Flip through the latest issue of Gulf Weekly.
THE Mövenpick Hotel Bahrain has been serving up its annual American medley of merriment in recent weeks and dished up a delightful feast on Saturday morning with a melancholic, mouth-watering Jazz Breakfast menu.
Swinging by to perform for the last time from New York after sessions on Thursday evening and during Friday Brunch, Professor Cunningham & his Old school band, a group of well-travelled and talented artists, brought a taste of New Orleans to the celebrations.
Charismatic vocalist, saxophone and clarinet player Adrian Cunningham, an Aussie who found fame and a huge following when he settled down in the US, and his band-mates, bassist Jim Robertson, drummer Rob Garcia and guitarist John Merrill, certainly know how to captivate a crowd with their cool sounds and easy style.
One of my friends was so mesmerised by the act on Friday that she and her party booked the breakfast too on the back of their performance.
The musicianship was amazing and the food matched up to the occasion. This proved to be a very cool and soulful way to enjoy breakfast in a fabulous setting by the pool.
On the table was a selection of freshly-baked Danish pastries, muffins and croissants. The bread basket was impressive too with rye bread, pumpkin seed rolls and a tasty selection of jams.
A slate of cheese and cold cuts followed alongside assorted sliced fruits and yogurt with fruits and berries, honey and mint for a cool and refreshing treat. My 12-year-old son, Stan, tucked into a plate of freshly-baked waffles with maple syrup and berries for a real American-style breakie treat.
The good lady wife, Kathryn, and I checked out the egg choices. Now BBT (before Bahrain time) I was a sucker for poached eggs but now I cannot get enough of the scrambled variety having regularly sampled the delights of a true Bahraini breakfast.
Kathryn has yet to see the light and went for the egg benedict with smoked salmon. It wasn’t a bad choice and she was quick to heap praise on the skills of the Mövenpick chefs.
But my scrambled egg with black truffle was supreme and even served hot (you’d be surprised how few kitchens on this island can master this simple task).
Little Stan surprised us both by ordering fried egg with beans and bacon and devouring the lot … obviously he was in need for extra fuel for a coming football tournament in the afternoon.
He was also delighted to meet up again table-side with the amazing illusionist Javier Saba who had an impressive new bag of tricks in hand (or rather, sleight of hand!), making crosses jump across packs of cards and on to the palms of guests, as well as reading minds.
Javier always leaves a lasting impression and here’s hoping Professor Cunningham & his Old School Band return too … every time I tuck into a plate of scrambled eggs in future I’ll be humming along to jazz classics Puerto Rica and After You’ve Gone.
Hotel general manager Daniel Kaan alongside Nizar El Lakkis, operations manager, and their triumphant teams, have clearly mastered the art of staging festivals and the US party continues this coming weekend with a Hollywood theme.
I know a dozen friends who have ordered colourful bow ties for themselves and fabulous frocks for their wives as the red carpet theme has captured the imagination. Enjoy!
