All the new restaurants and bars, menus and dishes you need to try as the weather heats up… From the alluring bar at Doha’s newest five star hotel, to unlimited hotpot and also, a well priced Omakase menu; here’s where (and what) to eat and drink in Doha this month. Stoke and Stoker at Rosewood Doha Stoke and Stoker is a huge space in the quietly luxurious new Rosewood Doha. With comfy leather chairs, alcoves for tastings and small events, and a sea facing outdoor terrace. It’s also smoke free. Cocktails play on the “Art of Travel” and there is a full Zero Proof menu. On the drinks menu are spirits…
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Review: Does Carbone Doha Transcend the Hype?
Carbone’s NYC mother restaurant opened more than a decade ago and it’s still one of the hardest reservations to score. A living room of sorts for A Listers (Selena, Bad Bunny, Beckham offspring, Obama, Kim pre and post Kanye), social media adjacent celebs. It bills itself as an “elevated red sauce joint” with nostalgic overtones. Carbone Doha’s Back Story The Doha outpost opened in a blaze of glory in 2022, one of the gold rush of international names that saw an opportunity in Qatar. Some have gone by the wayside (peace out Pura La Vida); others have thrived (note Beef Bar on a Friday; Cipriani et al). Carbone Doha, from…
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New Review: Innovative and Irresistible Indian Food at Masala Library
I’m usually one to tease my opinion in reviews. I’m not going to play around here. In fact I am deadly serious. We’re talking about butter chicken. Butter chicken is serious business. But if you are in any way a fan of Indian food, even a distant one in the way I am a fan of heavy metal bands, you need to go to Masala Library. Go for the butter chicken – a deconstructed thing of beauty which I will get to later. Stay for the rest of the experience. There’s no shortage of good high end Indian food in this town – Ishka360, Jamavar and Rivaaj among the most…
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New Review – Believe the Quiet Hype About LPM Doha, it’s the Real Deal
LPM Doha sits in the middle of the avenue of restaurants on Al Maha Island. While it has been perhaps overshadowed by its more glamorous, and dare I say, louder neighbors, LPM Doha has quietly amassed a legion of very devoted fans. So much so that when I posted a teaser photo of my visit on social media last week, I was flooded with messages from people who don’t usually send them – all glowing endorsements about the food, the service and the view. Maybe because I had been steering clear of those restaurants on the “Other Island”, maybe because I don’t vacation in Miami, I was unaware of the…
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Review: Is Kai’s Songbird Doha the Real Deal or a Flight of Fancy?
I had fully approached my return to this restaurant with a high degree of cynicism. Of the belief that the borderline cultish proclamations about Kai’s Songbird were a result of them being mesmerized by the location and the concept. For months, since my first visit, I had demurred – “it’s good….but….”. And you can see why I held this view. On arrival, it’s easy to be dazzled by Kai’s Songbird. It’s harborside location, soaring atrium interiors and almost over-designed plush furnishings are unlike anything in Doha. And, of course, there is the novelty of drinking alcohol. Not in a hotel! At The Pearl! With that view! OMG! Swoon! The rest,…
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Rivaaj Doha may have a new name but is the food still as good?
I was a big fan of Riyasat at the St Regis Doha and was curious what had changed since its recent “rebrand” as Rivaaj. With the dissolution of Al Fardan Hospitality, this was one of the high-profile changes. Rivaaj has now moved under the umbrella of their landlords St Regis. The other notable change has been neighboring BIBO moving to we presume, Marsa Malaz Kempinski where sister restaurant Lobito De Mar is located. As a side note – I have lauded what was done in the complex that once housed a moribund ballroom at the Al Gassar Resort. The addition of interesting and popular venues and a gallery was a…
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New Review – Is GAIA Doha Great?
In the 2022 Gold Rush of restaurant openings, it’s easy, for even the most enlightened foodie to lose sight of one, two, or even a handful of new places. For me, one of these was GAIA. So, much so that half way through my recent dinner there, ensconced in its Instagram neutral plush dining room, I had an unsettling feeling that perhaps I was the last to actually visit this place. For on this holiday Monday, by 9pm, the room was heaving. Nearly 300 covers would be done that night – a feat that will have chefs and restaurant managers across Doha quickly do the sums in grudging admiration. I…
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Mid-Year Report Card 2023 – The Qatar Dining Scene
It’s mid-June, Summer is well and truly upon us and vacations are being planned. This also means it’s time for my Mid-Year Report Card 2023 – The Qatar Dining Scene. For those new here, the Mid-Year Report Card is my annual check-in about the Qatar dining scene – what’s great, what’s leaving us a little cold, what could be improved. It’s also a chance to look ahead to what’s happening and what we can look forward to. What I’m Loving Filipino food in the spotlight, finally: This cuisine may finally be getting its time in the sun – with some international and local buzz New Openings Delivering the Goods: The M…
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Lobito De Mar: First Look at Doha’s new Spanish Seafood restaurant
I have a confession to make – I’m a huge fan of Dani Garcia, the brains behind the newly minted Lobito De Mar at the Marsa Malaz Kempinski. But when I was told this new Doha venture was to be located on the moribund bayside site that was home to the now dearly departed Pearl Social and prior to that Antica Pesa, I did hesitate. The spot, on the island outside of the main hotel, well, it seemed a gamble. The underrated Pearl Social was excellent couldn’t make a dent and NY style Antica Pesa too was long gone. Both spots had a celebrity name attached as well. But with…
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Is The Pearl Social the Best Restaurant in Doha You Have Never Been To?
Doha’s dining scene can be fickle and driven by fads, as anyone who has seen a line outside the latest specialty coffee house can attest. A few weeks ago I went for my third visit to The Pearl Social at the Kempinksi Marsa Malaz. For a Friday night, the restaurant was at half capacity. The bar (aka the Diver’s Club) upstairs was busy. But the restaurant was not. Occupying the spot that was once home to the overrated, overpriced and over itself Antica Pesa, the Pearl Social completes the trio of restaurants on the hotel’s mini island. This venue has been hit and miss – the location on the water…
