Popular homegrown UAE casual dining concept, Chez Sushi, continues to build upon the popularity of sushi as a quick and healthy food by rolling out its network of restaurant franchises to four of the GCC nations.
In just three years since its launch, the brand has already built an impressive portfolio of four outlets located in Dubai, UAE; two in Muscat, Oman; one in Manama, Bahrain; and is poised to open its first branch in KSA later this year, taking its tally of restaurants to eight.
“Sushi is one of the fastest-growing sectors within the international casual dining industry,” says Hiba Kosta, managing partner and co-founder of Chez Sushi. “Since launching the Chez Sushi brand in Dubai in January 2013 we have gone from strength to strength and have opened a new outlet, on average, every six months.”
Just as the Chez Sushi brand is on a roll, Kosta herself is seeing her own star in the ascendency as a highly successful female entrepreneur at the helm of one of the UAE’s homegrown F&B success stories. Armed with a diploma from London’s renowned Leiths School of Food and Wine, Kosta – who’s originally from Lebanon – is also behind some of Dubai’s long-standing culinary hits including Sho Cho, Flooka and Loca.
“In the UAE we’re accustomed to seeing international F&B brands setting up shop here; what we are still lacking however is imaginative, homegrown dining concepts. Since launching Chez Sushi we’ve successfully established a benchmark within the region’s fast-casual market for innovative, custom-rolled Japanese food using organic, fresh and locally-sourced ingredients,” she continues.
One of the brand’s defining USP’s is that it offers customers the chance to get creative and customise their own sushi rolls using white or brown rice, a wide selection of fillings and various dressings which are then assembled to order by highly-trained chefs.
Chez Sushi’s primary unique selling point is that it offers customers the chance to create and customise their own rolls, choosing from brown or white rice, a large selection of fillings and various dressings, which are then put together to order.Ensuring the brand remains true to its original essence is something Kosta says the team has placed great emphasis on especially as the brand continues to expand its portfolio across the GCC. “The UAE dining scene has long been about bringing in well-known restaurants from abroad. So is the era of the Dubai or Abu Dhabi-born restaurant franchise now upon usOur ongoing success within the region’s highly competitive F&B arena is underpinned by our winning combination of quality, bespoke dishes, great service and collaboration with strong partnerships – all of which lay the foundations for driving the business forward in new markets.”
Chez Sushi’s latest expansion will see it launch its first outlet in KSA in the city of Jeddah, later in 2016.
