Life in Kuwait Blog

Villa Akbar 2026

2026-02-14T21:02:00.000+03:00

It's that time again, Villa Akbar update, the last one was in 2015. The property has not been touched, it looks like the haunted mansion from Disneyland now. The gold no longer shines and only the pigeons are enjoying the house. The area around it is no longer an open dirt lot, it's surrounded by brand new villas.

I found the parkin area across from the house, last time there was a security guard yelling at me so I didn't see it but now no one is there. Abandoned Porsche, Rolls Royce and Aston Martin DB 11!! It's so crazy!

Here is a message from the 2015 post about the house:

-This house was originally going to end up being a gorgeous house, but after buying the land and started the foundations building, the owner's brother went through some legal work to not only seize the land but most of the guys savings. I know this because the original owner is actually my uncle and its still saddens me when ever i pass the house because not only did it ruin a part of my uncle and his familys life it also ruins the eyes of the people who see it-

My daughter swears she saw someone in the house pass by the window, maybe it is really haunted?

Villa Akbar 2010

Villa Akbar 2015

Wk wk 965 Restaurant

2025-10-09T16:02:00.000+03:00

A friend invited me have lunch, we ended up at Wk Burger which is a weird name for a restaurant. From the outside it looked like a cute place. With the inside it reminded me of a cross between McDonalds, Checkers and In n Out.

There's a timer, you have a choice of a free side of fries or try to stop the timer at 10 seconds and win an Iphone.

Inside was nice and open with a lot of sunshine

Here's where the problem started. The food. Expensive with small portions.

Nacho plate 3.950 KD

I thought there were chilli cheese fries, turns out it was jalapenos, cheese, something with hamburger meat pieces and a sweet sauce

Chilli Cheese fries 1.950 KD

Charcoal 'thick'? burger - 2.450 KD

I ordered a Philly cheesesteak sandwich it was tiny, wet and ok at best, it was on a sesame seed bun that was a little bigger than a hotdog bun

Philly cheesesteak 3.650 KD

The total was 13 KD which is a lot for small portions

Honestly this is why I don't try these random burger shops, they try to compete with franchises by charging the same prices but the size and quality are no where near the same. I would have rather gone to 5 guys for around the same price.

Amentum company loses contract, Americans are Leaving

2025-09-28T18:00:00.002+03:00

I saw one of my old co-workers from Arifjan and asked him about the base. I had heard from my neighbor that Triple Canopy security was no more. My friend said that Amentum lost their contract and today I saw another old co-worker who works with Amentum, he told me the Americans will be leaving on Sept 30th and he will retire after 21 years of working 12 hour days/6 days a week.

I found an article from 2022 in which Amentum and 3 Kuwaiti companies were being investigated for abusing the TCN laborers. I worked for KRH so I know how those guys used to live 9 people deep in a single apartment with 1 bathroom that was horrible, they worked hours/6 days a week and made 80 KD a month. KRH made so much money off of the contracts, that's how they built their empire. I saw a board saying REH (part of KRH) will be rebuilding Souk Mubarakiya?

I also found a recent article from October 2024 which says Vectrus had protested the contract award to Amentum and that the military had sustained the protest, either way it looks like Amentum is out and how much longer will other US contracting companies last, only time will tell.

Abdali farms closed this Season???

2025-09-26T19:34:00.002+03:00

I saw this on Tik Tok, has anyone else heard of this? Looks like the ministry has shut down the farms and entertainment this season?

There is little to do in Kuwait and now more activities have been taken away, the only ones left are the expensive places like Winter Wonderland or the beach games. It's as if the ministry only wants to allow the money making government ran places. Kuwait is trying to promote tourism when people who live here leave at any chance and what little fun we had has been taken away, I miss 2004 Kuwait!

Chipotle opening in Marina Mall

2025-09-01T20:55:00.000+03:00

It looks like Chipotle is opening soon in Marina Mall right in front of the escalator that goes down.

What happened to TIES and the AWARE Center?

2025-08-28T00:00:00.011+03:00

I was going through my links and I found that TIES and the AWARE Center have disappeared which is sad because they did a lot for the expats who wanted to learn about Kuwait. TIES was more religious and offered religious programs, religious classes in English and tours.

The AWARE center offered programs, activities and tours for everyone in Kuwait. The last post for the AWARE center was November 2024 and then nothing, the Google location says permanently closed. They had been located in Surra for a long time then moved to Funaitees. It was non-profit, non-governmental and non-political NGO. I do remember them being backed by the ministry of Awqaf so maybe the government decided they didn't need the centers any more.

I had attended a lot of events from AWARE center, they were always offering tours which included transportation for a small fee. I visited a few Kuwaiti dwaniyas and interesting tops of chat gatherings. I can't find any information on when or why they closed?

Update:

I ran into the British lady who worked for AWARE center today and she told me that they shut down in May because the government said they can't be in Kuwaiti housing area. They had been located in a Kuwaiti house in Surra until they moved to Funaitees. It has been difficult both financially and trying to find a commercial location. I hope they can find a place and bring back their program in the near future.

Shadeness Make-Up Vending Machine

2025-08-25T00:00:00.001+03:00

In USA there are so many different kinds of vending machines, from food to Labubus and now there's a make-up vending machine in Gate Mall from Shadeness Kuwait. From their IG account it looks like there might be a few vending machines around Kuwait.

They are also known for their first ever drive-thru make-up location in Shuwaikh close to Ananass restaurant.

New Wingstop Kuwait locations

2025-08-23T00:00:00.001+03:00

The first Wingstop location in Kuwait is in Bida and now there are two more locations opening soon:

Liwan Mall in Egaila

Liwan Mall is a surprising location as that mall is dead, it's beside Gate Mall and everyone knows how crowded that parking area gets.

The second location is in Sea View in Abu Halaifa

A slightly better location with more foot traffic but horrible traffic and minimal parking. You can easily get stuck inside that area. I really thought they would open a branch in The Warehouse, Gate Mall or Al Kout considering they are malls and have plenty of parking. I wonder where the next locations will be?

Junky Burger ,In-N-Out Dupe? Or?

2025-08-20T15:22:00.000+03:00

My mom spends a lot of time on Instagram and came across a supposed dupe for In-N-Out restaurant, or so they claim. We are from California and my sister's first job was at In-N-Out so she knows the secrets and how things are done. It's called Junky burger and their IG page is full of videos and pictures of In-N-Out type burgers and fries, even the menu is from In-N-Out. Last night we gave it a try, I'm the one that never tries new things from social media because I'm always disappointed.

Here's their menu from IG

My mom and daughter ordered regular single size burgers while my other daughter and I ordered ''Animal Style'' with mine having no sauce. The sauce they use for IN-N-Out is a thousand island type sauce and I hate it. ''Animal style'' is a cheeseburger prepared with a mustard-grilled patty, added pickles, extra spread and grilled onion topping, we ordered regular fries. You can only order by whatsapp and when you click on the above link for the location a juice shop appears, maybe they replaced the shop?

There isn't any info about delivery charge, their location is Abu Fateira and we are in Egaila, the charge was 1 KD. After a while the food was delivered, I'm assuming by the owner as the guy who handed me the bag was Kuwaiti? I opened the bag and this is what we got for 12.800 KD:

The picture above is of the regular single burger, the sauce is only ketchup and mayo mixed together, not the same sauce as In-N-Out by any means. As for my ''Animal style'' there was grilled onions, no mustard to be found or tasted and the fries were just normal frozen ones. In-N-Out make their fries from fresh hand cut potatoes, my sister told us the stories of how many hours she used to make their fries. Maybe, just maybe it might be a little better if you pick up your order but I won't be trying it again. IF you want to try them their IG is junky_burger

When I looked closer at their IG posts I figured most of the videos are of actual In-N-Out burgers from USA and a few Kuwait videos mixed in. I was hoping it was true but nope, just a regular no frills burger.

Wingstop in Kuwait

2025-07-25T18:31:00.000+03:00

For my daughter's birthday my mom took her to Wingstop for lunch. I've never been to Winstop so this was new for me. I usually get wings from Buffalo's on Monday for their buy one get one free special, we visited the Bida location. There's a variety of spice blends with different heat levels, it would be nice if you could taste test them beforehand as the names don't give flavor details.

I got the hot buffalo sauce and lemon pepper wings, my daughter got the boneless with barbecue sauce and my mom got parmesan cheese. The hot buffalo sauce was actually mild, but the other flavors were much better than Buffalo's.

My mom ordered a strawberry milkshake, it wasn't pink, I didn't see any strawberry pieces, I think 5 Guys milkshake is better.

The fries were just frozen fries, nothing special unless you want to add cheese or sauce

Surprisingly it was really good overall and I would visit again. It's an American franchise but the word 'flavor' is written with the British version 'flavour' which is kind of weird.

MADANG Korean Cultural Center - Game Night

2025-07-20T20:16:00.002+03:00

It was my daughter's birthday so our family friend invited us to hang out and play some Korean games with MADANG in Mishref. I thought it might be all young kids, we were 2 adults and 3 teenagers but it was actually a mix of ages. We started off in a room coloring our wooden blocks and designing our Ddakji folded paper which as I have read, was featured in Squid Games. It's a folded paper with carboard middle, players take turns throwing their 'tile' at the opponents 'tile' to try and flip it

This is our Ddakji class

Our instructor

Yutnori Game

Some brochures about Korea, they also had some Korean skin care products selling with a discount

We also played Biseok which involved our colored wooden 'rock' we made. We used it to play Biseokchigi - a few games which involved taking out the other opponents 'rocks' in three different game styles.

Lastly we played Gonggi also known as Korean Jacks or Knucklebones, we used gonggitdol (small plastic stone shaped toys) to throw in the air and pick up the ones on the table. I must admit it was a really great event and I may look into the other various types of events they have like cooking, K-Pop night and Korean movie nights. You can find all of their information on their IG @madang.kw

Better Books Closing for Good

2025-07-18T20:06:00.000+03:00

Almost everyone knows about the Better Books Store, it's been around for ages. I've donated books and bought books from there. Sadly, it will be closing, the last days are July 19-24, 2025. There is a big sale going on this weekend for book lovers.

Some of the proceeds from the book sales will be going to charity. The store had recently moved to a new location but the owner has lost her Kuwaiti nationality and according to Kuwait laws only a Kuwaiti can have a license to sell books.

Aventura Mall

2025-02-02T12:00:00.001+03:00

"KUWAIT CITY: Capital Governor Sheikh Abdullah Salem Al-Ali Al-Sabah stated on Wednesday that the Aventura Mall project represents the future vision of development projects in Kuwait. He emphasized that the project will serve as a pioneering marketing and entertainment hub, benefiting both citizens and residents across the country.

Sheikh Abdullah made his remarks following an inspection tour of the Aventura Mall investment project, located in Jaber Al-Ahmad Residential City. He was accompanied by Walid Al-Shariaan, CEO of Kuwait Building Company, Project Manager Engineer Sami Al-Abdul Ghafour, and several engineers involved in the project.

The Capital Governor highlighted that the Aventura Mall is a unique entertainment and commercial destination that will become a key addition to Kuwait's shopping landscape. He noted that it will offer a high-quality experience, providing comfort, variety, entertainment, and shopping for all members of society. The project is expected to rival the best shopping destinations both locally and regionally.

In a similar statement, Walid Al-Shariaan, CEO of Kuwait Building Company, praised the Capital Governor’s visit, calling it a significant endorsement for sustainable and pioneering community projects. He emphasized that the Aventura Mall project represents a strong partnership between the public and private sectors.

During the tour, a visual presentation of the project was provided, outlining the stages of construction and the facilities being developed. The attendees were also given a brief overview of the project’s progress from the project’s management team.

It is important to note that the Aventura Mall project is an investment initiative led by United Buildings Company, in collaboration with the National Industries Group and the Privatization Holding Company. The project aligns with Kuwait’s future vision for development and aims to make a significant contribution to the country’s commercial and entertainment sectors.

Avenues Phase II- Bahrain, Avenues Riyadh, Avenues Khobar coming soon!

2025-02-01T12:00:00.001+03:00

According to Mabanee PDF it looks like the Al Shaya empire is spreading across the GCC. The expansion of the current location in Bahrain and the new locations in Saudi Arabia. I guess GCC people will no longer have to travel to Kuwait to enjoy The Avenues.

I've been to the one in Bahrain many years ago, it was just a mini version of Kuwait.

Goodbye Hilton Mangaf - Hello Blaj-13

2025-01-31T21:08:00.001+03:00

It's been a while since I've driven along the seaside of Mangaf, I did notice the Hilton looking a little dark, there wasn't any traffic or movement which is weird as a lot of people are always visiting. I decided to try to stop by the Starbucks, sadly we weren't let in as the Hilton has been closed. I went to their IG page and they closed in November of 2024.

'After more than 20 years of delivering exceptional, hospitality, Hilton Kuwait Resort will close on 15 November 2024. As a result we are unable to accept and bookings beyond 17 October. We are proud of the legacy of hospitality the hotel has delivered and would like to thank you for your loyalty'

I had read briefly some where about Touristic Enterprises taking over or something, after some research I did find that Mabanee company who is responsible for many projects in Kuwait and abroad, such as Avenues Bahrain.

"Leading Kuwaiti developer Mabanee has signed a KD5.1 million ($17 million) contract with Touristic Enterprises Company for the operation and managment of a resort in Kuwait city.

The resort by top hospitality group Hilton will come up on a 242,436 sq m area in Almangaf beach area, said Mabanee in its filing to Kuwait stock exchange (Boursa Kuwait).

The contract, for Plage 13 (previously Hilton Mangaf), is for a period of 17 years starting from the date of actual operation of the site.

A pioneer in the entertainment and recreation business, Touristic Enterprises Company has largely participated in the tourism development of Kuwait through the varied services it providers in its facilities located around the state.

"The contract signed with Mabanee Company represents the first step towards activating and consolidating the strategic partnerships that the Tourism Enterprises Company is carrying out with the private sector to develop and advance the tourism and entertainment sector," said a company spokesman.

A leading real estate investor, developer, and project manager, Mabanee collaborates with partners to create world-class real estate projects that excite customers and are innovative and recognized for their design, quality, and return on investment.

Last year, it had signed an agreement with Public Authority for Housing Welfare (PAHW) for the Sabah Al Ahmad Project (S3), a key mixed-use development coming up on a 40,121-sq m-area in the capital city.

As per the public-private partnership (PPP) agreement, Mabanee will provide the design-and-build services as well as the funding and operation of the KD26 million ($84.6 million) project.

A commercial mixed-use development, S3, boasts a hotel and a shopping mall with the theme of an old Kuwait Souq. It is set to be completed within three years.-TradeArabia News Service"

Welcome - Blaj-13

Popeye's is Back- located in the Divonne Complex

2025-01-16T13:57:00.002+03:00

I remember when I first moved here on February 14th, 2004. We had a few restaurants here, no where near what we have now and Popeye's was one of them. I remember one location in Hawally close to Rehab and another in Mahboula where the Alia and Ghalia Towers are. Along with many others they closed down at some point and now they're back. Grand opening on January 30, 2025.

They're located in Divonne Complex in Abu Hasani, exit 208. The complex has been completely refurbished with some new restaurants opening. Now I don't have to fly to UAE to get my fix, not good for my diet though, the mashed potatoes and biscuits are killer.

Sahel is in English!

2024-09-26T13:19:00.002+03:00

Breaking News!

Sahel is now in English, go the the corner tab menu, I think the third option is language, tap on English and voila! it's English. I haven't tried it out so I don't know if it's 100 % correct or if it is just Google translate. Time will tell, but this is a good first step.

It happened to me, getting hit from behind while stopped in the emergency lane

2024-04-17T20:49:00.000+03:00

Today I was in Farwaniya looking for the Kuwaiti passport place, which was found to be torn down completely, when returning from the area I heard a faint noise from my tire and knew there was a nail or something in my tire. Sure enough, there was a huge screw in it, I tried to reach my garage in Surra but the screw came out and my tire went flat, I immediately pulled over to the right side of the highway opposite Zahra on 50 highway.

I called my winch and he was on his way to pick my car up, as I waited I could feel the cars close, every one of them shook my car as they passed. All of a sudden I got jerked and felt my car hit from behind, pieces of lights and the car landed on top of my car. The white Land Cruiser had stopped a bit ahead of me and I know some people are runners so I drove close enough to his car to get his plate number, ruining my tire.

I was in shock, the Kuwaiti guy came to my car and opened my passenger door asking if I was ok, I just started crying, from shock and relief. He told me he had called the police and surprisingly the police actually showed up within 10 mins of the accident. They took my info, his info etc, meanwhile my winch showed up and my car was loaded up to go to the police station. I had called my sister to come but it would take time so the guy who hit me gave me a ride, awkward, but what to do.

I sat behind him because the whole side of his car was damaged, we had a short chat and he kept apologizing. We arrived at the police station and it was over and done with within 30 mins. I think he was on his phone, he told me he was headed for the back of my car but veered to the left at the last moment clipping the left side of my car.

My car

His car

People out there please pay attention, we have all seen the video of the Kuwaiti cop that was on the side of the road and was completely rear ended and he was injured. Don't look at your phone, be aware of your surroundings and pay attention! You could easily kill innocent people and yourself within a split second.

Kuwait, A dream suspended - Kuwait in the 80's

2023-07-23T18:13:00.001+03:00

I came across this video, how times have changed. You can see how important education was back then and how the country was protected by the citizens. If only the new generation would watch old videos and remember how Kuwait once was.

Visa 24 for mothers of Kuwaiti children - New Procedure

2023-03-08T12:03:00.001+03:00

I was married to a Kuwaiti until 2015, I was on a visa 22 during the marriage. After the marriage ended I went through a lot in order to receive a visa 24 which was sponsored by my Kuwaiti kids. Up until this year I had always renewed it with no problem every year as they refused to give me more than one year in case I get married again (eye roll). I went to the same manager who has helped me from the beginning only to be told that he can no longer help me and that I will have to go to Dajeej and get permission from the manager there.

He gave me a wasta pass and I finally found the guy who should approve it. I handed him my documents, he asked me for some additional ones and one I had never heard of. He told me bring all of the document and he will 'work on it', I asked him what he meant by 'work on it' considering my visa expires on the 23rd. He said it will take time and asked if I had a friend with a residency, I asked why, he told me he could give me an extension but needed someone I assume is a sponsor.

The treatment of expat mothers of Kuwaiti kids is so bad. In Saudi the mothers are treated as Saudi citizens without receiving nationality which is great. In UAE they are granted 5 year residencies but here we have nothing to look forward to here. We walk the line here, we are still treated as expats, for myself my ex applied for nationality for me but didn't finish the procedure. The benefits for us, health care is mostly free, and we get a visa 24, that's about it.

I never thought after 20 years of being here I would need a 'sponsor' for a 30 day extension. Am I running away? My kids are young and I'm stuck here and now have to have a sponsor?

Saudi AlBaik coming to Qatar

2022-10-26T10:49:00.003+03:00

"The first two out of five 'mobile restaurants' are on their way to our sister country, Qatar, to participate in serving our loved ones there during football matches," AlBaik said.

Saudi Arabia's popular broasted chicken brand AlBaik is on its way to the Fifa World Cup in Qatar. In a video posted on its Twitter account, AlBaik showed two of its restaurant trucks travelling to Doha. The restaurant chain said it would have five trucks based in Qatar for the World Cup, which kicks off on November 20 with the hosts playing Ecuador at Al Bayt Stadium. AlBaik, the fast food chain famous for its crispy chicken, opened in the UAE at The Dubai Mall last June, much to the delight of thousands of food fans across the country.

It then opened a pop-up venue at Expo 2020 Dubai and was one of the event's most popular outlets, with long queues outside its doors throughout the duration of the world's fair. The outlet has since reopened at Expo City Dubai, serving up its broasted chicken, which is the chain's most popular dish alongside jumbo shrimp and fish fillet. AlBaik also has outlets in the Mall of the Emirates, City Centre Ajman, Al Majaz Waterfront in Sharjah and City Centre Sharjah. link

Q8 Old Car Team Car Show - Marina Crescent

2022-10-12T14:51:00.000+03:00

The annual car show produced by Q8 Old Car Team is here once again, join us on October 28th from 10am to 10 pm at Marina Crescent. Tons of fun for the whole family! You can follow us on IG @q8oldcar_team

House of National Works Museum - Demolished!

2022-08-30T23:42:00.000+03:00

I drove by the area where all of the old houses are and the House of National works museum, sadly I found the museum completely destroyed. The museum was closed many years ago due to some disagreements about the land link and the NCCAL/Kuwaiti Government displayed no interest in relocating it. You can see the museum before link and at one time Sheikh Talal's car was parked beside the museum link too.

Before:

After:

The weird thing was that inside the demolished building there was a large amount of bee hives that had been destroyed. As you can see below there was a huge amount of honeycomb destroyed and thrown out. It was really sad to see, not only was the museum destroyed but much needed bee housing as well.

Whoever destroyed all of this wasn't a nice person and had no disregards for anything. We can add this to the list of lost places in Kuwait.

Flow House water park CLOSED

2022-07-26T20:50:00.006+03:00

I don't know if anyone had visited the Flow House that was in Abu Halaifa nest to Kuwait Magic, I passed by the mall and noticed there wasn't any activity at the park. I noticed it was totally closed down and the signage had been removed. I looked at their IG page @flowhousekw and they've been closed since 2020. I don't know if it had anything to do with Aqua Park closing as they had a flow house located there too.

Sadly it's not surprising as almost all of the entertainment places have been closed and Kuwait has become a place for food and malls, here's my post about the place when it first opened.

Saudi Children left behind in the news Again

2022-05-23T22:15:00.003+03:00

This will continue with all GCC students who study abroad, it's easy for them to just leave their kids behind without a second thought.