Vogue Café and GQ bar to open in Dubai

The publisher has teamed up with Dubai-based food and beverage management company Inspired Group to set up the café and bar with branding based on its international magazines.

The Vogue café and coffee lounge will be on the Shoe District floor of the 8,900sqm Dubai Mall. The GQ Bar will be based in an international five-star hotel and will offer alcohol, whereas the Vogue café will not sell alcohol in accordance with local law for cafés in the United Arab Emirates.

The new venues will be opened by Condé Nast Restaurants, a division of the company launched in 2010 and based in Hong Kong. A GQ bar in Istanbul is also set to open this year and a Vogue café in Kiev will open in 2013.

Vogue and GQ-branded venues already exist in Russia, as well as a Tatler magazine-branded club. All are licenced to an independent Russian operator.

Stuart Nielsen, director of Condé Nast Restaurants, said: "Vogue Café Dubai is our first step into the Middle East market, and together with the GQ Bar, forms an integral part of Condé Nast International’s strategy to expand its celebrated media brands into restaurants and bars around the world. We are working with the best local partners in Dubai, and will absolutely respect the laws and values of the land."

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