RIYADH: After a dizzying day in Riyadh, I found myself in need of nourishment so headed over to the cozy The Lighthouse.

“Named after the lighthouse of Alexandria, one of the seven wonders of the ancient world, the lighthouse is a restaurant concept store and communal all under one roof,” the menu read.

It continued: “On a more personal note, Hashem’s mother, Dr. Malak Hashem, spent her life as an educator and wrote her doctorate thesis on Virginia Woolf, author of the seminal novel ‘To the Lighthouse.’ So The Lighthouse is, in many ways, a tribute to her generation of trailblazing women who stood out as beacons of curiosity and excellence.”

Of course, it referred to Egyptian co-founder Hashem Montasser, who hosts a UAE-based podcast aptly titled ‘The Lighthouse Conversations,’ in which he interviews those in the gastronomy field in the region.

If you have scrolled through local foodie social media recently, you might have come across clips of him speaking to experts in the know.

But I was there to eat and drink.

I had the Apple Fizz drink to start for SR35 ($9), which was refreshing.

The Chicken Milanese is what I came for, and for SR145, it was filling and flavorful and exactly as advertised. It was crispy and topped with some fresh veggies and a dusting of cheese — but somehow not soggy or dry. I liked the fresh lemon slice to the side, which further brightened up the flavors.

I also had the avocado and corn salad for SR70, which was summer in a bowl.

My main qualm was the creme brulee chocolate mousse — which I was quite excited about — because it had nothing to do with the iconic creme brulee dessert.

Perhaps it is my human error but I mistakenly assumed, from the name on the menu, that it would come with a hardened, crackable sugary top and a smooth, scoop-able silky chocolate mousse underneath. It was basically just pillowy chocolate encasing even smoother chocolate — not what I would have ordered had I known. It wasn’t bad but it wasn’t what I wanted.

Service was slightly slow but I eventually welcomed that and took it as a sign to re-center myself and soften my pace. The Lighthouse really did see the light and let it shine on us.

Opened in May of last year, exactly 15 years after Montasser’s late mother died, the DQ branch in Riyadh marked the brand’s first international expansion beyond its home-base in the UAE.

Five months later, they opened their second location in the Kingdom at Solitaire KSA Mall in Jeddah.

Follow along on Instagram @thelighthouse_ksa.