From fine dining to kebab people travel hours for

Before Shashlik, Mahmoud Masttat worked in a Michelin-starred restaurant. He knew the precision, craftsmanship and care that go into fine dining, from choosing ingredients to the attention given to every dish.

He wanted to take that experience in a direction of his own. Mahmoud left fine dining to create a Syrian kebab concept built around the food he loved, personal hospitality and a commitment to quality. Shashlik began as a small food truck.

Word spread through customers, local media and social media. People queued for hours, and guests began travelling from other cities to try his food. Some drove for hours to reach Shashlik.

At the centre of that attention was Mahmoud, preparing food and sharing it with people. The experience he had gained in fine dining had found a new home in a concept that was entirely his own.

For Mahmoud, every ingredient matters. His years in a professional fine-dining kitchen shaped the way he thinks about flavour, preparation and the standard of the food leaving his counter. First-time visitors and regulars deserve the same care.

He also enjoys the conversations that happen around the food. Mahmoud wants to hear what guests think, explain a dish, offer a recommendation and make sure people leave happy. Personal service is part of what he has built at Shashlik.

That combination helped the food truck grow into a popular takeaway restaurant with a loyal following. As more people came, the demands on Mahmoud and his team grew too. Protecting the experience meant finding a better way to handle that success.

The routines that worked for a small food truck became harder to manage as demand grew. Mahmoud was cooking, answering the phone, taking payments, writing down orders and looking after the queue, while trying to give every customer his attention.

Phone orders and manual payments interrupted the work. Guests waited to place orders, and administration took hours Mahmoud would rather have spent on his food and customers. The popularity of Shashlik was putting pressure on the very service that made it special.

High demand created another difficult situation. Products could sell out while guests were still travelling to the restaurant. Some people drove one or two hours, only to arrive and discover that the food they wanted was no longer available.

For Mahmoud, that was frustrating. He had built something people were willing to travel for. Now he needed a way to manage orders and availability that gave those guests a better experience and his team more control.

Shashlik’s work with ninito began with ordering and payments. The aim was to simplify the daily work and give Mahmoud more time for the food and personal service that had made the restaurant successful.

Guests can now place orders themselves at self-service kiosks, scan a QR code to order or use Shashlik’s webshop before they arrive. Ordering and payment no longer depend on Mahmoud or a colleague handling every step at the counter.

That creates space for a different kind of conversation. Mahmoud can spend more time recommending dishes, answering questions and explaining the food. His team can give more attention to preparation, quality and hospitality.

The technology supports the experience Mahmoud wants to give. Guests have an easier way to order, while the people behind the counter have more time to look after them.

After replacing expensive payment solutions with ninito, Shashlik reports approximately 85% lower transaction costs. More of the revenue from each sale can stay in the restaurant.

Shashlik also reports an increase of approximately 38% in average order value. Self-service and digital ordering let guests explore the menu, discover additional products and build their meals at their own pace.

Automation across ordering, payments and administration, including accounting-related work, saves an estimated 10–20 administrative hours each month. That is time Mahmoud and the team can put back into food, customers and developing the restaurant.

For your own restaurant, start with what the investment needs to deliver. ninito offers a 100% value guarantee on Pro and Enterprise. If ninito does not create enough value to cover the system cost, you do not pay for it. Your proposal should make the costs, the included team and that commitment clear from the beginning.

For guests travelling to Shashlik, planning ahead can make a real difference. Through the webshop, they can order hours before arriving, choose pickup later in the day or place an order several days ahead.

Mahmoud can manage product availability directly from ninito’s Kitchen Display System. When a product sells out, he can mark it as unavailable so guests can see what is available before ordering.

The kitchen gains a clearer view of incoming orders, and Mahmoud has more control over what the restaurant can serve. Guests can plan their visit with greater confidence, including those making a long journey for his food.

For Mahmoud, this is part of hospitality too. Looking after a guest begins before they reach the counter.

Mahmoud took what he had learned in a Michelin-starred kitchen and used it to build something of his own. From a small food truck to a takeaway restaurant that draws guests from other cities, Shashlik has grown around his food and the care he gives people.

With lower transaction costs, larger average orders and less manual administration, ninito helps him make more room for that work. The platform handles more of the ordering process while Mahmoud and the team focus on the experience around the meal.

We are proud to work with Mahmoud and Shashlik. The most meaningful part of the progress is seeing him spend more time on what brought guests to his counter in the first place, creating food he believes in and taking care of the people who come for it.

Shashlik reports approximately 85% lower transaction costs, approximately 38% higher average order value and an estimated 10–20 administrative hours saved each month. Alongside preorders and control over availability, these changes give Mahmoud more time to prepare the food, speak with guests and develop the restaurant he built.