Faced with morning hunger pangs and a long day ahead, I decided to pop into The Gallery Restaurant with a colleague for a quick bite of breakfast. Located on the seventh floor of Fraser Suites Seef Bahrain, the venue looks and feels comfortable, with soothing, textured wallpapers adding several layers of warmth to its ambience. Add to that the view of the cityscape, and you have a perfect, idyllic spot for an early morning breakfast.
Breakfast here is always laid out at 6.30am, which is extremely convenient for business guests, who prefer an early start to their day. The hotel is, after all, the preferred choice of accommodation for guests who visit the island for lengthy periods of time. The restaurant has direct access to a colourfully eye-catching kids’ playroom, which attracts young ones and keeps them engrossed in activity while their parents enjoy a relaxed morning meal.
Taking in the easy-going atmosphere that the restaurant provides, we headed straight to the breakfast buffet table, which, I must say was a sufficiently large spread. Offerings included pancakes, balaleet, morning staples like breakfast cereal, fresh cut fruit and vegetables served with olives, hummus and mutable, deli meats, an entire cheese board, different kinds of jam and breads. Various fresh juices and flavoured yoghurt were also at hand, for the more health-conscious among us.
Once our plates were piled with the items from the generous spread, we headed straight to the live counter, where the chef whipped up the perfect eggs to order – a component without which my breakfast is incomplete. The cheese omelette with a smattering of mushroom, tomatoes and capsicum that I had requested for was skillfully cooked, and went well with the delicious buttered corn, sausages and baked beans already on my plate.
fraMy colleague, who had opted for Arabic foul and a chickpea preparation along with a frothy cappuccino, drew my attention to the Saj counter, right next to the egg station. The Gallery is famed for serving freshly prepared hot cheese and zaatar Saj bread and, despite being already quite full, we certainly did not want to miss out. To give us a taste of this unique gastronomic experience, the chef served us some simple, crispy Saj with cheese and Zaatar, the taste and texture of which I am going to remember.
I think it would be fair to say that the deliciously hot flat bread oozing with melting cheese topped a great breakfast and laid out the foundation of a perfect day for us.
