Operating Plan · 2026 — 2032

Zellij at DIFC.

A premium Moorish Mediterranean restaurant taking the former Mr Chow / Indochine premises at the DIFC Gate Building. Operator-funded, lease-aligned, opening October 2026.

Tenant

Holdmar & Co

Term

Stub Q4 2026 + 6 years

Premises

DIFC Gate Building
5,321 sqft · 120 covers

Prepared for

DIFC · Asset Management

Executive Summary

A long-term tenant, fully operator-funded.

Zellij is a fully operator-funded, premium F&B tenant for the former Mr Chow / Indochine premises. No financial commitment is requested from DIFC. Rent payable is the higher of the lease-fixed base or 10% of revenue (TOR), with TOR exceeding base in every year of the term.

"From morning to dawn — the rhythm of the day, without break."

Total Rent to DIFC

AED 22.3M

Stub Q4 2026 + 6 years · realistic case

Mature Annual Rent

AED 3.65M+

From Year 2 · TOR-driven · 73% above base rent

Mature Annual Revenue

AED 35.6M

300 trading days · 120 covers · three day-parts

— 01

Operator-funded

Fit-out, working capital, pre-opening — all underwritten by Holdmar & Co.

— 02

Proven elsewhere

Zellij Marbella is the operating reference. The DIFC opening replicates a tested model.

— 03

All-day activation

Lunch through to late-table service — a frontage that lives across the full DIFC rhythm.

— 04

Direct upside

10% TOR exceeds base in every year. As Zellij trades, DIFC's rent rises with it.

Founder · Holdmar & Co

Mohamed Hedi
Mardassi

"This is how I eat now. Why don't you grab a seat at my table?"

The Operator

Holdmar & Co. One operator. Full risk.

Holdmar & Co is a founder-led hospitality operator with a portfolio rooted in the modern Moorish Mediterranean tradition — Zellij Marbella as the lead concept. The DIFC opening extends the same operating model, kitchen format and service standard, scaled for this address.

Tenant of record

Holdmar & Co

Founder

Mohamed Hedi Mardassi

Capital structure

Operator-funded — fit-out, working capital, pre-opening, and operational reserves underwritten by Holdmar.

Operating reference

Zellij Marbella · same kitchen, same service standard, scaled for DIFC.

Concept ownership

Brand, menu, and operating IP held within the Holdmar group.

No financial ask

The lease is the only commercial relationship requested of DIFC.

Operating

Zellij

Marbella

The reference concept. Modern Moorish Mediterranean, established trading history.

Opening Oct 2026

Zellij

DIFC, Dubai

Subject of this submission. 5,321 sqft · 120 covers.

Operating Platform

Holdmar Group

Hospitality

Founder-led operating company; additional concepts in development.

"I didn't reinvent Moroccan food. I let it evolve the way it always has."

— Z

The Concept

A premium Moorish Mediterranean table.

A refined, lighter expression of Moroccan cuisine — opened up to a wider Mediterranean influence. Designed for an international, well-travelled audience that recognises quality without needing it explained.

Positioning: premium casual to fine-dining. Format: open kitchen with fire-cooking, dedicated raw bar, sharing-led table, central bar. Hours: lunch, dinner, controlled late-table — three day-parts on a single tenancy.

Cuisine

Modern Moroccan with Mediterranean influence. Seafood-forward.

Audience

DIFC at lunch · international at dinner · resident late.

Service

Trained, multilingual front-of-house. International standard.

Design

Riad-inspired interior. Branded fit-out per signed brand book.

❋

Attached for reference

Zellij Concept & Brand Book — full positioning, food, drinks, service

Ground-floor entry

Lift lobby with dedicated valet — guest experience begins on arrival.

The Premises

DIFC Gate Building. 5,321 sqft. 120 covers.

The former Mr Chow / Indochine premises. A landmark address, established F&B precedent, and a tenancy already configured for premium dining.

Internal

5,077

sqft

External

244

sqft · terrace

Total area

5,321

sqft

Capacity

120

covers seated

❋

Dedicated lift access — guest entry via the ground-floor lift lobby with adjacent valet desk. Restaurant occupies the upper level.

❋

Kitchen and back-of-house in place from the previous F&B tenant — fit-out reuses existing MEP and ventilation.

❋

External terrace for shoulder-season seating and private events.

❋

Operator-funded refurbishment per brand book — full design and finish executed by Holdmar & Co.

❋

Lease in place — Deed of Variation signed; commercial terms set.

Revenue Model

Three day-parts. One tenancy.

Revenue is built bottom-up from cover counts, occupancy, and average check by day-part. Three day-parts × 300 trading days × 120 covers. Mature run-rate revenue: AED 35.57M per year.

Day-part

Capacity

Occupancy

Turns

Avg Check

Daily Revenue

Lunch · 11:00 — 15:00

120

70%

1.0

AED 220

AED 18,480

Dinner · 19:00 — 23:00

120

90%

2.0

AED 380

AED 82,080

Late Table · 23:00 — Late

120

60%

1.0

AED 250

AED 18,000

Mature daily run-rate

—

AED 118,560

Mature annual

AED 35.6M

300 operating days × daily run-rate. 65 closure days for maintenance/quiet periods.

Year 1 ramp

80%

Marbella precedent. Year 2 reaches mature run-rate.

Stabilised growth

+1.5%/yr

Conservative organic from Year 3. Below Dubai F&B inflation.

❋

Attached for reference

Full financial projection · operating plan workbook

DIFC Financial

Yearly revenue and rent to DIFC.

Rent payable is the higher of the lease-fixed base or 10% of revenue (TOR). TOR exceeds base in every year — DIFC captures direct upside as the restaurant trades. Realistic case at 100% of mature.

Year

Revenue (AED)

Base Rent

TOR @ 10%

Rent to DIFC

Q4 2026 (stub)

6,983,180

355,526

698,318

698,318 TOR

2027 — Year 1

28,454,400

1,746,864

2,845,440

2,845,440 TOR

2028 — Year 2

36,457,200

1,949,625

3,645,720

3,645,720 TOR

2029 — Year 3

37,004,060

2,048,406

3,700,406

3,700,406 TOR

2030 — Year 4

37,559,120

2,152,386

3,755,912

3,755,912 TOR

2031 — Year 5

38,122,510

2,261,565

3,812,251

3,812,251 TOR

2032 — Year 6

38,694,340

2,375,943

3,869,434

3,869,434 TOR

Stub + Six Years

223,274,810

12,890,315

22,327,481

Total rent

AED 22.3M

Stub + 6 years · realistic case

Uplift vs base

+73%

TOR delivers AED 22.3M vs AED 12.9M on base alone

Year 2 coverage

3.9×

Cash to rent — well above 1.5× threshold

Rent / revenue

10.0%

In line with premium F&B benchmarks · Tier-1 location

Timeline & Next Steps

Opening October 2026.

A 4–5 month fit-out and pre-opening cycle from lease finalisation. Opening lands in Q4 2026, capturing DIFC's high season.

Q2 2026

Lease finalised

Deed of Variation signed. Premises handover.

Q2 — Q3 2026

Fit-out

Operator-funded refurbishment per brand book.

September 2026

Pre-opening

Team training. Soft launch. Press & partner activations.

October 2026

Opening

Stub Q4 trading into DIFC high season.

2027 onwards

Stabilised

Year 1 ramp at 80%. Year 2+ at run-rate.

What we ask of DIFC

❋Confirmation of the lease as signed — no commercial changes requested.

❋Coordination on signage, façade, and lift-lobby branding per the brand book.

❋Standard support on fit-out access, MEP coordination, and building services.

❋A working partnership through opening and Year 1 stabilisation.

Next steps

01Submission acknowledgement — this document tabled with DIFC Asset Management.

02Site walk-through — on request, with the operator.

03Mobilisation — lease finalisation and handover targeted Q2 2026.

04Quarterly reporting — operator reporting cycle established post-opening.

— What is Zellij

You don't change the pieces. You change how you put them together.

Zellij is a traditional Moroccan mosaic technique — small hand-cut tiles assembled into precise compositions. Each piece is different. Placed carefully, it becomes something complete.

— The Concept

Moroccan cuisine, evolved.

Not fixed. Not nostalgic. Not heavy. Moroccan cuisine, as it exists today, is the result of centuries of movement. Zellij continues that movement — not fusion, nothing blended for effect.

Faster. Lighter. More fluid. Seafood becomes central. Vegetables gain importance. Spice is used with precision. The flavours remain — the structure changes.

— 01

The Table

Still central, still shared. The table remains the anchor of the room — built for company, designed for connection.

— 02

The Kitchen

Fire, raw, precision. Open kitchen with a dedicated fire section. Raw bar at front. Clean finishes throughout.

— 03

The Space

Open, fluid, grounded in craft. Riad-inspired interior — inward-looking, layered, shaped by light and shadow.

— 04

The Bar

Balanced, refreshing, intentional. Drinks designed to extend the table — citrus, herbs, spice, florals, used with restraint.

"There is a piece of Zellij for everyone. And everyone gets to become a part of our mosaic."

— Z

Seafood, Fire & Comfort

In summary

The deal in one page.

A premium, founder-led tenant taking a landmark DIFC address, fully operator-funded, with rent-to-DIFC scaling directly with revenue.

Tenant

Holdmar & CoFounder-led hospitality operator

Concept

Zellij — Moorish MediterraneanPremium · all-day · 120 covers

Premises

DIFC Gate Building5,321 sqft total · former Mr Chow / Indochine

Term

Stub Q4 2026 + 6 yearsOpening October 2026

Rent mechanism

Higher of base or 10% TORTOR exceeds base in every year

Total rent to DIFC

AED 22.3MRealistic case · stub + 6 years

DIFC ask

None financialLease confirmation, signage coordination, working partnership

We would be glad to host DIFC on a site walk-through at the earliest convenience.

— Contact

Grab a seat at our table.

Mohamed Hedi Mardassi

Founder · Holdmar & Co

Email

momo@holdmar.com
admin@holdmar.com

Phone

+971 56 313 3305

Web

www.holdmar.com