JEDDAH: Here’s a daunting scenario: It’s an hour before iftar, you’ve been at the office all day and are now stuck in dreaded Ramadan rush hour traffic. It’s safe to say, in years past, you’d likely have a stress-induced breakdown. Fortunately for you, it’s 2019 and you can now tap your way to a hot meal in seconds.
The restaurant offers up tasty sweet and sour chicken. (Supplied)
Lugmety is one food delivery app that is leading the way for customers in Jeddah and Riyadh. Downloading their free app offers customers an array of restaurants within their vicinity, all complete with updated menus and all with the option of customizing each menu item. Along with the choice of credit card payment or cash on delivery, users also have the ability to track their order.
The noodles are a winner. (Supplied)
For suhoor, I decided on the Chinese restaurant, Toki. Although quite pricey compared to most, the quality and service have always been both consistently delicious and top-rated.
A quick scan through the Lugmety app and my customized order was placed within minutes. What’s for suhoor? Vegetable spring rolls, fried noodles and stir-fried beef with oyster sauce.
If you’ve dined at Toki before, you know of their complimentary prawn chips and I was delighted to discover that they were in fact included in my order, complete with accompanying soy, hot oil and sweet chili sauces.
The chicken dishes are also a firm favorite. (Supplied)
In under an hour my food had arrived — impressive considering the Ramadan rush — and the spring rolls were hot and fresh. A nice balance of a golden crunchy exterior along with finely chopped savory vegetable fillings, my only critique is the order did not arrive with any dipping sauce. The fried noodles were also a delight, cooked to a full-bodied texture and with just enough greasiness to satisfy my cravings. As for the stir-fried beef, there was no chewiness and the meat was very tender. The sauce provided an extra flavorful glaze on the crisp baby corn and broccoli.
Salmon sashimi from Toki. (Supplied)
With both the proficient packaging of Toki and the app’s prompt delivery service, the convenience of this experience sure gives dine-in restaurants a run for their money.
