The Department of Culture and Tourism – Abu Dhabi (DCT Abu Dhabi) has launched a new $100 million (AED360million) Abu Dhabi Culinary Investment Fund (ADCIF) that will help introduce leading brands to the UAE capital over five years.
The newly launched Abu Dhabi Culinary Investment Fund is an incentive for world-class culinary brands to enter the emirate and will further elevate the culinary scene by co-investing with local asset partners and incentivising top chefs, top restaurants, and culinary educational institutions, to enter the market and make Abu Dhabi their new home.
The fund will support building and establishing a Culinary School to aid with recruitment, training, and other staffing resources in the sector.
Saleh Mohamed Saleh Al Geziry Director General – Tourism DCT Abu Dhabi
“The Abu Dhabi Culinary Investment Fund is part of our ongoing commitment to elevate the culinary scene across the emirate and create new dining experiences. There is no better time or place to bring best-in-class chefs, restaurants, and hotel brands to the capital. This fund, in combination with the Culinary School, will ensure that Abu Dhabi appeals to even more visitors around the world, who can experience increasingly diverse and high-quality dining in the emirate, centred on our tradition of Emirati hospitality.”
The school will offer an established core curriculum and introduce two new degree programmes that focus on maritime sustainability and food security, as per the statement.
The main requisites for successful fund applicants are brands or chefs recognized by leading awards committees and global culinary guides, with a multi-regional presence – operating in more than one country.
According to the statement, “Applicants should offer a premium casual, lifestyle, or fine dining experience, without yet having an existing presence in the region and would be making their debut in Abu Dhabi – with one year of exclusivity to the emirate.”
