Restaurant & cafe HVAC
Restaurant & cafe HVAC in Al Amwaj
In Al Amwaj, north Jeddah's coastal strip lined with modern restaurants and cafés, the kitchen and dining AC needs precise balance to keep cooking smells and steam away from your guests.
- Pressure balance
- Make-up air
- Coil protection
Clients We're Proud to Serve
Organisations and companies that trusted Alrabih with their projects.
When your restaurant needs a specialist
- 1
Kitchen smells reaching diners
When the extract hood pulls out more air than is replaced, the kitchen goes negative and draws air from the dining room, bringing smells with it. The answer is calculating the volumes and delivering make-up air close to the hood.
- 2
Dining room stays warm despite the AC
A full dining room in Jeddah's humid summer raises heat and moisture load noticeably. Design must account for peak occupancy, and the right diffuser layout achieves even cooling across tables, not cold near the duct and warm in the corners.
- 3
Repeated breakdowns in kitchen AC units
Grease vapour from the burners settles on evaporator coils and blocks airflow, raising pressure and stressing the compressor. Placing the unit away from grease currents and scheduling coil cleaning reduces this damage significantly.
Who it's for
Opening a new restaurant that needs a full HVAC system
We design the cooling and make-up air system from scratch to match your kitchen and dining layout before you open.
Ask on WhatsAppYour restaurant is running but smells are reaching the tables
We survey the existing system, measure pressure between kitchen and dining, then correct the fault by adding make-up air or adjusting the air balance.
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What the work covers
- Kitchen and dining pressure survey
- Make-up air for hood
- Diffuser layout for dining
- Ductwork to SMACNA standards
- Air balance commissioning
How we work
How we work
- 1
Site and kitchen survey
We visit, measure the spaces, review the existing extract hood and burner positions, and find where negative pressure is occurring before any design work.
- 2
Design and equipment selection
We design the make-up air and cooling systems together, and select units from Carrier, YORK, General, Midea, Gree or Smart Gold to suit the space and the load.
- 3
Duct fabrication and installation
We fabricate ducts in our workshop from G90 galvanised sheet to precise sizes, install the units, and run Mueller copper in runs of up to 30 metres without welded joints, insulated with Armaflex.
- 4
Balancing and handover
We run the system and adjust dampers until the kitchen sits at slight negative and the dining room at slight positive, confirming that doors open easily and no kitchen smell crosses to the guests.
Integrated design or separate units with no balance?
| Alrabih | The usual way | |
|---|---|---|
| Make-up air | Calculated and delivered to the hood | Usually not addressed |
| Dining pressure | Slight positive, no smell transfer | Negative, pulls kitchen air in |
| Coil protection | Unit placed away from grease | Repeated breakdowns |
| Cooling spread | Diffusers sized for full occupancy | Uneven, warm corners |
| Kitchen ductwork | Fabricated in-house from G90 sheet | Off-the-shelf sizes, poor fit |
Everything your AC needs, from one team
From system design and duct fabrication to installation, commissioning and maintenance.
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Some of our work
Ductwork, rooftop units and diffusers, from work we've completed in Jeddah.
Customer reviews
What our customers say
- Muhammadramzan 2641
“MashaaAllah. Services are so good. Behaviour and kindness 100/100. Prices are less then Market. Fully recommended”
- shahzeb armani
“Wow. Prices are so comfortable. Outstanding services. People are so talented and nice”
- Tawfik AlyawerLocal Guide
“U can find all u need for air conditioning”
Your satisfaction matters to us! If you had a great experience with us, we'd love a 5-star rating and a kind review.
Worked with us? Leave a reviewService areas
We come to you anywhere in Jeddah
From Al Shiraa and Al Yaqout in the north to Al Thaghr and Al Quraiyat in the south, with our base in Al Aziziyah.
What sets this district apart
Modern Al Amwaj restaurants typically feature open-plan designs between kitchen and dining, with large glazed frontage facing the sea. This means the kitchen extract directly pulls air from the dining space, trapping cooking odours at the tables and unsettling guests. We need an advanced pressure-balancing system here that keeps the dining room cool and fresh, whilst protecting the refrigeration coils from the oil and grease spray that rises from the kitchen.
Al Amwaj is a modern coastal district north of Jeddah, planned around contemporary restaurants, hotels and cafés along the waterfront.
Most Al Amwaj restaurants feature open kitchens directly adjacent to the dining space, requiring robust pressure-balancing and make-up air supply systems.
The AC setup in Al Amwaj
- 1
Powerful kitchen extraction with pressure balancing
Open kitchens require high-speed extraction paired with clean compensatory air in the dining area to maintain comfort and air quality.
- 2
Coils protected against grease and salt corrosion
Seafront exposure and cooking grease attack metal surfaces, so we specify high-grade copper coils and pipes resistant to salt and corrosion.
- 3
Enhanced drainage for high coastal humidity
High coastal humidity prolongs condensation, so we install larger drain pipes on a slope for rapid, unobstructed drainage.
Before the visit
Before our visit in Al Amwaj
- 1
Tell us about your kitchen and dining layout
Send us photos of your kitchen and dining layout, showing where the glass windows and openings are, so we can assess the cooling and extraction load accurately.
- 2
Confirm outdoor unit and exhaust duct locations
Confirm that there is safe space on the roof or exterior wall for the units and exhaust ducts, and tell us about the structural condition.
- 3
Schedule maintenance with management in advance
Restaurants run continuously, so coordinating the appointment with management at least a week in advance ensures minimal disruption to service.
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FAQ
Questions about Restaurant & cafe HVAC
What is the difference between make-up air and kitchen air conditioning?
Make-up air replaces the volume the hood extracts, its purpose is pressure balance not necessarily cooling. Kitchen air conditioning tackles burner heat and lowers temperature for the staff. Both may be needed, and the site survey determines which your kitchen requires.
Do outdoor seating areas need a different approach in Jeddah?
Yes. In Jeddah's heat and humidity, fans alone are not enough during peak months. The right option depends on whether the space has an open roof or a partial enclosure and how large the area is. We assess the spot and propose suitable units after the survey.
How are AC coils protected from kitchen grease?
The first step is design: we position kitchen units in airflow paths away from the grease rising off the burners. In preventive maintenance contracts we schedule pressure coil cleaning before build-up raises stress on the compressor, because early cleaning is simpler and less costly than a repair.
Can existing ductwork in an operating restaurant be repaired or does it need replacing?
The decision follows a duct inspection: we look for air leaks, grease build-up inside, and sheet corrosion from Jeddah's salty air. If the structure is sound we seal joints with Foster sealants and re-insulate with Kimmco. If not, we fabricate new sections in our workshop and replace the damaged runs.
Does a packed dining room during peak season affect how the AC performs?
Yes, every person in the room adds heat and moisture, and this is significant in Jeddah's summer. Design therefore accounts for full occupancy load, not average attendance, and diffusers are positioned to deliver even cooling across all tables. The exact layout is confirmed after the site survey.
My kitchen opens directly onto the dining area, how do you stop cooking smells reaching the guests?
We install a powerful extraction system in the kitchen linked to clean make-up air supply in the dining area, so the pressure difference pulls cooking smells outward, away from your guests.
Our seafront glass façade catches the sun all day, does that strain the cooling?
Yes, large glazed seafront walls increase cooling demand significantly, especially midday to afternoon. We size the units accordingly and may suggest solar protection measures if needed.
Sea humidity here is very high, does it damage the coils and equipment?
Coastal humidity accelerates rust and mould on coils and copper pipes. We choose salt-resistant equipment and schedule regular coil cleaning to prevent buildup.
Oil spray from cooking builds up on the coils and pipes, how often should we have them cleaned?
For Al Amwaj restaurants, we recommend cleaning the coils every one to two months depending on kitchen volume, because grease cuts cooling efficiency and blocks drainage.
