Jeddah is Saudi Arabia’s best place to get seafood. It has fresh catches from the Red Sea and a mix of traditional and contemporary eating experiences. The city’s position on the coast gives it easy access to a wide range of fish and shellfish, making it a major seafood destination for those who love to try. This guide lists the best seafood restaurants and cuisines in Jeddah.
Planning Your Visit
People coming from other Saudi cities may get to Jeddah in a number of ways, including by flying from surrounding locations. A Dammam to Jeddah flight is a quick way for people from the Eastern Province to get to the beachfront eating scene.
Understanding Jeddah’s Seafood Heritage
Jeddah’s long history as a commercial harbor has impacted its food traditions for hundreds of years. The city’s restaurants and marketplaces get their daily catches from the Red Sea, which are the main ingredients in local food. Fresh fish and shellfish are still important parts of traditional cuisine, which shows how the city has a marine history. The cuisine scene mixes real Saudi cooking with inspirations from other countries, providing a wide range of seafood options that fit diverse tastes and budgets.
Key Seafood Dishes to Try
β Grilled Fish Varieties
The most common way to cook seafood in Jeddah is to grill it. Before grilling, restaurants usually soak fresh fish in a mixture of spices, lemon juice, and olive oil. Hammour (grouper), kingfish, snapper, and red mullet are some of the most popular types. The butter and lemon sauce on the hammour fillet shows how high the standards are at well-known seafood restaurants.
β Sayadiyah
Sayadiyah is a classic Saudi meal that mixes rice and fish with spices. The recipe calls for fish cooked with rice that has been seasoned in a unique way. This makes a full meal that is often seen on local menus. This meal gives tourists a real flavor of regional food for those who want to try traditional dishes.β
β Shrimp Preparations
There are many different ways shrimps are served at Jeddah’s seafood restaurants. Shrimp kabsa is rice cooked with shrimp and seasonings that smell good. Molokhia with shrimp is a green soup prepared from jute leaves that gives an earthy flavor. For people who love shellfish, there are also grilled shrimp platters and shrimp with seasoned potatoes.β
β Seafood Soup
Seafood soup is a heated broth with several types of fish from the Red Sea. People who eat at these places may typically choose the sorts of fish and spices they want in their soup. This meal is great as a beginning or when it’s chilly outside.β
Top Seafood Restaurants
β Twina Seafood Restaurant
Twina Seafood is on the North Obhur coast and offers beachside dining with views of the Red Sea. During sunset, the restaurant serves grilled hammour and crab platters, which are their specialty. The environment has a beachy feel, and the seafood is made fresh.
β Al Qalzam Seafood Restaurant
Al Qalzam has individual cabins and open-air seats for families. There is a fish exhibit at the restaurant where customers may choose the fish they want to eat before it is cooked. Char-grilling is used to make all of the many kinds of fish, including sho’or, najil, and red mullet.
β Blue Ocean Restaurant
Blue Ocean is a casual place to eat along the Jeddah Waterfront. The menu includes shrimp tacos, calamari, and drinks that go well with being by the water. The restaurant is calm and has views of the Red Sea.β
β Fish Time
Fish Time is a local chain that specializes in quick, affordable fish service. When you order, you pick out the fish, choose how you want it cooked, and get the whole meal fast. This choice is good for those who want good seafood without having to wait a long time or eat at a fancy restaurant.β
β Saedi Fish
Saedi Fish focuses on making seafood in a basic way in a simple environment. Window seating lets you see the Red Sea while being comfortable. Some of the things on the menu include shrimp potatoes, molokhia with shrimp, and hammour fillet with butter sauce.β
Dining Along the Corniche
The Jeddah Corniche is a main eating area with a lot of seafood restaurants with views of the ocean. Blue Ocean Restaurant and other businesses surround this area, making it easy to get seafood dishes from both the neighborhood and throughout the world. The Corniche region has family-friendly restaurants with a wide range of prices and menu choices. During the evening, things become busier, with food trucks and shops providing more seafood choices, such as fish sandwiches.β
Fresh Fish Markets
β Jeddah Fish Market
The Jeddah Fish Market is open in the early morning when fishermen bring in their daily catches. You may buy red snapper, gigantic prawns, and other Red Sea varieties of seafood that are on exhibit. Some sellers provide grilling services on site so you can eat right away.
β Central Market in Al Safa
The Central Market has more than just fish. It also has spices, dried limes, saffron, and Saudi dates. This market is for home chefs and foodies who want real supplies for traditional recipes.β
Practical Dining Tips
β Timing Considerations
Restaurants around the waterfront are busiest at sunset and in the evening. To get the freshest fish in fish markets, you need to go early in the morning. Making reservations at famous places like Twina Seafood and Al Qalzam helps you get the best seats, particularly on weekends.β
β Budget Planning
There are seafood options in Jeddah for those with varying budgets. Fish Time and other casual restaurants and local markets are good places to get budget-friendly food. Mid-range restaurants provide good seafood in nice surroundings at reasonable costs. Upscale waterfront places charge a lot for the atmosphere and service quality.β
Conclusion
The seafood restaurants in Jeddah show off the city’s maritime culture and culinary history. There are a lot of opportunities to consume seafood because of the fresh harvests from the Red Sea, the traditional ways of cooking, and the wide range of restaurants. Following practical tips for choosing a restaurant, the right time to go, and how to order can help you get the best meals and make the most of your time in the area.β
