With rapidly growing mobile technologies, it becomes indispensable for the food industry to adapt to the constantly changing market and make food of choice available at one's fingertips. In Saudi Arabia, as the smartphones become an integral part of living, a rising Saudi entrepreneur has come up with a new online platform called Mathaqi to tap the flavor of home-made food. Inaugurated recently in Riyadh, Mathaqi is the first company in Saudi Arabia to launch home food service on the go, actively engaging and helping productive families market their food products and increase their income. This, in effect, solves one of the problems faced by the country related to unemployment, as the platform induces production among family members. Its founder Nouf Alsaleem said the new application is a communication tool between home chefs and foodies, noting that Mathaqi has teamed up with more than 80 selected home chefs in Riyadh in its inaugural phase. The platform provides productive families in Saudi Arabia to earn extra money. "Mathaqi helps talented home cooks who don't have funds to open a restaurant, enable them to gain money and provide them with a stronger audience reach," she said. Besides, Alsaleem explained "Mathaqi provides women the opportunity to create a sustainable livelihood for themselves, from the convenience of their homes, while insuring they are equipped with the right tools to deliver quality, safe and tasty food." "Mathaqi is a good opportunity for lot of home chefs who don't get noticed for their culinary skills, she said, adding that the online app "is a perfect blend of the authentic food with authentic recipes, with wide variety of cuisines and the expertise of carefully selected home chefs," adding that "all chefs are trained in processes of food safety and they prepare food in limited quantities." Moreover, all chefs prepare food as they would for their own households, with personal grooming and hygiene of all staff, including those involved in packaging, essential. The objective of Mathaqi is "delivering home-cooked meals right to your door," Alsaleem explained. However, to safeguard the superiority of food and services, Mathaqi painstakingly selected the chefs with reputable portfolio and record. Thorough Medical Tests & inspections of the kitchens were also conducted to guarantee that they follow high standards of food quality and hygiene, the founder asserted. Mathaqi currently offers more than 18 different cuisines for lunch and dinner, with details of each dish, along with the chef's profile also provided, to authenticate its home-cooked quality. The well-designed user-friendly Mathaqi mobile application is available on iOS and Android platforms. Once downloaded, new users have to fill out the necessary details such as name, contact number, and location, the customers have the right to determine the time and place to get their food. Home chefs and foodies can sign up on the app itself. The app does exactly what fastidious customers expect. Mathaqi offers 30% discount to first order for new users, then users can choose their preferred fresh food/meal from regular optional menu. With a minimum order value of SR15, plus SR5 delivery fee, the ordered meal will be brought to the foodie's doorstep. Moreover, Mathaqi offers a selection of vegetarian and non-vegetarian foods that are packed under varying temperature conditions in food grade quality packaging materials at the kitchen under the strict supervision of the chef. Aside from the regular offer, Mathaqi also caters to "party order" on user's demand. For those who like to avail of Mathaqi offers on a regular basis, the app has "Subscription Service" under "Daily meals plans which will be launched shortly. As online mobile food ordering surges in popularity, it becomes the most convenient tool for customers which allow them to place orders from anywhere at any time. And Mathaqi founder has all the reasons not just to launch its Breakfast service "within two months", but expands. "Expansion is definitely on the horizon," she declared. — SG
