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They say breakfast is the most important meal of the day and the selection of dishes on offer at The Great Deli Café continues to entice customers looking to start their morning in a hearty manner, writes Mai Al Khatib-Camille.
The café, located in Najibi Centre across from Al Osra supermarket, is part of the BMMI Group of Companies, and offers filling fare from sandwiches, wraps and rice dishes for people on the go.
It is also a cool and trendy venue for those wishing to cool down the pace. There’s a variety of delicious cuisine including traditional expat home-style breakfasts, soups and salads on the menu.
My husband, Sam and I had heard so much about the Deli’s breakfast that we had to sample it for ourselves.
I have been told by friends that British cuisine is arguably quite bland. But what it might lack in culinary flare is easily made up for in abundance if their iconic and beloved full English breakfast is anything to go by.
It’s actually so loved that according to Fouzia Fareed, the central production manager in charge of The Great Deli Café, people drive all the way from Saudi Arabia to sample the fare, which is their best seller.
She said: “We have been open since October 2010 and since then have grown from strength-to-strength.
“We have our regular customers who are from the Saar area which includes mums craving a cup of coffee or sandwich after dropping their youngsters off to school alongside businessmen and women, as well as families coming from across the kingdom to enjoy our menu.”
Sam and I rocked up to the café at around 10am and tables were already full. On one end there was a lovely couple tucking into a large breakfast plate together, on the other side there was a group of women laughing while sipping at cups of coffee and one table looked quite serious with two gentlemen analysing business papers while munching on snacks.
Going through the menu it was hard to decide what to order as everything sounded so good. Sam opted for the BD3.700 English breakfast that everyone was raving about and I went for the BD2.600 bacon and egg butty, which is apparently another much-loved offering.
Our friendly waiter was impressed when we requested more food which was the BD2.800 honey roasted ham and emmental cheese sandwich with brown bread and the latest addition to the menu, waffles and ice cream at BD1.600.
I was surprised by the fast service as within a blink of an eye the food appeared and the table was covered.
The English breakfast was not only tasty but captivating. Sam took one look at it and said to me: “Look Mai this is what eggs are supposed to look like. I can finally have real eggs!”
As he devoured his sautéed mushrooms, tomato, sausage, veal bacon and eggs, I savoured my veal bacon and egg in a healthy brown bun.
In between bites Sam would gulp down his American coffee while I sipped my Irish coffee.
We then shared the sandwich which we both loved. Unlike other sandwiches the Deli did not skimp on the meat. Then for dessert we conquered the fluffy waffles which were topped with vanilla ice cream and a fresh strawberry.
Fouzia said: “Customers love that they can order breakfast any time of the day as we are open from 7am until 11pm. We have people ordering English breakfast in the evening or just coming in for a coffee. Our homemade cakes are fresh from A Piece of Cake and they move well over here.
“We use fresh ingredients and try to be as eco-friendly as possible, for example, we use paper bags not plastic. We are also IMS-certified. We are the only café in Bahrain that has an integrated management system. We care for food safety, health safety, environmental safety as well as quality.”
The Great Deli Café’s breakfast worked wonders for us. It put a big smile on my face and throughout the day I couldn’t stop grinning.
