Saudi Gazette The fourth Kleja Food Festival has attracted thousands of visitors to the calm and distant province of Al-Qassim. The small town of Buraidah in the province is known as Kleja Village. Umm Anas Al-Sihaibani has earned the title of ‘Kleja Queen'. At the festival, Umm Anas and her three daughters prepare the sweet biscuits and bake them on site to serve visitors. A long line of her loyal customers stand in front of her stall to get a taste of her delicious Kleja biscuits. Kleja biscuits of Umm Anas are desired by customers because of her adherence to food hygiene. She wears plastic gloves when she handles the food items besides properly packing and storing them. It is her positive and welcoming attitude that won her this title. She is often seen chatting cheerfully with her customers. She also gives Kleja biscuits as freebies to snack on while they wait for their turn. “My experience and love for making Kleja biscuits goes over a decade. I learned the recipe from my mother who learned it from my grandmother. In the beginning, I was not very serious about selling the biscuits, but my husband encouraged me and persuaded me to start a Kleja business,” Umm Anas told Al-Watan daily. The business started on a small scale with an initial profit of SR150 per month. Her only customers were her close relatives. She gained immense popularity due to her friendly nature. Today, she even exports her Kleja biscuits to her customers in the United States and Great Britain. “Saudi families in the United States and in Great Britain order large amounts of this traditional biscuit. All they have to do is transfer the amount to my bank account and I have their order shipped to their personal addresses,” said Umm Anas. Participation in several food festivals in Al-Qassim also played a role in her success. What had started out as a family tradition and a personal hobby turned into a lucrative Kleja business for Umm Anas. __
