UAE: Marketing Survey Suggests that UAE Residents Eat Out 11 Times a Week

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Over half the week’s meals are consumed outside the home

Here is an interesting survey that just came out. These findings come from the combined efforts of LivingSocial and YouGov statistics are in and they show that United Arab Emirates (UAE) are eating out a whopping 11 times a week. Considering an average week consists of 21 meals, which implies that UAE residents are eating out over 50% of the time.

The survey suggests that local Arabic cuisine is still top dog. Italian and Chinese restaurants then round out the top three choices. Ethiopian, Brazilian, Argentinean and German were the least popular food choices. Unfortunately the survey also pointed to the fact that friends are beating out family members to the table as preferred dining companions outside the home.

This latest report was commissioned by LivingSocial as part of its ongoing efforts to discover and share information about local social trends. The survey itself was based on the dining habits provided by 1,131 residents. The results are quite interesting and do provide certain insight into the tastes of local residents.

A breakdown of the respondents

  • Lebanon – 57%
  • UAE  – 35%
  • Jordan – 23%
  • Egypt – 17%
  • Others – 3%

The majority of those surveyed (61%) were between the ages of 18 and 34.

According to the results, 64% of UAE residents dine out with their friends verses their family. Business colleagues proved the least popular choice with only 23% of respondents choosing to dine with their colleagues.

The study also revealed women preferred Arabic cuisine followed by Italian. Men preferred BBQ and pizza.

Take out choices

When it comes to preferred take-out options, pizza is the number one food choice according to 54% of those responding. Spicy carry-out came in second with most choosing Indian cuisine. Third on the take out menu was Arabic food.

The survey suggests that residents in the UAE are also a health-conscious crowd with 28% of respondents considering themselves “health nuts. More than two-thirds of those surveyed also say they don’t have a sweet tooth.”

Conclusions

Surveys like this help companies such as LivingSocial in their efforts to target deals. It would make little sense for a daily dealer to offer food vouchers on those foods that are not favored. Even though the survey was conducted on a small amount of residents, it also shows that there may be a tremendous opportunity considering how often it appears that UAE residents dine out.

Source: The Gulf Today

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