Meet the Emirati man who is the chef, manager and waiter at his cafeteria

Adnan Okasha, Staff Reporter

What would any of us expect when we walk into a cafeteria?

Workers ready to take our orders… some cooks preparing meals… Correct?

But it was different this time, when we walked into a young Emirati Yacoub Matar Ahmed Al Mansouri’s, 33, cafeteria. He has broken the norm.

This man works all alone in his cafeteria.

He is the chef, the manager, and the waiter. He cooks fast Western meals at his cafeteria, which he opened in Al Dhait area in Ras Al Khaimah recently.

Mansouri works in the restaurant and runs it alone, setting up an example for others in the society.

Mansouri told Gulf Today that he opened his small restaurant about two months ago and is a member of the Khalifa Fund for Youth Projects.

The project provides him with financial and logistical support, such as exemption from local government fees, and participation in training courses and workshops.

It also helps him learn about commercial marketing, understand market mechanisms, e-marketing, and other business skills that serve the young members of the project in their work and in their small and medium investments, and enhance the chances of success of their projects.

Mansouri said he is happy with his small project and initiative to work in his own restaurant and cook meals, which he sells to the people.

He is not worried about the fact that being an Emirati he is working in a restaurant, alone which is astonishing to some people.

He said the initiative is to satisfy his passion for cooking art, which he started in his 20s.

He began to cook and prepare some Western meals at his family home. Soon it developed into a habit. He began to cook during excursions and trips with his friends, which impressed many and they encouraged him to pursue his passion.

Mansouri said his mother was his major source of inspiration and he learnt the basics of cooking from her. Later he learnt from professional cooking academies the principles and skills of cooking.

The Khalifa Fund was established in June 2007 by the virtue of the (Law 14 of 2005), as an independent, Non-Profit Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) Socio Economic Development agency of the Government of Abu Dhabi.

The purpose of establishing the fund is to help develop local enterprises in Abu Dhabi by instilling and enriching the culture of investment amongst UAE nationals, as well as supporting and developing small to medium-sized investments in the Emirate. Khalifa Fund started with a total capital of Dhs300 million, which was gradually increased to Dhs2 billion and covering all the UAE.