Ruth's Chris scrapped Doha plan after booze ban

International restaurant chain Ruth’s Chris Steak House was about to sign a deal to open an outlet on the Pearl-Qatar, but pulled out at the last minute when last December an alcohol ban was imposed on the Doha development.

Michael Szczepanski, general manager at Ruth’s Chris Steak House, The Address Dubai Marina told Hotelier Middle East that the company had visited a site on the manmade development and had “conversations at a very involved stage” about an opening there, but “luckily didn’t run into the deal”.

He added: “We are looking to operate in places like Saudi Arabia and Kuwait as well, where alcohol is absolutely not allowed, but we’re talking about serving to a totally different clientele. The volume of the expats [in Doha] is the bread and butter and we need to cater to them. Not everyone will like to have a US $100 steak with a glass of grapefruit juice”.

Last week, Hotelier Middle East reported that Gordon Ramsay Holdings had closed Maze Doha on The Pearl Qatar after just two years of operation. The restaurant by the British celebrity chef was the only Maze Gordon Ramsay outlet in the Middle East and closed in March.

In January, staff at Maze said business had tumbled in the wake of the alcohol ban: “I would say [the decline] is even more than 50 percent,” a spokesperson told sister publication Arabian Business. “It is not only Maze… all the restaurants have stopped serving. There are a lot of rumours, we are waiting in great anticipation that [the ban will be lifted].”

Szczepanski commented: “There is not a very positive feeling about it, a lot of companies have suffered big time, and we were lucky not to have rushed [into the deal] too quickly.”

However, he went on to add: “As far as I know, those things will change soon, so you never know. With the World Cup ahead, they’re considering a lot of changes over there, but we just can’t allow ourselves to operate in a place which can be affected by decisions of such kind.”