Entertainment Perk up your weekend with the Friday brunch at Choices
Five-Star Fun By Jorge Granda Photography by Jessie Palanca Additional images courtesy of Oryx Rotana
Conveniently located near the airport, Oryx Rotana has the true spirit of a five-star property. QH stays the night to find out why it’s a go-to destination for business, leisure, and top-notch entertainment any night of the week.
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e arrive at the Oryx Rotana on a sunny Thursday morning, ready to explore the food, the nightlife and the ambiance at this downtown destination. The moment we set foot in the hotel we’re greeted by the friendly staff and are immediately enchanted by the opulence of its open-concept, contemporary design. Its location is minutes away from the airport, banking district and the city’s many attractions including the souq and the Museum of Islamic Art. We’re told that the hotel is best suited for business travellers and corporate clients; but in our opinion it caters to everyone, as all its outlets are vibrant, full of energy, and make for a great night out on the town. Before getting the grand tour, we head up to our suite to drop off our bags. The room is elegant and practical, with a living room, separate spacious bedroom, a full bath, second powder
room and a terrace with a view to the city. After we unpack our belongings we get peckish, ready for our first stop on the culinary express which also happens to be one of my personal favourite spots in Doha – the ever-popular The Cellar.
Tapas Time The Cellar opens from 12:00 noon until midnight and the décor is elegant and chic. There are some high tables and some lower ones all around in what seems like a cavernous vault – hence the name. The main attractions of the menu are the Mediterranean tapas. We’re served a wide variety including smoked salmon, tender, juicy beef medallions, succulent Greek lamb chops and yummy albondigas – melt-inyour-mouth meatballs drenched in a rich tomato sauce. A special touch was that The Cellar’s manager used to work in Dubai at a restaurant called La Parrilla in the Jumeirah Beach Hotel.
The manager there was my aunt and they worked together for six years. This added a very personal touch to the experience and to the service – it’s amazing how small the world really is. All in all it was a wonderful lunch with family and friends. The service is impeccable and the food worthy of seconds and even thirds – the perfect tapas portion sizes definitely make this possible!
Hitting A High Note After leaving The Cellar we go up to our room and rest a little; we have a table booked at the Jazz Club for 7:00 p.m. We’re told the thrumming hotspot holds the reputation as the city’s first official Jazz Club. Slinky and luxurious, the place is ideal for a romantic date or a classy night out. Our hostess Peris rustles up a platter of appetizers for sharing – crunchy coconut shrimp, zesty chicken wings, grilled halloumi and spicy potato poppers. We haven’t been to the club for some time, so we haven’t heard HayWay, their in-house ensemble perform yet. Hailing from Armenia, their combined melodies and stand-out voice of the lead singer are out of this world. For the first half of the night they keep it mellow with low-key jazz classics, but once the midnight hour
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