'I don’t cook, but I love to eat,” says Rashed Al Tayer, the Emirati restaurateur behind eateries such as Neighbors and Terra.
We're sitting inside the Jumeirah branch of Terra, the thick foliage of the rustic venue filtering the harsh sun. “We have more than 200 plants in here,” Al Tayer points out with a smile.
Al Tayer's love for Terra is almost palpable, like a proud parent. Despite studying finance, the Emirati entrepreneur seems to have a natural flair for the restaurant industry.
“I studied in San Diego and graduated in 2013. I came back here and worked in my family's real estate business for about two years, but it felt a bit boring to be honest,” he says. “I decided to do something more in the lifestyle scene.”
Towards the end of 2017, Al Tayer opened Neighbors, a cafe and bakery also in the bustling Jumeirah district. Over the years, the venue has become a go-to community hangout spot in the Dubai district.
“I wanted to expand Neighbors and elevate it, and then I saw this location,” he says, referring to Terra. Keen to open a full-fledged restaurant in the affluent residential community with its low-rise villas and townhouses, Al Tayer decided to forgo his expansion plans and experiment with a new concept.
Terra opened in 2021 and was an instant success. The restaurant serves Mediterranean cuisine, with a broad influence owing to Al Tayer's travels across Europe.
Last year, he brought Terra to Abu Dhabi and, just a few months after its debut, the restaurant was included in the coveted Michelin Guide.
“Next year, we are going to open a third Terra,” he says with a cheery grin.
Despite his nonchalant demeanour, the Emirati entrepreneur has a quiet intensity about him. For example, he tells me how he poured his energy into tasting dozens of coffee beans before opening Neighbors. “Back in the US, I went on a food tour trying about 18 different types of beans in two weeks to get ideas,” he adds.
Everything he learnt from opening Neighbors, Al Tayer used when launching Terra. His attention to detail was sharpened by “experience and many mistakes”.
At Terra, he makes sure his personality shines through in every aspect. “One of my favourite things about opening a restaurant is buying furniture, cutlery and all that,” he says. He adds that guests can experience a part of him “from my favourite food to my style”.
The future
Aside from Terra and Neighbors, Al Tayer also owns the Boston Lane cafe at the Courtyard in Al Quoz. And there are plenty of more projects in the pipeline.
Oppidan, a casual Italian restaurant, will open on Dubai's Al Wasl Road in the next few months.
“I believe there is a gap for casual Italian venues, and I also really love Italian food,” he says.
While the menu is not yet finalised, Al Tayer says it's going to be of the same calibre as Terra, but with a focus on Italian cuisine. He plans to sell fresh handmade pasta at Oppidan, for example, which people can take home to cook.
Perhaps his most ambitious venture so far is CMPLX, pronounced “complex”, a lifestyle hub comprising seven concepts set across 3,000 square metres of land in Al Quoz.
The vision is simple, says Al Tayer, to create a one-stop shop for the community. “You can eat there, organise meetings, work out and even do your hair,” he explains.
Three out of the seven planned venues at CMPLX are in-house. One of them is a “much-elevated version” of Neighbors. In addition to the barber shop and two fitness studios (one for low-impact workouts, another for high-intensity classes), there will also be a boutique selling fashion and homeware, plus a leasable events space.
It's a project that seemingly makes perfect sense for Al Tayer, who still considers real estate his main hustle.
To manage his growing businesses better, Al Tayer has also created Outset, a unifying company that houses all his lifestyle ventures.
This is only the beginning for Outset, he says. “My aim is to have a maximum of 10 to 12 restaurants, and then I will stop,” he adds. “I want to tap into Asian food soon.”
Tips to keep your car cool
- Place a sun reflector in your windshield when not driving
- Park in shaded or covered areas
- Add tint to windows
- Wrap your car to change the exterior colour
- Pick light interiors - choose colours such as beige and cream for seats and dashboard furniture
- Avoid leather interiors as these absorb more heat
In Search of Mary Shelley: The Girl Who Wrote Frankenstein
By Fiona Sampson
Profile
Sam Smith
Where: du Arena, Abu Dhabi
When: Saturday November 24
Rating: 4/5
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Kumulus Water
Started: 2021
Founders: Iheb Triki and Mohamed Ali Abid
Based: Tunisia
Sector: Water technology
Number of staff: 22
Investment raised: $4 million
Results
Stage Two:
1. Mark Cavendish (GBR) QuickStep-AlphaVinyl 04:20:45
2. Jasper Philipsen (BEL) Alpecin-Fenix
3. Pascal Ackermann (GER) UAE Team Emirates
4. Olav Kooij (NED) Jumbo-Visma
5. Arnaud Demare (FRA) Groupama-FDJ
General Classification:
1. Jasper Philipsen (BEL) Alpecin-Fenix 09:03:03
2. Dmitry Strakhov (RUS) Gazprom-Rusvelo 00:00:04
3. Mark Cavendish (GBR) QuickStep-AlphaVinyl 00:00:06
4. Sam Bennett (IRL) Bora-Hansgrohe 00:00:10
5. Pascal Ackermann (GER) UAE Team Emirates 00:00:12
More coverage from the Future Forum
Nepotism is the name of the game
Salman Khan’s father, Salim Khan, is one of Bollywood’s most legendary screenwriters. Through his partnership with co-writer Javed Akhtar, Salim is credited with having paved the path for the Indian film industry’s blockbuster format in the 1970s. Something his son now rules the roost of. More importantly, the Salim-Javed duo also created the persona of the “angry young man” for Bollywood megastar Amitabh Bachchan in the 1970s, reflecting the angst of the average Indian. In choosing to be the ordinary man’s “hero” as opposed to a thespian in new Bollywood, Salman Khan remains tightly linked to his father’s oeuvre. Thanks dad.
THE SPECS
Engine: 3.6-litre V6
Transmission: nine-speed automatic
Power: 310hp
Torque: 366Nm
Price: Dh200,000
The specs
Engine: 6.2-litre supercharged V8
Power: 712hp at 6,100rpm
Torque: 881Nm at 4,800rpm
Transmission: 8-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 19.6 l/100km
Price: Dh380,000
On sale: now
Green ambitions
- Trees: 1,500 to be planted, replacing 300 felled ones, with veteran oaks protected
- Lake: Brown's centrepiece to be cleaned of silt that makes it as shallow as 2.5cm
- Biodiversity: Bat cave to be added and habitats designed for kingfishers and little grebes
- Flood risk: Longer grass, deeper lake, restored ponds and absorbent paths all meant to siphon off water
MATCH INFO
Uefa Champions League semi-final, first leg
Bayern Munich v Real Madrid
When: April 25, 10.45pm kick-off (UAE)
Where: Allianz Arena, Munich
Live: BeIN Sports HD
Second leg: May 1, Santiago Bernabeu, Madrid
FA Cup fifth round draw
Sheffield Wednesday v Manchester City
Reading/Cardiff City v Sheffield United
Chelsea v Shrewsbury Town/Liverpool
West Bromwich Albion v Newcastle United/Oxford United
Leicester City v Coventry City/Birmingham City
Northampton Town/Derby County v Manchester United
Southampton/Tottenham Hotspur v Norwich City
Portsmouth v Arsenal
KLOPP%20AT%20LIVERPOOL
%3Cp%3EYears%3A%20October%202015%20-%20June%202024%3Cbr%3ETotal%20games%3A%20491%3Cbr%3EWin%20percentage%3A%2060.9%25%3Cbr%3EMajor%20trophies%3A%206%20(Premier%20League%20x%201%2C%20Champions%20League%20x%201%2C%20FA%20Cup%20x%201%2C%20League%20Cup%20x%202%2C%20Fifa%20Club%20World%20Cup%20x1)%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
The specs
Engine: 1.6-litre 4-cyl turbo
Power: 217hp at 5,750rpm
Torque: 300Nm at 1,900rpm
Transmission: eight-speed auto
Price: from Dh130,000
On sale: now
'Will%20of%20the%20People'
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EArtist%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EMuse%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ELabel%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EWarner%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ERating%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%202.5%2F5%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
BUNDESLIGA FIXTURES
Saturday, May 16 (kick-offs UAE time)
Borussia Dortmund v Schalke (4.30pm)
RB Leipzig v Freiburg (4.30pm)
Hoffenheim v Hertha Berlin (4.30pm)
Fortuna Dusseldorf v Paderborn (4.30pm)
Augsburg v Wolfsburg (4.30pm)
Eintracht Frankfurt v Borussia Monchengladbach (7.30pm)
Sunday, May 17
Cologne v Mainz (4.30pm),
Union Berlin v Bayern Munich (7pm)
Monday, May 18
Werder Bremen v Bayer Leverkusen (9.30pm)
Libya's Gold
UN Panel of Experts found regime secretly sold a fifth of the country's gold reserves.
The panel’s 2017 report followed a trail to West Africa where large sums of cash and gold were hidden by Abdullah Al Senussi, Qaddafi’s former intelligence chief, in 2011.
Cases filled with cash that was said to amount to $560m in 100 dollar notes, that was kept by a group of Libyans in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso.
A second stash was said to have been held in Accra, Ghana, inside boxes at the local offices of an international human rights organisation based in France.
More from Neighbourhood Watch:
The specs
Engine: 4.0-litre flat-six
Torque: 450Nm at 6,100rpm
Transmission: 7-speed PDK auto or 6-speed manual
Fuel economy, combined: 13.8L/100km
On sale: Available to order now
