From a food truck to 2 restaurants and 3 brands: Dubai-based foodpreneur talks about her journey

Around five years ago Luma Makhlouf and her husband Haider launched a Mexican homegrown brand called Maiz Tacos which started as a food truck.

“After completing culinary school in Dubai, I dreamed of working in a kitchen and creating my own concept. Haider convinced me that a food truck was the way to go, as they were becoming popular in Dubai [that was five-six years ago]. Also, growing up in Chicago Mexican food was a staple and I wanted to bring that to Dubai. Thus, Maiz Tacos was born,” Makhlouf recollected.

At that time, Makhlouf didn’t have the required financial resources to open a restaurant, so a food truck seemed like a good way to test the concept. However, operating a food truck wasn’t free from challenges.

“Operating a food truck comes with its own challenges. You can’t just park anywhere, as there are many restrictions. This means finding the right locations and obtaining permits is crucial to grow the brand. Although Maiz gained a lot of popularity, having gone through the experience of setting up a food truck what I can say is that there are other options available to test a brand such as building a small kiosk or participating in pop-up events,” Makhlouf observed.

Over the years, this family-run food business managed to grow. From a food truck Maiz Tacos soon opened its first branch in Jumeirah Lakes Towers (JLT) followed by a more recent second branch in Dubai Hills, Acacia B Building.

The Dubai Hills restaurant has taken inspiration from the JLT branch sporting subtle details such as seating styles, recessed niches and colour palettes to create a well-connected space that defines the brand identity. The overlapping ceiling installations and vertical wall elevations are inspired by Mexican hillside houses, and wall recessions inspired by the windows of Mexican ‘Hacienda’ style homes.

Asked about guest response, Makhlouf said, “We are packed daily, and the Dubai Hills community is just perfect. It took us a while to find a perfect place that would be aligned with our family-friendly brand identity. In fact, since my husband and I still run Maiz Tacos by ourselves expansion wasn’t something we were actively considering. But once we saw the Dubai Hills community we felt as if Maiz belonged here.”

That’s not all – the past few years have been exciting for Makhlouf as she launched two more brands including Good Burger (co-located with Maiz Tacos in JLT) and Lumas Cakes.

“2023 seems to be quite exciting not just for us but for the UAE as a whole. The food world here is certainly growing and it’s a great time to be involved in many exciting collaborations and movements. On our part, we will mainly focus on growing our existing brands and products for each, consider expanding to 1-2 new locations and perhaps even launch a new brand,” she shared.

What’s more, Malhlouf has also designed a 1,980-sqft dream kitchen that can fit all her brands. In addition, she has also added new revenue streams through events and catering services.

Rupkatha B