LONDON: Ayman Al-Zubaidi — the acclaimed chef behind Hijazi Corner, London’s first Saudi Arabian restaurant — has cooked for dignitaries, diplomats, celebrities and even the Kingdom’s royal family. But his most discerning critics were waiting for him much closer to home. 

In 2021, after several years living in London, Al-Zubaidi came home to Jeddah. But instead of the football shirt his family had pictured him wearing after his UK studies in sports science, he returned in chef whites. It was a transformation that no one saw coming — least of all him. 

Growing up in Jeddah’s Al-Sabeel district with his sister and three brothers, Al-Zubaidi could barely boil his own water. The kitchen was strictly his mother’s territory, and his late-night culinary ventures didn’t go far beyond packets of instant noodles. But now, the tables had turned, and his mother was seated as his guest. 

“When I first moved to the UK, I was clueless in the kitchen, so I called her for help,” Al-Zubaidi tells Arab News from his restaurant in London’s de facto Arab district of Edgware Road. It was her loving mentorship that laid the foundations for his culinary journey, shaping his path to becoming one of London’s most distinctive chefs. 

“When any chef starts to speak about food, they talk about their mum. Her chicken kabsa is a bit oily, a bit shiny and looks amazing — even just talking about it now I become hungry,” Al-Zubaidi says. “But even if I had the same ingredients and made it the same way, hers would always taste better.” 

Building on family recipes honed over decades by his ancestors in Yemen, Al Zubaidi’s Hijazi Corner is the only place in the UK capital where Saudis can find a true taste of home. 

Lined with thick carpets and ornate window paneling evoking the buildings of Jeddah’s Al-Balad historical district, its menu is full of comforting favorites drawn from across the Kingdom’s western coastal region — chicken seelag, slow-roasted lamb haneeth and delicate, flaky samboosek. 

“From the richest person to the poorest person in Saudi Arabia, we eat the same food,” he says. “When we celebrate, when we grieve, when we are happy or sad, we get masoub (banana pudding) or motabbaq (thin layers of pastry stuffed with meat).” 

Al-Zubaidi’s path to the kitchen was anything but conventional. As a teenager eager to learn English, he set his sights on the UK, drawn by what he called “a love for the accent,” and made the leap in 2017. After completing his language course, he switched tracks to study sports. But somewhere between lectures and life abroad, homesickness hit in the form of a craving for the familiar flavors of Arabia. 

“In London, you can find plenty of Turkish, Kurdish, Indian, even Malaysian options — but nothing from Saudi,” he explains. “So I decided to make it myself.” He began recreating the comforting dishes of home in his small Clapham flat, selling them cash-in-hand to fellow Saudis in search of an authentic taste of the Kingdom. 

But the secret didn’t stay a secret for long. Soon, his passion found a new platform — Snapchat. 

Al-Zubaidi shared short videos of his cooking process, garnishing each clip with personal moments and mouth-watering close-ups of Saudi dishes. His humble videos quickly gained a loyal fanbase, and orders poured in from every corner of the city — particularly as COVID took hold in the early months of 2020. 

“People from the Saudi embassy added me, people from Aramco working in London added me. Saudis living here, working here, growing up here — plus lots of foreign people who had been to my country and tried this food before.” 

What started as a side hustle quickly evolved into a pop-up, and by 2023, into a brick-and-mortar restaurant where Londoners could finally experience the authentic flavors of Saudi Arabia. 

During the pop-up stage, Al-Zubaidi’s Snapchat followers became more than fans; they became enablers of his culinary vision, bringing a piece of Saudi Arabia to his London kitchen. Whenever one of his followers planned a trip from Saudi to the UK, they’d reach out, asking if he needed any hard-to-find ingredients. 

Al-Zubaidi’s requests were simple but essential — fragrant spices, fresh dill, and most importantly, the special pastry sheets that he just couldn’t source in London.   

“I’d say ‘I need the real pastry for samosa.’ And they’d bring it for me,” he says. 

The enthusiasm was mutual. His followers were just as eager to bring these reminders of home, knowing he’d transform them into the dishes they missed. 

Yet not everyone was as supportive. As he juggled his studies and the pop-up, criticism began to surface, especially from former friends back home. 

“They mocked me,” he recalls. “They’d say things like, ‘You went to the UK to study, and now you’re just selling food?’” 

Influencers he approached for social-media support brushed him off with dismissive remarks. But Al-Zubaidi was undeterred, finding new friends and switching his studies from sport to cooking. With a network of loyal clients and the backing of a few new investors he had met along the way, he began seriously considering a restaurant. 

One wealthy friend, who had seen the young chef’s determination, urged him to take the plunge. After months of hard work studying knife skills, mastering Saudi dishes, and learning the restaurant business inside out, Al-Zubaidi took the leap. 

Two years after opening its doors, Hijazi Corner is a definite success, becoming one of London’s top-rated Middle Eastern eateries. It’s perpetually packed with diners, and has become a go-to spot for celebrities, diplomats, and dignitaries from the Arab world and beyond, all seeking an authentic taste of Saudi Arabia. 

After showcasing Saudi cuisine at several festivals and events, on National Day this September, Al-Zubaidi received a special honor — an invitation to the Kingdom’s embassy in London. 

The recognition came after HRH Prince Khalid Bin Bandar Al-Saud, Saudi Arabia’s ambassador to the UK, visited Hijazi Corner and was so impressed that he mentioned it by name in his National Day speech. Al-Zubaidi, overcome with pride, shed tears of joy.  

“I am proud of what I’ve achieved, but I haven’t finished yet,” he says. “This is just the beginning—there’s so much more of Saudi culture I want to share with the world.” 

DUBAI: Saudi Arabia’s Diriyah is now nurturing the Kingdom’s creative future. The UNESCO World Heritage site recently launched Diriyah Art Futures (DAF), an initiative aimed at empowering the next generation of Saudi digital artists.  

Among the select few to join DAF’s Emerging New Media Artists program is Saudi pixel artist Khaled Makshoush, who is now part of a project designed to establish Riyadh as a global capital of new media art. 

The program, designed in collaboration with France’s Le Fresnoy Studio National des Arts Contemporains, provides artists like Makshoush with access to advanced equipment, production budgets, and mentorship from international digital art experts.  

Reflecting on this opportunity, Makshoush told Arab News how meaningful it feels to exhibit and evolve his pixel art within his homeland.  

“When I started creating digital art, especially pixel art, I never thought I would get an opportunity like this, with such a program and in my own city,” he said. “I am really grateful for that and to get the chance to actually put my pixel art out there.”  

Makshoush’s journey into pixel art began in 2015, when he and a friend explored the idea of creating video games. While his friend handled the programming, Makshoush took on the artistic side, initially choosing pixel art for its perceived simplicity.  

Over time, that initial foray transformed into a deeper passion. By 2016, he was dedicating himself fully to the medium, honing his skills through a disciplined daily painting practice, which pushed him to continually explore new ideas and techniques.  

“This forced me to ask myself, ‘What do I want to draw? What do I want to paint? And that, I think, was a big question. It kind of led me into a journey of discovering myself,” he said. 

Today, Makshoush’s art often centers around the landscapes and cityscapes of Riyadh.  

“I focus on feeling the space. Like, how and why does it make me feel a certain way? When I’m outside and I see something interesting, I try to explore it,” he said. 

For Makshoush, the power of pixel art lies in its ability to capture and convey a distinct impression — a quality that he strives to evoke in each piece he creates.  

“I chase an atmosphere,” he explained. “My work represents my state of mind during the time that I create (an artwork).” 

His personal connection to, and love for, Riyadh is evident in his work, which manages to be both contemporary, but somehow nostalgic at the same time, perhaps because of his retro graphics style.  

Through the DAF program, Makshoush hopes to push his skills further by experimenting with larger scales as well as with new technologies.  

The mentorship component of the program, he said, is particularly exciting for him, as it offers a chance to explore intersections between pixel art and other digital forms. He would love to explore techniques like programming or ways to exhibit his work interactively. He envisions his art evolving into installations that blend the virtual and physical, bridging the gap between the online world, where digital art typically lives, and tangible exhibitions. 

“The idea of moving pixel art from the screen to the physical space is intriguing — finding a balance where it retains its digital essence while existing outside the internet,” he said. 

Pixel art, so heavily linked to vintage video games from “Space Invaders” and “Pac-Man” to “Super Mario Bros,” has evolved significantly in recent years, Makshoush believes. He noted that, especially since the early 2010s, social media has helped push pixel art into new realms, with artists worldwide reimagining it and taking it beyond its nostalgic associations. He described a movement primarily driven by Japanese and Western artists, characterized by serene, almost cinematic scenes that evoke a quiet beauty.  

“It’s about creating an atmosphere rather than reliving the nostalgia of video games,” he said.  

With his newfound access to resources and mentors, Makshoush is eager to contribute to Saudi Arabia’s burgeoning digital art scene, which he sees as increasingly dynamic and influential.  

“We have a lot of digital artists now in Saudi Arabia and it is only becoming bigger and bigger,” he said. “I hope my work can inspire others as I was once inspired.”