Restaurants and Sweet Shops Owners Omar Awad on Monday.

“This year, people in Jordan mostly broke their fast at home in the first day of Ramadan, there were negligibly small numbers of people eating out for iftar (the fast-breaking meal at sunset), and the number of food deliveries has slightly increased,” Awad told The Jordan Times over the phone.

Awad said that currently supermarkets, hypermarkets and butcher shops are full with shoppers, as the holy monthly is marked by high demand for basic products like vegetables, rice, meat and chicken.

During the first days of the holy month, people in Jordan usually prefer to break their fast at home with their families and friends, which is one of the reasons why still there is no footfall in restaurants, he stated, noting that the weak purchasing power is another reason for the slight increase in sector activity.

Forecasting people’s dining preferences this Ramadan, he noted that “starting next week, we expect larger numbers of people to dine in restaurants during iftar and suhoor (pre-dawn meal) hours,” noting that an increase in dessert orders is also expected post-iftar hours.

Omar Salah, owner of a barbecue restaurant, highlighted an increase of about 25 per cent in orders during the first day of the holy month.

“Most people picked up their orders, and I expect orders to increase by at least 50 per cent during Ramadan, because barbecue is a preferred cuisine in Jordan,” Salah told The Jordan Times.

“We have had a significant increase in orders during suhoor, as we remain open with extended hours to midnight,” said Mahmoud Bashir, an employee at a restaurant in downtown Amman.