Flip through the latest issue of Gulf Weekly.
from the outside, Club Buffalo is an unassuming place tucked underneath in the Ramee Hotel California in Juffair - arguably the district which offers the discerning diner the most diverse range of restaurants on the island.
However, inside, it is decorated in a Western theme - complete with waiters dressed as cowboys - and offers guests an unforgettable dining experience.
The club/restaurant was opened in September 2010 and has been drawing large US and European clientele ever since, thanks mainly to its Tex-Mex menu, resident band, live cooking station and friendly staff.
The menu offers something for everyone with a range of salads, appetizers and main courses. However, for the truly hungry, the 72oz steak challenge is an event in itself.
Diners are invited to try and eat the gargantuan meal in under an hour (following the pre-approved rules) and if they finish it all, their meal is free. If however, you fail, the whopping main course will set you back a mere BD30.
So far only three people have completed the challenge, and the staff members are appealing for more challengers. If readers think they're hungry enough ... have a go ... although it was too much for this reviewer!
Split into two sections, the venue offers customers the choice of sitting in a quite dining room or enjoying their meal while watching resident band Cache Superstar perform six nights a week.
Newly-appointed head chef Hem Chandra Pant has been further delighting diners for the past few weeks by adding his own international flare to the sumptuous dishes on offer.
Chef Hem, 48, moved to the kingdom four weeks ago after finishing his three-month stint as food and beverage director at Nirta Restaurant in Japan. Originally from Uttarakhand in India, Chef Hem, who now lives in Hoora, has more than 29 years of culinary experience.
His career as a chef began back in 1982 after completing a training course. He took a position at Hotel Oberio Tower in Mumbai where he worked for eight years.
After seeing an advertisement in a newspaper for a job on a Royal Caribbean cruise liner, he took up the challenge of running the vegetable station onboard.
"Cruise liners have a different way of doing things; there is someone in charge of each section. Someone prepares the soup, someone prepares the sauce, and someone else prepares the vegetables," he explained.
"It was great fun but after a while I wanted to take on a different challenge, I love trying new things."
So from the high seas his culinary career took off next with an airline. He returned to India to work as a sue chef at the Ambassador flight kitchen, preparing meals for passengers before returning to the oceans two years later with Costa Cruises. It was during his stint onboard that he was introduced to Italian cuisine, adding another string to his bow.
His desire to perfect his skill has since taken him around the world and taught him how to prepare different types of cuisine including Italian, Japanese, Arabic, Spanish Mediterranean and American dishes.
At Club Buffalo, chef Hem is assisted by a small but dedicated team of assistants whom he hopes will learn from his love of cooking. He said the menu was set before he took the position but he's gradually working in his own touches to the fare.
Chef Hem says that the presentation of the food is just as important to him as the preparation. He said: "Guests always eat a meal with their eyes first, so the way the plate is arranged is very important.
"I take great care in cooking and presenting everything that comes out of the kitchen because at the end of the day, if the guest isn't happy then I'm not either.
"I want people to leave the restaurant happy after enjoying their meals, because if they leave happy, they'll happily come back!"
The club operates from 4pm to 2am daily and has designated theme nights each month. On March 18 the club will be celebrating Saint Patrick's Day with its Go Green night, which features a special food and beverage promotion for BD10.
