47 hospitality & restaurant companies in Doha ranked by 1-year headcount growth. The top 10 are free below, each with a short data note. The full ranked list of 47 is a CSV + Excel download.
Edition October 2026 · updated 2026-10-09 · source: licensed B2B firmographic and technographic data
Key numbers
- Median 1-year headcount growth: 11.7% across 47 companies (range 0.7% to 150.0%). 2 of 47 at least doubled their headcount.
- Size mix: 10–19 employees: 4, 20–49 employees: 4, 50–99 employees: 14, 100–249 employees: 11, 250–499 employees: 14. The most common band is 50–99 (30%).
- Main sub-industries: Lodging & Resorts (29), Restaurants (13), Food Service (5).
- Largest company on the list: The Diplomatic Club (250–499 employees, 3.5% growth). 8 of 47 have fewer than 50 employees.
- Versus the whole October 2026 dataset (3246 companies), this page's median is lower: 11.7% vs 22.1%.
- Same sector by city (median growth): Dubai 34.6% (n=51), Doha 11.7% (n=47), Abu Dhabi 14.7% (n=41), Riyadh 12.8% (n=30), Jeddah 13.1% (n=19), Kuwait City 10.9% (n=18), Sharjah 9.5% (n=16), Manama 5.8% (n=15), Muscat 14.2% (n=13).
- Same location by sector (median growth): marketing & advertising agency 24.6% (n=12), construction 23.8% (n=50), professional services 20.9% (n=50), retail & e-commerce 20.0% (n=50), manufacturing 20.0% (n=50), IT services & software 18.8% (n=50), facilities management & cleaning 17.8% (n=15), education & training 16.6% (n=50), real estate 15.6% (n=21), healthcare & clinic 13.9% (n=18), freight & logistics 11.8% (n=14), hospitality & restaurant 11.7% (n=47).
Top 10 by headcount growth
| # | Company | Industry | Size band | 1-yr growth |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Yasmine Palace | Restaurants | 250–499 | 150.0% |
| 2 | Al Liwan Suites | Lodging & Resorts | 100–249 | 100.0% |
| 3 | Plaza Inn Doha | Lodging & Resorts | 50–99 | 83.3% |
| 4 | The Bentley Luxury Hotel & Suites | Lodging & Resorts | 100–249 | 80.9% |
| 5 | Food Services | Food Service | 250–499 | 42.3% |
| 6 | Sterling Restaurants WLL | Restaurants | 10–19 | 39.8% |
| 7 | Jouri, a Murwab Hotel | Lodging & Resorts | 20–49 | 26.9% |
| 8 | Qatar Aircraft Catering | Food Service | 20–49 | 25.3% |
| 9 | Golden Ocean Hotel | Lodging & Resorts | 250–499 | 22.9% |
| 10 | VIPHotel | Lodging & Resorts | 250–499 | 22.9% |
| + 37 more companies, ranked 11–47, in the full list | ||||
#1 Yasmine Palace
Headcount grew 150.0% in 12 months, 12.8× this ranking's median of 11.7%, #1 of 14 companies here in the 250–499-employee band. Based in Doha, Qatar; primary sub-industry: Restaurants; revenue band $10M-$25M.
#2 Al Liwan Suites
Headcount grew 100.0% in 12 months, 8.5× this ranking's median of 11.7%, #1 of 11 companies here in the 100–249-employee band. Based in Doha, Qatar; primary sub-industry: Lodging & Resorts; revenue band $10M-$25M.
#3 Plaza Inn Doha
Headcount grew 83.3% in 12 months, 7.1× this ranking's median of 11.7%, #1 of 14 companies here in the 50–99-employee band. Based in Doha, Qatar; primary sub-industry: Lodging & Resorts; revenue band $1M-$5M.
#4 The Bentley Luxury Hotel & Suites
Headcount grew 80.9% in 12 months, 6.9× this ranking's median of 11.7%, #2 of 11 companies here in the 100–249-employee band. Based in Doha, Qatar; primary sub-industry: Lodging & Resorts; revenue band $5M-$10M.
#5 Food Services
Headcount grew 42.3% in 12 months, 3.6× this ranking's median of 11.7%, #2 of 14 companies here in the 250–499-employee band. Based in Doha, Qatar; primary sub-industry: Food Service; revenue band $10M-$25M.
#6 Sterling Restaurants WLL
Headcount grew 39.8% in 12 months, 3.4× this ranking's median of 11.7%, #1 of 4 companies here in the 10–19-employee band. Based in Doha, Qatar; primary sub-industry: Restaurants; revenue band $1M-$5M.
#7 Jouri, a Murwab Hotel
Headcount grew 26.9% in 12 months, 2.3× this ranking's median of 11.7%, #1 of 4 companies here in the 20–49-employee band. Based in Doha, Qatar; primary sub-industry: Lodging & Resorts; revenue band $1M-$5M.
#8 Qatar Aircraft Catering
Headcount grew 25.3% in 12 months, 2.2× this ranking's median of 11.7%, #2 of 4 companies here in the 20–49-employee band. Based in Doha, Qatar; primary sub-industry: Food Service; revenue band $5M-$10M.
#9 Golden Ocean Hotel
Headcount grew 22.9% in 12 months, 2.0× this ranking's median of 11.7%, #3 of 14 companies here in the 250–499-employee band. Based in Doha, Qatar; primary sub-industry: Lodging & Resorts; revenue band $10M-$25M.
#10 VIPHotel
Headcount grew 22.9% in 12 months, 2.0× this ranking's median of 11.7%, #4 of 14 companies here in the 250–499-employee band. Based in Doha, Qatar; primary sub-industry: Lodging & Resorts; revenue band $25M-$50M.
Get the full list
CSV + Excel + PDF with every company on this page (name, website, city, industry and sub-industry, size band, employee count, growth and a careers-page search link). Secure card checkout; the files arrive by email within a few hours. One-time $7, 14-day refund.
Want every sector in Doha? The all-sectors list for Doha is $29.
Need a fresh list every month? GCC Growth Radar ($99/month) sends a new ranked list on the 1st of each month.
Methodology
Source: licensed B2B firmographic and technographic data, pulled 9 Oct 2026; page updated 2026-10-09. Scope: companies headquartered in the city with 10–500 employees and at least 10 data profiles; the top 50 by 1-year headcount growth per industry, after removing likely local branches of foreign or 1,000+ staff groups; companies with zero or negative growth are left out. Growth is the modelled change in the company's own employee count over the last 12 months; values above 200% are labelled estimated because they come from small headcounts. Location is the company's headquarters city; firms headquartered elsewhere with large local offices are not included, and likely local branches of foreign or 1,000+ staff groups were removed by a name/website rule that can miss some branches. Some companies are local branches of larger groups; the size band is for the local entity. Figures move between monthly editions. Company-level data only: no personal names, emails or phone numbers.
We publish a ranking only when at least 15 companies qualify, and skip a page when its top 10 would repeat another page.
FAQ
- Which hospitality & restaurant company in Doha grew fastest this year?
- In the October 2026 edition, Yasmine Palace ranks first with 150.0% 1-year headcount growth, followed by Al Liwan Suites (100.0%) and Plaza Inn Doha (83.3%).
- How fast are hospitality & restaurant SMBs in Doha growing?
- The median company on this list grew headcount by 11.7% in 12 months. This is a list of fast growers, not a sector average.
- What does "growth" mean here?
- The change in the company's own employee count over the last 12 months, modelled from licensed B2B firmographic data. It is not revenue growth and not a count of open vacancies.
- Why do some figures say "estimated"?
- Growth above 200% usually comes from a small starting headcount, so a few hires move the percentage a lot. We keep these companies but label the figure.
- What is in the paid list?
- All 47 companies on this page with website, city, industry, size band and growth, as CSV and Excel. Company-level only: no personal contact details.
- How often is this updated?
- Monthly. Each edition is dated; this one is October 2026.