5 Tips for Planning a Successful Business Lunch Meeting in Doha

Wazzup Pilipinas!?

Going to Qatar for a business trip means making the most of your visit here.

Whether you’re here to speak with your venture partners or investors, search for a business location, hire possible employees, or meet your team or clients, you need to maximize every minute you spend in the country.

One way you can make the most of your visit to Qatar is by hosting a business lunch meeting at one of the best restaurants in Doha.

A business or work lunch meeting is less formal than a traditional get-together with your business partners, investors or team, enabling everyone to feel more comfortable and encouraging them to speak more freely.

Although the atmosphere is more relaxed and conversational, you can stay focused on the agenda when you properly plan the business lunch meeting.


Hosting a Productive Business Lunch Meeting

If you are organizing a business lunch meeting in Qatar for the first time, ensure its success by following these tips:


Choose the right restaurant.

Although you can host the business lunch meeting in your office if you have one, having it in a restaurant offers more advantages so it’s worth considering this option.

As mentioned, restaurants have a relaxed ambiance, which can encourage the participants to speak and engage more. Moreover, there are fewer interruptions during the meeting when you host it out of the office.

However, you must choose the right restaurant to have a successful business lunch meeting.

First, ensure all the attendees won’t have any difficulty getting to the venue. The restaurant should be easily accessible to them by public transportation.

It should also have ample parking space for participants who will bring their own vehicles.

In most instances, the best mall in Doha meets these requirements. As such, consider hosting the business lunch meeting in a restaurant here.

If you have shortlisted a possible venue, find out if there is ample seating room in the main dining area. If you need privacy and a quieter place, check if the restaurant has a function room you can rent.

Additionally, find out if you can reserve a table or the function room in advance so that you won’t have to wait to be seated and served on the day of your meeting.

Lastly, you would do well to check the menu of your preferred restaurant beforehand. Find out if it has an assortment of dishes so that attendees with dietary restrictions can still enjoy a meal.


Create a lunch meeting agenda.

Since out-of-office business meetings tend to be more relaxed, there is a chance that you and the attendees may not be able to touch on or discuss some important details.

You can avoid this problem by using a meeting agenda.

Make an outline of everything you want to do and the topics you need to cover during the meeting. Create a schedule for each activity or subject to ensure you go through all of them.

Have someone help you stay on your schedule to avoid skipping anything important.

If you have a small group for the meeting, try to find ways to get each attendee to participate.

Make sure your schedule also includes sufficient time for everyone to enjoy their meal.


Send your meeting invitations in advance.

Once you have your venue and meeting agenda, create your meeting invitations and send these to your guests.

Keep in mind that some of your intended attendees might have busy schedules every day and need to be informed in advance to include the meeting in their timetable.

Sending your invitations as soon as possible allows your attendees to adjust their plans and attend your meeting.

Moreover, emailing your invitations in advance allows the participants to add this event to their calendars and create reminders quickly.

Consider adding your meeting agenda to the invitation so the attendees know what to expect and can prepare their questions or anything they want to say during the event.


Inform the attendees about the menu choices.

Asking the meeting participants to order during the meeting could take plenty of time.

You can minimize the time the attendees need to decide what they want to order by sending them copies of the restaurant menu and asking them to choose what they want to eat in advance.

Sending the menu items in advance also allows you to know if one or more of your attendees can’t order anything from it due to allergies or dietary restrictions.

In such a situation, you can ask the restaurant staff to prepare dishes that your guests can safely eat.


Assign an official notetaker.

Even if the meeting takes place in a restaurant, you need to have notes of everything that gets discussed.

Notes let you keep track of a multifaceted meeting. These can also help you remember a list of the key meeting takeaways.

If you have an assistant, ensure they take notes. If not, ask a team member to do this during the event.

Having someone handle this can help you fully immerse yourself in the meeting and engage in more meaningful discussions with the attendees.

A business lunch meeting allows you to discuss important matters with people you need to meet and speak with in Qatar. It is also an excellent way to sample the amazing food offerings in this country.