Al-Medyaf: Authentic Saudi Cuisine with a Modern Twist

In Saudi Arabia’s expanding business landscape, inspiring stories of ambitious entrepreneurs continue to emerge. Today, we shine the spotlight on Mr. Mohammed Adel Al-Ghanem, founder of Al-Medyaf Restaurant and CEO of Al-Medyaf National CO. LTD. With a strong academic background in finance and marketing, Al-Ghanem has built a successful chain of restaurants under the Al-Medyaf brand.

Since its inception in 2009, Al-Medyaf has become a prominent name in Saudi Arabia’s Eastern Province, boasting nine Al-Medyaf restaurant branches along with the upscale “Tesh Lounge” in Al Qatif.

Can you tell us how you got started in the restaurant industry?

In opening our very first Al-Medyaf location, we envisioned offering traditional Gulf cuisine with a modern, innovative twist—especially for rice dishes. Aside from the menu, we put great effort into creating a welcoming design and ambiance, providing great emphasis on cleanliness, top-tier service, and carefully crafted marketing strategies to ensure a memorable dining experience.

Why did you choose to focus on Saudi cuisine in particular? Was it due to the results of your research on potential competitors? 

Despite the strong competition, we’ve found there’s still plenty of opportunity in the Saudi market. Local consumers love their staple meals, and we knew we could meet that demand—so we decided to focus on Saudi cuisine. We’re continuing to expand across Saudi Arabia and hope to open new branches in Riyadh soon, God willing.

Nowadays, online orders and delivery apps are in great demand. How has Al-Medyaf benefited from Sapaad’s solutions such as Sapaad.Online to meet this customer need? 

Delivery apps are a big part of how we run our restaurant, and Sapaad has been a huge help in this area. It’s made it easy for us to offer multiple ordering options, like delivery and curbside pickup, and has really streamlined our order management. Sapaad has been tremendously helpful in simplifying our day-to-day operations.

What challenges did you face with your previous POS systems, and how has Sapaad made this aspect of operation easier for you?

As Al-Medyaf grew, so did our operational needs, so at some point we required a more advanced system that could handle vast amounts of data to help support our decision-making. Sapaad provides us with detailed reports on everything—sales, costs, marketing, and more. These reports make it easy for us to gain actionable insights in order to make smarter business decisions. Our old systems simply didn’t offer any of these features.

Would you recommend Sapaad to your fellow restaurant owners? 

Our partnership with Sapaad has grown alongside the expansion of our restaurant business, and it remains a key part of our success. Managing and tracking the performance of multiple restaurant locations is much easier with Sapaad, thanks to its intuitive, accessible-from-anywhere dashboard.

It’s also incredibly useful for handling back-of-house operations, especially when it comes to cost calculation and inventory management. Sapaad has played a significant role in our growth over the years.

From your point of view, how has the restaurant sector in Saudi Arabia developed since you entered the market in 2009? 

The restaurant sector has definitely experienced significant growth. The creativity of young entrepreneurs has had a profound impact, evident in everything—from ideas and service styles to preparation methods and branch designs. Even as a competitor, I truly enjoy witnessing this evolution, and I believe this new wave of creativity and innovation encourages us all to improve. In the past, food service was quite basic and lacked imagination, but today, it’s a completely different story.

You mentioned earlier that there were plans to expand to Riyadh, but what about the Gulf countries?

After Riyadh, we plan to expand into the Western region and other areas within the Kingdom, God willing. As for the Gulf market, we have some initial plans, but we prefer to keep them under wraps for now.

What do you think is the secret to Al-Medyaf’s success?

It’s no secret—the most important factors are close monitoring and continuous improvement. Pay attention to your daily operations, and you’ll always find ways to make things a little better. Doing your homework and being thoughtful about developing and implementing new strategies is crucial. And, of course, never forget the role of God’s grace in achieving success.

As Al-Medyaf continues its expansion across the Kingdom, Mohammed Al-Ghanem’s dedication to excellence remains unwavering. With the support of Sapaad’s cutting-edge technology, he ensures smooth operations, sustained growth, and a commitment to quality—paving the way for even greater success in the evolving Saudi restaurant industry.