I always look forward to eating at Al Romansiah, one of my favourite food places in Mecca. The food is very good, especially the chicken mandi, succulent rotisserie chicken cooked over rice. On my last visit, I was greeted with two posters as I entered. The first one was for a new product and nothing out of place, but the second caught me off guard.
It was an offer I’d never seen anywhere else before. But one that should be offered by every restaurant.
The second poster was promoting a “charity meal”. It was a meal that was almost the same as a normal meal, except it was 60% cheaper (12 SAR compared to 30 SAR – which is around £2.50 versus £6). Their normal price was already cheap for Mecca. A big Mac meal for comparison costs nearly £10. But unlike McDonald's, Al Romansiah's food is healthy. And the portions are big. I always struggle to finish one serving.
But on my last visit, I noticed that the normal meal I ordered was even cheaper than I thought.
As I sat down at my table, I noticed most people ordered one meal and one side and then split it between two. My one serving, which always left me stuffed, wasn’t designed for one person; it was designed to be shared. This was an easy detail to miss as the food came in one big container, not big enough to know instantly it was for two people.
But there was one detail which should have made me realise it was too shared - they always gave me two or three spoons even though I was always on my own.
The relatively cheap (normal) meal just became a lot cheaper after I learnt it was for two people. Making the normal meal as well as the charity meal an even bigger bargain.
As I continued to stuff myself with a portion designed for two people, I wondered why restaurants in the UK don’t do this.
It didn’t take me long to work out why - people would exploit.
In Al Romansiah, anyone can order the charity meal. They don’t need to prove they are poor, there is just trust that only those who need it will purchase it.
Schemes like this aren’t usual in Saudi. A friend once sent me a photo of a poster at the counter of a fast food place (I think it was a Hardies) in Riyadh, which said something like “If you can’t afford the food, please let our staff know and we will give it to you for free” and I think it also said “we will be as discrete as possible”.
If charity meals were offered in UK restaurants, it wouldn’t surprise me if people rocked up in their new BMWs with a new iPhone in their hand, asking for it. And to a certain extent, I suspect most people would think this behaviour is bad but would partly expect it.
In Saudi Arabia, where their culture puts more emphasis on honesty, honour and trust, this type of behaviour would not be acceptable.
The Saudi culture is the reason this scheme works.
I loved the idea of businesses giving food for cheap or even free to the needy. And I suspect many businesses would happily offer “charity meals” even if it meant they made little or no profit on them.
I just wish we had the culture for it.
The charity meal poster I saw wasn’t just a sign of care; it was also a signal of trust. It’s the culture of care and trust that makes it work.