Building A Hospitality Empire

Kunal Lahori, founder of Create Hospitality, reveals how his company has made its mark on Dubai’s notoriously crowded food and beverage industry

Standing out in the food and beverage world is no easy task – especially in a place like Dubai, where every taste, palate and craving is catered for.

There are believed to be close to 10,000 restaurants in the emirate ranging from roadside cafés to haute cuisine, meaning any newcomers need to fight hard for their slice of the pie.

One man trying to beat the odds is Kunal Lahori, founder of Create Hospitality. And so far the evidence suggests he’s already succeeding with aplomb.

Founded in 2013 by Lahori and his wife and business partner Rania, Create Hospitality has been responsible for some of the most talked about dining destinations in Dubai over the past four years.

With multi award-winning contemporary Spanish restaurant El Sur, and organic grab-and-go concept Pret to Go in its portfolio, Create Hospitality made an immediate impact in the industry and among diners.

And this summer the group celebrated the first birthday of its latest opening – the hugely popular DIFC-based food market, Bazxar. Combining multiple cuisines in one space connected by a central lounge and bar, the restaurant includes an Italian café, Asian kitchen, American diner, and Mediterranean dining room.

So highly regarded is the venue that it has already been nominated as ‘favourite international restaurant’ at the WhatsOn Awards, as well as picking up three design awards locally and internationally for its interior design and architecture.

So how did the husband and wife team come up not only with a novel idea, but one that worked amid an ocean of competition?

“The journey to Bazxar began with one very simple question,” says Lahori.