Jose Silva said he previously lowered dining costs to offer consumers more value for money
Restaurants in Dubai are expected to adapt ‘smart’ and more affordable pricing due to changing consumer behaviour, according to UAE hotel giant Jumeirah.
Speaking to Arabian Business, group CEO Jose Silva said the consumer will ultimately decide on restaurant prices.
“I do think restaurants will become more and more affordable,” he said.
"Great restaurants will succeed if they [retain] smart pricing or more affordable pricing. In my past, I have systematically lowered [rates] of overpriced restaurants. Eventually, the consumer will decide if that price is comfortable or not.
Guests with high spending power will also avoid paying for highly-priced restaurants if they lack value for money, Silva said.
“If [consumers] are not comfortable [with prices], even if they could actually pay, they will choose to be frequent where they feels there is a shared value for money through regular consumption,” he said.
New dining concepts
The CEO revealed Jumeirah will be opening a number of ‘smartly-priced’ dining concepts across its hotels. While the luxury group is known for its celebratory restaurants, it will soon feature ‘social’ outlets that are less costly and revolve around experience.
“There are restaurants that are more expensive, which you visit occasionally, but my commitment is not to those. Of course, [Jumeirah] will have some of those celebratory, more occasional restaurants, however my focus is really the frequency of regular guests into each of our hotels,” Silva said.
“The restaurant scene has evolved a lot. You used to go out to restaurants to dine. Today, you go out to restaurants for social gathering and fun… You go out for a social moment around great dining,” he said.
Jumeirah announced last month that it is closing Souk Madinat Jumeirah favourites The Agency and Left Bank, but said it will replace them with new venues over the next few months. The hospitality giant will also open two new restaurants in its newer property Al Naseem.
The first will boast modern Italian cuisine but with authentic flavours, while the second will be an Asian fusion rooftop concept. The latter will open next year and will overlook ‘extraordinary’ ocean views.
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