ITCHY FEET TRAVELS

Hail, Saudi Arabia

Dec 31, 202

A confirmed streetfoodaholic, I usually don’t get to too many restaurants when I travel. But someone in Jeddah had recommended a restaurant in Hail that was part museum and part restaurant. Part museum? Of course I had to see it! Robert and Bruni, the couple who had given me a ride to Hail were more than game and we found ourselves at Al Turathi. It is an old house that has been converted to a restaurant.

Some of the dishes we recognized were typically rice and meat, but some were brand new. Among them were pasta and bread masquerading as vegetables, apparently very Saudi, or so we were told.

Riyadh, Saudi Arabia

Jan 2, 2023

In the only hostel in Saudi Arabia, in Riyadh, I met only a couple of other travelers, but many Saudi women. They come here for a weekend or a week or long-term as they work or study. This was my only real conversation with locals, and I enjoyed it thoroughly.

It was Nur, with whom I spoken the most who suggested a place to eat camel meat. It was something I wanted to try before leaving Saudi Arabia. What I had not known was that her friend Ziad would insist on treating us, brooking no arguments.

The restaurant was an old building but more elaborate than the one in Hail. Set around a lush central courtyard were spaces spread with carpets and cushions to lean on. The camel meat came piled on a platter of rice along with a few other dishes, deemed local by Ziad. And no, it did not taste like chicken. It tasted like lean beef.