Doha’s Gymkhana. DINE LIKE A MAHARAJA

A Gymkhana was an opulent dining area catering for the elite during the British Raj in India. A sort of country club where British aristocrats mingled and dined with Indian Royalty and enjoyed special events and cheered on gentleman sports like polo and cricket.

Doha’s Gymkhana tries to keep to that theme and serves spicy Indian cuisine rich in flavours and aroma in a majestic diningroom.

I had eaten at Mumbai’s Gymkhana country club many years ago and remember it as a formal dining hall with some serious old family money crowd and waiters dressed up and wheeling around trolleys brimming with food.

Dohas GymKhana is located in the heart of Souq Waqif and provides a glimpse into a great Maharajas dining experience in a contemporary setting. As we were tour guides to our overseas visitors we decided the perfect place to get an authentic Qatari weekend experience was the pulsating Souq Waqif and corniche.

The FOOD:

Butter Chicken (Priced at Qar 57)
Tandoori chicken cooked in a sweet tomato sauce and cream. We had requested a spicy hot version. It was creamy and moreish and sweet instead of spicy. I would have preferred if it was a little less sweet and had a little more zest.

 

The garlic naan (Qar 9)  with its buttery texture and crispiness, it was the perfect way to mop up the butter chicken.

BIRYANI.
Beautiful flavours, textures and vibrant colour. This was a wonderful representation of a traditional Biryani with rice and meat uniting to form a perfectly harmonious dish.

The WOW dish:

LAMB VINDALOO

If you are like me and like some punch when eating indian food this is for you! The gravy was a perfect combination of spicy with just the right amount of heat while the lamb was soft and tender.

DESSERT

Gulab Jamun
2 milk dumplings drenched in Cardamom and swimming in a rich Sugar syrup
(QAR 20)

Molten Chocolate Cake
I have a weakness and it is named molten chocolate cake. It was delicious!
They Served my bowl of perfection with cinnamon ice-cream (which tasted more like vanilla ice cream) in a tuille cup.
I was not fazed by the fact that there wasnt any cinnamon in the ice cream as the vanilla ice cream was perfect and provided the harmonious balance to the decadence of the rich cake.
(QAR 30)

Gym Khana has received an impressive number of awards and accolades since it opened and is a great Indian restaurant with majestic ambiance and overlooking one of Dohas liveliest open spaces that will be sure to enchant many diners.

The window seats overlooking Fanar and the Souq Waqif courtyard sadly only serve upto four guests so larger groups are served within the restaurant.

The waiters were exceptional and went around dishing out for our family, unobtrusively filling up glasses and ensuring a memorable night.

Attention to details is important to me. My cellphone battery was running low and the waiters had powerbanks ready. Great restaurants remember the small details! I enjoyed the experience and will be definitely be going back to try out the business lunch special soon

The BUSINESS LUNCH special:

Live chaat counter every Thursday and Friday.

Website: http://dohagymkhana.com/

LOCATION:

Gym Khana is situated on the
Ground Floor of Al Jomrok Boutique Hotel,
SouqWaqif, Doha.

The restaurant overlooks the front courtyard of Souq Waqif (directly opposite Fanar)

Email: reservations@dohagymkhana.com

Call: +974-40385328.

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/DohaGymkhana/?fref=ts

Instagram:
https://www.instagram.com/dohagymkhana/

Hours:
Open daily from 12pm till 12am
(Closes on Thursday, Friday and Saturday at 1am)

The opinions and views expressed on this post are my own and based on my experience.

Cuisine: INDIAN

Dining type: Fine Dining

Specials: Urban Point

Average cost ( 2 people): Qar 250 approx.

Payment Methods: Cash and cards accepted

TakeAway: available

Powerbank: available

Wifi: Yes

I do not take responsibility for any changes in prices or terms to the above information. Kindly recheck with the service provider before booking.

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Have you tried the above restaurant?
We would love to hear about your experience!
What did you enjoy the most?