There are modern shopping centres with a wide range of consumer and luxury goods. There are eight main shopping malls. Normally, malls are open from 9:00 a.m. to 10:00 p.m.
There are also several other smaller plazas and complexes, supermarkets, and local co-operative societies and shopping complexes in many residential areas of Qatar that selling pretty much everything except pork.
(Timings: 8:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. & 4:00 p.m. - 9:00 p.m.)
These are a feature of life in the Gulf and are fun to visit for their novelty value, as well as being useful places to shop for certain items. The main ones are:
The Fruit and Vegetable Souqs are located just off the Salwa Road, about a 20-minute drive from the centre of Doha. The Meat and Fish Souqs are in the same area. Watch for the signs for the Wholesale Markets Street. These souqs are traditional-style open markets, with the best quality and price fruits and vegetables, fish and shrimp. They are open daily and one should go early for the best fish. Many of the souq vendors close during the early afternoon.
The Old Souqs sell a range of items from tools, spices, kitchenware, towels, shoes, fabrics, watches and various other commodities. This was the original souq area in the town, and has been somewhat cleaned up and modernized over the past ten years or so.
The Gold Souqs are behind the Alfardan Centre off Grand Hamad Avenue and are a cluster of shops selling masses of gold jewelry.
The Iranian Souq, located near the shoe repair area of the Old Souq, is a good place to find tools and secondhand goods, along with a few carpets.
Souq Asiery, Souq Nasser Bin Saif and Souq Falah all specialize in fabrics. As most Arabic women have their clothes made by tailors rather than buying ready-made items, fabrics are much in demand in the Gulf. These range from the incredibly cheap artificial fibres to the more expensive silks, linens and cottons. A huge range of patterns and types of fabric is available.
Bargaining is a good-natured affair and can be fun, if you’ve got the patience to go along with it. Bargaining does not apply to all retail outlets in Qatar however, and it is as well to define this at the outset. Many of the more modern shops, especially food outlets, deal only in fixed prices.
For an update list of Supermarkets and Household Goods Shops in Doha please refer to the Marhaba Information Guide.
If you are looking for a place to buy plants to help make your house/apartment homier, there are several places including The Garden, which is located on Al-Rehab Street. (www.qatargarden.com)
There is no public library in Qatar and the library at CNA-Q has limited fiction books/resources. There are several small bookstores in Doha with even smaller English book selections. Virgin Megastore is the exception. It has a relatively large selection but is not quite the same as the local Chapters Store that you might be used to. For a price, you can have books shipped from Amazon or Chapters.
If you need a haircut, or a beauty salon to get your nails done, there are many to choose from. The following are a couple of places that many CNA-Q employees and/or spouses have used. We are by no means recommending these salons, but they are there as a guide.
Women
Al Dana Club 496-0635
Diplomatic Club 484-7407
Prices for hair cuts range from 80 QAR (27 CAD) to 350 QAR (115 CAD), depending on if you go to a local salon or to one in a hotel or club.
For men, it is easy to find a local barber, where a haircut usually costs 15 QAR.
There are three English daily papers in Qatar: the Gulf Times, The Peninsula and the Qatar Tribune. All three of these newspapers are available for home delivery. The Gulf Times and The Peninsula are also available online.
[top]Several of the large supermarkets carry a wide range of Western products, though some may be slightly higher priced than in Canada. Food products are imported from Canada, America, Europe, Australia, and New Zealand as well as the Far East. Fresh fish, meats, fruits, and vegetables are plentiful. Some supplies disappear from the shelves quickly and you may have to inquire as to which day of the week delivery of a desired item is made.
Most shops not located inside a mall are open from around 9 a.m. until 12:00 p.m., and then reopen around 4 p.m. until around 8 p.m. The major grocery stores are open all day, with the exception of Fridays when they close for an hour and a half in the late morning.
Major grocery stores carrying western products include:
Mega Mart is located in The Centre. It features products from UK, America and Australia, as well as around the world. Mega Mart sells a wide variety of specialized items that may or may not be available at other grocery stores, including Pop Tarts, granola bars, some cereal brands, and other North American products. This store does tend to be more expensive than others and you may want to shop at the cheaper stores for the basic, staple items and to use the expensive stores for the specialty brands.
Q-Mart is located in The Mall and features products from the UK and Canada as well as around the world.
Family Food Centre sells a wide variety of Arabic, Filipino, and British food with some American available and is located throughout the city including Al Merqab Street and Al Rayyan Street.
Giant Store has locations through out the city including the Hyatt Plaza. It is a large hypermarket, selling food and other household items.
Carrefour is located in City Center Mall, Villagio and Landmark Mall. It features products from around the world. However, it is found to be a bit more limited than a grocery store such as Mega Mart.
A very important point to remember when grocery shopping is that if you find an item you prefer or really like, then you should stock up as it may not be available the next time you return. This only works, of course, for non-perishable items.
There are some things that may be difficult or impossible to find here in Doha. They may randomly appear and disappear! Some suggestions of these items, but certainly not an exhaustive list, are:
There is no shortage of places to dine out in Qatar. The variety of types of food is unlimited - Arabic, Indian, French, Moroccan, Japanese, Pakistani, Thai, Italian, Chinese, general European and American to name a few. And many of the American fast food outlets are found in Doha as well - Dairy Queen, McDonald's, Burger King, Kentucky Fried Chicken, Chili's, Applebees and Ponderosa to name a few. You can dine in a bargain establishment or a first-class hotel. Many restaurants do not open until 7:00 p.m. You will quickly discover that the wait staff will not give you the bill for the meal until you ask for it. The bill may include a 17% “service charge”. You should not presume that this is for the wait staff. If you wish to tip the wait staff, you should add an amount to your total bill. Tipping is not expected, but is enjoyed by the wait staff.
You are encouraged to try the local foods. Doha has countless cheap, cheerful and clean restaurants that serve quality food. And some of them provide curbside service usually by attracting the server with a wave. For around 20 QAR (approximately 6 CAD) you can enjoy Arabian grills, local fish, local sweet desserts and coffee. There are also numerous juice bars where you can buy a fresh juice cocktail or a milkshake.
Once you try Arabic food, you’ll quickly find favourites.
Specialties include:
Homous: A dip made from chick-peas and tahini (sesame seed paste).
Tabbouleh: Chopped parsley, mint and crushed wheat.
Motabel: Lightly cooked eggplants mixed with tahini and garlic and made into a paste.
Waraq enab: Wine leaves stuffed with rice.
Koussa mahshi: Stuffed baby zucchini.
Local dishes include:
Matchboos: Spiced lamb or chicken with rice.
Harees: A rich delicacy of wheat and tender lamb cooked and beaten until it has the texture of a thick paste. Usually served during the month of Ramadan.
Seafood: You will enjoy fresh fish from the Arabian Gulf and the Gulf of Oman lobster, cigale, crab, hamour (grouper), shrimp, tuna, kingfish, pomfret and red snapper.
Ghuzi: A whole roast lamb on a bed of rice mixed with nuts.
Biriani: very sweet smelling spiced rice mixed with lamb or chicken .
Delicious regional desserts include:
Umm Ali (literally “Mother of Ali”): A type of bread pudding that is full of nuts and white raisins.
Esh Aaraya (meaning “bread of the harem”): A sweet kind of cheesecake with a cream topping.
Mehalabiya: A pudding sprinkled with rose water and pistachios.
A traditional and very delicious Middle Eastern snack is the shawarma which is sold at many small outlets around Doha. It consists of grilled slices of delicately spiced lamb, chicken or beef, mixed with salad and tahini (mixed with lime juice), with some pickles and/or French fries thrown in and rolled inside a pocket of Arabic bread then wrapped in a wafer thin paper.
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