360 Mall food court to be Upgraded

The 360 Mall, Kuwait’s iconic shopping mall owned by Tamdeen Shopping Centers, is to completely transform its existing food court on the 3rd level to provide an enhanced F&B offering to surpass customer expectations and create a new international dining destination for the country.The redevelopment of the Food Lounge, valued at a massive KD 2 million, will take place in three phases so that food outlets remain operational for mall customers to enjoy their dining experience at existing outlets.

Shavak Srivastava Board Member, Tamdeen Shopping Centers Company, said: “Customers in Kuwait are discerning and have great expectations for their dining experience, be it casual or gourmet dining. We have researched our mall’s customer preferences, studied them in depth and are now ready to redefine the entire food lounge to make it ‘the place to dine in’ in Kuwait.”After the redevelopment, the total F&B area will increase to about 2,600 sqm including dedicated and common seating with the number of outlets increasing to 26. The new F&B experience will see the number of gourmet restaurants double to six; two brand new cafes and 18 casual dining outlets. The total gross leasable area of the F&B outlets within the redefined Food Lounge will be 1,900 sqm.

Some of the major features in the remodeling will be a new garden-themed court with lush vertical gardens and a 10-meter waterfall. A simulated sky ceiling will provide diners with a natural outdoor feel. The area will also provide garden and water views with abundant Alfresco dining with organic finishes.“We will create two distinct dining destinations within the entire food lounge area. A new Garden Court will be built as an extension to the current Sky Lounge and the existing Food Lounge near the cinemas will be transformed. While customers will have a new landscape in the Garden Court, they will also experience a new soundscape because of the waterfalls for serenity of their dining experience,” explained Srivastava.

The highlight of the reinvented Food Lounge will be a dramatic reflective ceiling which will add depth and sparkle to the area. The outlets will be housed within timber canopies and the seating area experience will be extended to the F&B outlets too. The designs also allow for a contemporary open-styled retail look & feel with natural finishes to ensure that fresh food is always served.Within the Garden Court sculptural screens will be built to add a sense of privacy for families. The court will also have a pergola garden ceiling over the Al-Fresco dining area with stone hedges and greenery along the pathways.

“We strongly believe that we are led by our customer choices. 360 MALL has always redefined these choices by pioneering concepts that are unique to Kuwait and also providing a home for innovative Kuwaiti F&B concepts. Our global F&B brands will be delighted with this new experience as much as we are confident our customers will be,” commented Srivastava.

Phase 1 of the redevelopment will be completed in September 2015 while phase 2 will see completion in March 2016, followed by the last phase in October 2016.

I was there a couple of days ago, I rarely go there after being trapped in the parking structure for over an hour. It was Friday around 6 pm which is a rough time to go traffic wise. I almost gave up until I noticed there was an extended parking lot outside with a cart that transports you to the door if you can catch it. We went to the food court to eat and ran into a wall and only a few restaurants left open so we had to choose Ruby Tuesday's as there were only a couple fast food places.

After reading this article I see why there are so many walls up. Perhaps 360 Mall is trying their best to keep up with the Avenues?