Last night I was invited to the Qatar Living FOODIE MONTH Finale Dinner at the Santa Monica Breakfast Club located within the Grand Hayatt Hotel.
Like all Qatar Living events this was a great opportunity to mix with like minded people, and enjoy some great food. This particular event was the finale of the Qatar Living Foodie Month and their choice of venue was excellent.
This was the first time I had eaten at the Santa Monica, and it didn’t disappoint. For me it was a bit weird ordering from a breakfast menu for dinner, but they have three excellent burgers on offer and so I went for one of those. My choice was their ‘Prime Time burger’ with caramelised onions, hash brown and a fried egg on top. Now bear in mind that the room is full of social media and food bloggers, so the staff were naturally a little on edge and very keen to get feedback on everything they served. After finishing my burger I was asked for my comments by my server and my reply was that I had no complaints. If someone is stupid enough to ask how my meal was they are going to get the truth good or bad, and a lot of the time they don’t like the answer I give them. So for me to say I had no complaints was actually a massive compliment, as I could not find fault in my meal. It was tasty, well balanced, cooked to perfection and well presented. As burgers go, this is a good one, but nothing outstanding or worth special mention.
I ordered a chocolate milk shake to go with my meal. It didn’t last very long. It was so yummy I couldn’t put it down and it was gone in a matter of minuets. Back comes my server who once again asks for feedback and this time I had a minor observation; The drink was too warm. I like my shakes to be nice and cold. This was just a little under room temperature. Chilling the glass first could have sorted that out easily. Anyway like I say it was a small observation and went on to order a second shake immediately.
I finished with a plate of pancakes. I asked for banana, maple syrup and mixed berries. You are allowed four toppings and I only asked for three, so it was probably my fault that their wasn’t enough going on, on my plate. The maple syrup came in a tiny jug, and there simply wasn’t enough to make my pancakes moist enough for me. Perhaps I should have ordered some cream as well. The banana was my savior, by adding a little of that to each mouthful it was palatable. I got what I ordered, so it’s difficult for me to complain about what I got. However when asked for comments I pointed out that the maple syrup was not a big enough serving.
The Santa Monica Breakfast Club is what it says on the tin, a breakfast dinner. Without the burgers on the menu I would have been a bit stumped. Although there are plenty of delicious sounding breakfast items on the menu it’s unlikely I would go back here as a destination in an evening. But I think I will return to give it another go one Friday for a breakfast treat.
It was a fabulous evening, and I want to finish by thanking the guys at Qatar Living for inviting me along.
