It's a coffee culture

A sweet blend — offering more than just coffee, cafés have become fashionable places in which to be seen.

As competition hots up, coffee-houses attract customers with innovative food and new drink ranges as well as services for business and entertainment.

With an estimated global market of over $9 billion (Dh33 billion), speciality coffee beverages are big business. Observing the soaring popularity of the coffeehouse makes this figure less surprising; coffee-houses, both independent and of the 'chain' variety, are on the corner of every street and in every mall in all of the emirates.

From a cultural standpoint, coffee-houses largely serve as centres of social interaction. They offer social members a place to congregate and talk, read, have meetings, or simply pass the time, whether individually or in small groups. It is a favourite pastime of every age group and culture.

Meeting and spending time over a cup of coffee is an age-old tradition in the Middle East. Since the 15th century, the coffee-house (ghahwa) has served as a social gathering point in the region.

Part of the UAE culture

"The Arab world is the birth place of coffee, hence it is very popular in the Middle East, North Africa, Levant and the Arabian Gulf," explains Antoun Abou Jaoude, marketing manager, Starbucks Middle East. "It is a custom in all Arab countries to welcome guests with a cup of coffee."

This, combined with the nation's penchant for shisha, means that the coffeehouse tradition today is still thriving.

The global coffee-house chain industry boomed in the 1990s, which gave rise to the popularity of establishments such as Second Cup, Starbucks, Coffee Republic and Costa. Since then, sharing time over a coffee has become part of our popular culture both globally and in the UAE.

"Café culture is an important part of the UAE social culture because people here love the meeting aspect of it. After all, coffee shops are the perfect place to get together," explains Simon Holroyd, regional manager, Costa Coffee. "It has become part of the national psyche for locals and expats to do business, take a pit-stop from shopping or simply meet with friends and family in a coffee shop."

The café industry boom has given rise to change. The rise in people's expectations and knowledge of the café experience has led to operators raising the bar to ensure they stay ahead of increasing competition.

"Coffee-houses have developed into luxuriously decorated places with soft seating, where background music, chess games, books or mere chatting can be enjoyed. These venues have now become places to be seen frequenting," says Abou Jaoude.

These newly opened cafes have become fashionable places where people from all nationalities like to hang out. With increased competition and the need for these establishments to stand out from one another, the quality of service and produce is being raised.

Popular hangout

"One of the advantages of the rise of the coffee-shop chain is that competition is now massive. This has made everyone raise the standard of service and quality," explains Holroyd.

One part of this change is that coffee-houses now typically serve a large variety of food to go with their beverages. Customers now choose to eat, whether that is a quick snack or main meal, as well as have their coffee. Costa continually updates its offerings with innovative food products and new drink ranges to keep their loyal customers interested and give them something new to sample. Their range includes cakes, sandwiches and salads. Starbucks customers enjoy a wide range of food that includes pastries, biscuits, and recently, the hot grilled panini.

As the time we spend in these establishments increases, so has the likelihood that we will do business there.

Business meetings

More and more individuals and groups are working while in coffee-houses, a trend that is exemplified by the number of lunchtime meetings that take place while having a cup of coffee.

To help customers remain connected to the outside world, many cafes now offer Wi-Fi and newspapers.

Central Perk offers Wi-Fi to its customers while Starbucks offers wireless Internet connections for laptop computers and PDAs through its iZone Wi-Fi services at all its outlets. Second Cup has introduced Wi-Fi services at its outlet in Bin Hendi Avenue.

The introduction of Wi-Fi is beneficial for those who need to work while away from the office.

"You would be surprised at the number of industry professionals whom you might meet in a cafe. They range from students to executives and professionals, to writers and people working in the media," explains Abou Jaoude.

Ronald Jordan, a marketing executive living in Dubai, is just one of the many businessmen from across the region who takes advantage of the Wi-Fi facility.

"I travel a lot to and from meetings, so I am only in the office early in the morning and then late in the afternoon. Now, because my favourite coffee-house offers Wi-Fi, I can check my emails and work while I have lunch or a coffee break. I could work from the coffee-house all day should I chose to," he explains.