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Restaurants & cafés

Food truck feasibility study

Latest regulatory change: 2025 · reviewed 2026-10-10

A restaurant on wheels, under municipal requirements for mobile vehicles issued in 2025.

  • 160Food truck licences in Riyadh in 2017[1]
  • 180Days to comply with the 2025 requirements[3]
  • 63%of Saudis are under 30[4]

Latest regulatory and market changes

  1. 2017Riyadh Municipality issued 160 food truck licences at four designated sites to support young Saudis.[1]
  2. 2018Al Khobar Municipality licensed food trucks on Al Aziziyah beach, and the activity spread across the major cities through electronic permits.[2]
  3. 2025The Ministry of Municipalities and Housing (MoMAH) adopted nationwide "Municipal Requirements for Mobile Vehicles", with a 180-day period to comply.[3]

Why now

  • The new requirements allow trading at events, public squares and investment sites, and in some mall car parks with the owner's and the municipality's approval.[3]
  • 63% of Saudis are under 30, the group most drawn to events and fast food.[4]

The idea and business model

A small kitchen on a mobile vehicle selling snacks or drinks at licensed sites and at events. Revenue comes from direct sales to passers-by and visitors, and the entry cost is lower than a fixed restaurant.

Model: Mobile food and beverage

Project economics

Revenue formula

Daily orders×Average bill×Operating days

Sales channels

  • Licensed sites
  • Events
  • Malls

Largest cost items

  • Vehicle and fit-out
  • Food ingredients
  • Site and event fees
  • Fuel and generator

Decisive indicators we measure

  • Orders per operating hour
  • Material cost as a share of the bill
  • Actual operating days
  • Revenue per event

Relevant authorities

  • Ministry of Municipalities and Housing (MoMAH) and the municipalities: licence and site permit
  • General Directorate of Traffic: vehicle approval
  • Saudi Food and Drug Authority (SFDA): food safety
  • Saudi Standards, Metrology and Quality Organization (SASO): vehicle manufacture
  • Civil Defence

What needs your attention

  • Parking inside residential neighbourhoods and near traffic lights and junctions is prohibited.
  • No trading after midnight without a special permit, and only one vehicle per person nationwide.
  • A stable site and access to electricity are the two biggest challenges for operators.

What a Food truck study calculates for you

  • Cost of a compliant vehicle at prices from registered manufacturers
  • Permitted sites and their restrictions
  • Daily orders needed to break even
  • Event-based scenario versus a fixed site
  • Licences from the municipality, traffic authorities and the SFDA

Every one of these figures appears in your study with its source and date, built on your location and capital, with a clear line between documented facts and assumptions.

Sources

Most sources are Saudi government and press pages in Arabic; titles are kept in their original language so you can find them.

  1. الرياض: 160 ترخيصاً لعربة طعام متنقلةالاقتصادية · 2017-06
  2. Saudi food truckers can’t find a recipe for parkingArab News · 2018-05
  3. الاشتراطات البلدية للعربات المتنقلةوزارة البلديات والإسكان · 2025
  4. Saudi Arabia population hits 32.2 mln in 2022أرقام (عن الهيئة العامة للإحصاء) · 2023-05

Last reviewed: 4 November 2026. This page introduces the activity; detailed figures belong in the study.