Rozna Restaurant — Restaurant in Muscat

I am sharing a review just 2 hours post my visit to Rozna and its absolutely disappointing. My wife and myself are visiting Oman for the first time just for 2 days and we absolutely love the hospitality and friendliness of the Omani people. It's been a wonderful 2 days in this beautiful city. We traveled to Nizwa, stayed in Muscat, visited the souk and were really surprised how friendly and hospitable the people of Oman are. However, since I saw great videos of Rozna on YouTube I wanted to surprise my wife and take her for a cosy dinner on our last night. Hence, I chose Rozna. After arriving at the venue, we walked in and qued behind a few people as the hostess kept welcoming people and leading them into the restaurant. However, when it was our turn and we asked for a table for two, we were asked if we had a reservation, to which we said "No". The hostess tells my wife it will take 2 hours as there are no free tables now and you need to book. Disappointed enough, we stepped back and were wondering how come people ahead of us were being seated, as we were walking back out since we were denied seating, we saw another Caucasian couple walk in and asked them if they had a booking and they said no as they causally proceeded towards the hostess. The hostess welcomed them with a smile and they were seated. My wife was standing right behind them to see if the hostess would accept them and right enough she did. My wife then confronted the hostess asking them how they got seating and she lied saying they had a booking while we very much knew 100% they did not. The key obearvation here was that we were the only brown couple in the venue with the rest all of Middle Eastern or Caucasian ethnicity. When my wife told the hostess they did not have a booking she went silent and had no words and after pausing a few seconds she tells my wife that the restaurant is full even the next day. You will need to book and check.

We were literally disgusted and stunned by this behavior and attitude towards customers who were looking forward to experience the food and ambience of the restaurant. It is shocking how they could tell us we cannot have a booking for 2 full days as we are only here for 2 days. So basically we would need to book before we arrive in Oman? And how am I suppose to know this? Secondly, do you really want us to believe that we need to have a booking when we saw people before us and after us being welcomed? We even spoke to one of the couples before they went in..

Never thought we would be racially profiled especially in Oman. Absolutely disgusted with the open discrimination. What the hostess did not know is that we two are EU passport holders. Shame how your racially profile customers on their colour..

This place is an absolute joke. Instead, since we were shown the door, we ended up at a very local low profile restaurant which served us amazing camel meat curry, flavored rice and camel meat grills and wrapped up our dinner in 5.200 OMR. Thank you for your disgusting attitude and discrimination towards us.

We are never...

We visited this establishment last November while visiting Oman. Rozna restaurant boasts a magnificent castle or fort-like facade, adorned with various nostalgic artifacts outside its entrance. The interior decor is a well-balanced blend of modern and classic elements. The restaurant is spacious. You can opt either for the standard dining tables or the more traditional option floor seating in private rooms.

We visited for dinner without a reservation, and upon arrival, the place was already packed. The staff directed us to a waiting area, but fortunately, we only had to wait around 10 minutes before securing a private room. The floor seating private rooms resembled a traditional Majlis, complete with traditional cushions and authentic touches like traditional lamp holders, which enhanced the overall ambiance. One downside of dining in a private room was the difficulty in getting the staff’s attention. Since they couldn’t see inside, we had to step outside and flag them down, which took some effort, especially with the restaurant being at full capacity.

For our meal, we ordered the Rocca pomegranate salad, a mixed grill platter, chicken Qabuli, local bread (i believe it was Mardhoof bread), and Luqaimat for dessert. The Rocca pomegranate salad was disappointing, as it contained very little pomegranate despite it being a key ingredient. However, the mixed grill platter was excellent, with tender and juicy meat. The chicken Qabuli, while flavorful, was slightly dry, though the rice made up for it with its rich taste. The local bread was delicious, so we ended up ordering an extra basket. Dessert was served after we finished our meal, and the sweet Luqaimat was the perfect ending with its crispy and at the same time spongey textures well coated in sugary syrup. It felt like a Arabic/Mediterranean version of doughnuts. Imagine a fusion of doughnut balls and the Indian dessert Gulab jamun but with milder spice notes.

Overall, the experience was decent, but not exceptional. A small annoyance was that, while serving our dishes, the waiter stepped on our white shoes, leaving visible marks. The food was flavorful but lacked the finesse expected at the high price point. Customer service felt average, nothing great or extraordinary. Given the extensive menu, I might consider visiting again to try other dishes, but I had hoped for a more refined experience given the...

An honest reflection of the superlative Omani style hospitality with exceptionally delicious food. . . We were pretty mad at ourselves for not going to Rozna during the start of our Muscat holidays and rather going on the last night before catching the flight back to the country. Why am I saying this? Because no tourists should ever leave Muscat without having at least one meal at Rozna. It is that good. . First, the amazing exteriors and interiors of the restaurant took me by a pleasant surprise, as if I had come to have dinner at an old Omani fort. So gorgeous! Pictures don’t do justice. Trust me. The decor and ambience are excellent which needs to be witnessed in person. . Second, the extremely courteous, warm, generous and friendly staff. Words will fall short of describing their hospitality. . Third, the impeccable and delicious food that Rozna serves. Just indescribable. . We visited Rozna in the hopes of feasting on some Omani-style rice items like Shuwa / Qabuli / Mandi. But to our bad luck, all of the rice items were sold out for the night, I can now imagine why! Also, we checked in to the restaurant pretty late in the hour, almost during the closing time. However, upon listening to our story, enthusiasm, and disappointment - the food service staff recommended other traditional bestsellers. Having no other option, we went ahead with the recommended ‘Rozna Barbecue - which is a variety of grilled meat served with sides’. To our surprise, we were elated when we tasted the first bite. It was the best barbecue we had in Muscat. So juicy, flavourful and tender! Since we originally wanted to have rice, the servitor gave us a huge bowl of butter basmati rice with raita and other sides, along with freshly made Rekhal (Omani-style thin crispy flatbread). While we enjoyed our meal, the servitor checked upon us at regular intervals to ensure that everything was alright and fine. The meal portion size was huge and was more than enough for two people. We were too full to try their desserts. Our hearts were filled with gratitude for the experience we just had at Rozna. . Special shoutout to Mr Sean from the food service team. He was our servitor for the night. An amazing human being and an excellent host. His hospitality added to our Rozna experience. . Highly recommend this place....