Rabia opens first fast-food restaurant offering Western cuisine alongside Iraqi classics

RABIA — Saeed Saleh, a young resident of Tal Awynat village in Rabia, Nineveh province, has opened the area’s first fast-food restaurant serving Western cuisine. The new eatery offers popular dishes such as Zinger sandwiches, hamburgers, and fajitas, while also providing traditional Iraqi fare like grilled fish and chicken. The restaurant, located near the bus station on Mosul Road, is already attracting local customers.

Inspired by the street food culture in neighboring cities, including the Kurdistan region, Saleh wanted to bring something new to the area. “Our area needed a restaurant offering Western meals, so we worked hard to open this place. We serve hamburgers, fajitas, and Zinger along with traditional Iraqi breakfast and the usual Iraqi menu, such as falafel, chicken liver, grilled fish, and shawarma,” Saleh told 964media.

‘Zinger’ refers to spicy fried chicken burgers popularized by KFC.

Operating daily from 6 a.m. to 11 p.m., the restaurant also offers a delivery service, catering to the local community’s demand for more diverse dining options.

This new venture is part of a broader effort to bring more modern facilities to underserved areas. Recently, a local entrepreneur opened the first specialized nut shop in Khor Al-Zubair, a subdistrict in western Basra province, adding to the growing variety of businesses in the region.