We arrived fairly early, but not even halfway through our first glass of wine, the restaurant filled up quite quickly with patrons who were there to enjoy Chilli Dog Tuesday.
I must say we were quite tempted to opt for it ourselves.
At only QR125 per head, customers get unlimited chilli dogs of several delicious varieties with a drink and hand cut chips. But we stuck to our guns and enjoyed Opal’s signature dishes instead.
Wine - Vigne Orsone Friuli Colli Orientali
What is truly outstanding about Opal in Doha is their surprisingly extensive wine list, featuring the largest collection in the country so far. Customers are presented with iPads, containing a formidable amount of wines to choose from.
If there is a struggle to choose from the vast selection, their in house Sommelier will be by your side in a jiffy to help with selecting a great wine to enjoy in accordance with your meal type and preferences.
Miss Q&M and I opted for a bottle delicious Italian Friuli Colli Oriental Sauvignon from the Bastianich region. A beautiful wine, soft textured with pretty varietal notes of ripe peaches, mint and flowers.
Heirloom Tomato Salad with Burrata Cheese, tossed with basil oil and fresh onion rings
We started our dinner with a Heirloom Tomato Salad with Burrata Cheese, tossed with basil oil and fresh onion rings.With fresh, clean, vibrant flavours, Miss Q&M commented that it tasted like a quintessential summer salad.
The basil oil brought out the sharp acidity of the tomatoes, and complimented the creamy Burrata.
I did find the tomato ratio quite overwhelming. A few less tomatoes and the dish would have been completely faultless.
Stuffed Falafel with Cheese & Herbs
The next appetiser was locally inspired, Stuffed Falafel with Cheese & Herbs. Falafel is a hugely popular snack in this part of the world and well loved by even the expats.
The presentation of the Falafel on a bed of mix green leaf salad with fattouch dressing and sprinkled with fresh pomegranate, seemed more like a deconstructed Falafel sandwich without the bread.
Equally as enjoyable but it could have done with a touch more labneh and the greens could have used a drop more of olive oil.
I’m sure most people would have appreciated the dish as it was, I just preferred a little more moisture to the overall experience.
The Falafel itself was crunchy and savoury, stuffed just right, and we really liked the flavours of the cheese and herbs in the filling.
