SAUDI Arabia has been witnessing an increase in American fast-food chains and the trend has gained momentum over the past few years. As more and more Saudis — men and women alike — concentrate on their careers, the traditional family meal has become a rarity in many households and as a result, the demand for food on the go has surged.

Step onto any major Saudi street and you are likely to see the desert skyline lightened with the trademark yellow “M” of McDonald’s, the smiling face of Col. Sanders on a bucket of Kentucky Fried Chicken (locally referred to as “Dajjaj Kentucky”, which literally translated from Arabic means “Kentucky Chicken” or the twin-tailed mermaid on the logo of Starbucks.

Such is the popularity of some eateries that when a new franchise is launched it needs no introduction. This was the case when Krispy Kreme, arguably America’s most famous doughnut chain, opened its first branch in Jeddah last Thursday.

Hundreds of people lined up outside of the store — located in Aziz Mall — to get their hands on Krispy Kreme doughnuts. As the mall’s dozen or so security guards struggled to keep lines flowing smoothly, Abdullah, a young Saudi, explained his excitement about a Krispy Kreme store finally opening in his hometown.

“Whenever I traveled abroad, the No. 1 request from my relatives would be to bring back some Krispy Kreme. I had so many requests from both relatives and friends that I would end up bringing back boxes of doughnuts. I won’t have to do that anymore.”

Mashael Fawaz, a young Saudi woman explained how the store had a more sentimental value.

“When I was studying in London, I would pass by a Krispy Kreme store on my way to college, the smell of freshly baked doughnuts was simply too irresistible. I would go inside, pick up a freshly baked doughnut straight from the conveyor belt and just indulge. It would melt right in my mouth and compliment my black coffee.”

Krispy Kreme has such a great cult following that the company which has the sole franchise rights, Americana, plans to open up 50 branches in 2 years.

“We just opened our second store in Riyadh and this is our first one in Jeddah. In all we are aiming for about 50 stores all around the country by 2009,” said Mohammed Khalifa the regional manager of Americana who was on hand for the Jeddah opening.

So what makes Krispy Kreme doughnuts so unique? The secret, as in the case of most culinary delights, lies in the recipe but also in the way in which the doughnuts are made. Krispy Kreme takes doughnut making very seriously and prides itself on the freshness of its confections to such an extent that all their full-service stores have a “Doughnut Theater” which is essentially a glass showcase that allows customers to watch the doughnuts as they are made.

One of the most favorite parts of the doughnut making process among Krispy Kreme customers is watching the doughnuts being glazed. After they are fried, the doughnuts are placed on a conveyor belt which then takes them to the glazing waterfall. As each doughnut passes underneath the waterfall, it’s completely coated in glaze, which is a mixture of milk, sugar and other ingredients. After this, the doughnuts are cooled and a red neon sign lights up, which lets customers know that a fresh batch is on its way.

Arab News went back to the store a week after its opening, and found that the average waiting time to place an order is 20 minutes but that didn’t seem to deter people from lining up to get a taste of this new sweet delight.