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Executive Chef Indrajit Saha plans to conjure up additional magical mouth-watering elements at one of the island’s most popular Friday Brunch experiences.
He stepped into his first weekend at the Sofitel Bahrain Zallaq Thalassa Sea & Spa by instantly introducing a couple of tasty treats for guests and no doubt has even more tricks up his sleeves for the weeks to come.
The Sofitel is one of the Szecowka family’s favourite brunch destinations and although every outlet in the kingdom has its own unique strengths and, on occasions, weaknesses, the atmosphere at this beach resort has always been hard to beat.
And this weekend the attention to detail was admirable too and the waitress service providing the fluids for the occasion appeared slicker than ever before. Maybe the team was particularly anxious to please the newly-crowned king of the kitchen and long may it continue.
Chef Indrajit, 39, an Indian who heralds from Kolkata, has arrived after spells as executive chef at sister properties in Mumbai and Krabi as well as with Kempinski in Zanzibar and the Seychelles.
He’s got a big pair of shoes to fill. Executive Chef Kim Gates, who had been in position since the hotel’s opening in 2010, has now moved on to the Sofitel Abu Dhabi and we wish him well.
One of Chef Indrajit’s claims to fame is winning the prestigious international So Amazing Chef Contest and taking the Michelin Chef Francois Geurds’ Judge’s Award for ‘best dish’ created.
“I knew from a young age that this was the career for me,” he said, “and I’m still inspired by meeting people, experiencing different cultures and having the opportunity to create dishes using local ingredients.
“Although I am new to Bahrain I have already found those I have interacted with very genuine, warm and full of smiles.
“With my team and colleagues I aim to impress diners with the variety, quality, the authenticity of the cuisine offered.”
The Sofitel brunch allows visitors to sample the fare of some of its main restaurants and whenever we visit we prefer to sit in the well-lit, Italian quarter in Fiamma, away from the musicians and birthday parties in the main Saraya setting. The only problem is that it’s a trek to the wonderful world of Wok Vietnamese and, silly me, it wasn’t until my second brunch that I even knew it was there.
One of Chef Indrajit’s first touches has been to introduce a Wok Welcome Food element to the experience, a tasty little entre that diners can savour as the chefs prepare the perfect bowl of Pho Bo beef noodle soup with herbs.
As a fan of seafood the choice on the iced trays was impressive with mussels, prawns and crab meat ready to be plucked on to a plate. Another daft conversation followed on our table. With all this huge debate going on about genetically-modified food, why doesn’t a scientist come up with a giant cockle. I wouldn’t complain, just imagine eating your fill with a mighty mollusk and climbing into its shell afterwards for a nap.
Putting aside these strange thoughts for a minute, the reality fared much better. The grilled hammour was magnificent, moist meat which melted in the mouth.
You really have to pace yourself to fully enjoy this experience. A trip into the sunshine to the outside grill delivered steaks and I couldn’t leave without a cut from the prime rib carving section, alongside a side-dish of salad.
Others on our table tucked into lamb cous-cous with vegetables and a marinated grouper fillet with garlic was raved about.
Desserts included a mountain of chocolate choices too numerous to fully describe but maybe the photograph will suffice and a special sweet treat introduced by Chef Indrajit which proved to be a firm crowd favourite called Churros, a Spanish dough delight which had guests clambering back for more.
“I have many more interesting concepts up my sleeve which I’m sure will excite people and encourage them to come back for more,” he confided in me. “The culinary adventure is a never-ending journey.” I’m excited already.
The family brunch costs BD32.000 net per adult, children aged six to 12 pay BD16.000 and those five and below, eat for free. Call 17636363 to book a table.
