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As an avid fan of alternative music, any place that is adorned with posters of Jimi Hendrix and pumps out distortion-heavy guitar anthems is cool with me.
However, people don’t just visit the Hard Rock Café in Hoora on Exhibitions Avenue for the music or refreshing ambience, the food also strikes a chord too, quite rightly.
The casual dining American restaurant franchise serves up a plethora of tantalising dishes ranging from burgers to pasta.
Heading up the kitchen team in Bahrain is Filipino Head Chef Rolando ‘Rolly’ Magbitang, 51, from Hoora.
Chef Rolly brings 15 years of culinary experience to the outlet, experience he received exclusively from Hard Rock after working his way up from a waiter.
“I came to Bahrain 15 years ago as my wife, Verna, was working as a waitress at the restaurant. Soon I began helping out by chopping vegetables in the kitchen and after a while I was sent to the Hard Rock Café in Beirut for formal training,” he said.
“Some things have changed a lot since I began working here … my wife is now the operations manager for a start! But the biggest changes are on the menu. Sure there are staple dishes which haven’t changed, but there are new additions and everything has gotten better, fresher and classier over time.”
The venue recently celebrated its 15th anniversary, which makes it one of the oldest franchises on the island.
The menu was recently updated too and Chef Rolly was flown to Dubai (along with other Hard Rock culinary kings from across the globe) and trained how to make the new dishes by executive chefs from the company’s head office.
Some of the new items include Goat Cheese Chicken Salad Sandwich, Battered Fish & Chips, Caribbean Black Bean Burger, Shanghai Smokehouse Sandwich, South Carolina Smokehouse Sandwich and the Texan Smokehouse Sandwich.
As you take a seat in a booth or at a table, it’s impossible not to become distracted by the venue’s ambience. The stained glass and classic wooden features create an authentic vintage feel.
The cafe’s walls are adorned with music memorabilia including autographed guitars, costumes from world tours and rare photographs.
As I took my seat, Megan Van Niekerk, sales and marketing co-ordinator, took great delight in pointing out the various items.
I was salivating before the food reached the table when I caught a glimpse of a guitar signed by the Red Hot Chili Peppers. I was debating sneaking it out under my shirt, but it was fixed to the wall ... clearly someone’s tried before!
When the food arrived, I almost forgot about the guitar as everything was so immaculately presented. It all looked so good it was hard to know where to start.
I began, uncharacteristically, by tucking into a hefty portion of fresh Cobb salad. The lettuce was crisp and covered with an assortment of goodies including chicken, onion, cheese, avocado and beef bacon. It was delicious.
Next up were the chicken Quesadillas, a mouth-watering tortilla and cheese concoction that is as tasty as it is simple. This is a dish that is ideal for sharing, or, if you’re greedy like me, keeping to yourself.
It’s easy to be swayed by the all-American hamburgers the franchise is famous for, but with such a varied menu, why not sample something different, like the Fajita Pesto Pasta?
Complete with thick, juicy strips of chicken, this is a gastronomic delight comprised of fresh penne pasta tossed in a lightly-spiced jalapeno sauce.
I rounded off the meal with a sizable serving of banana bread and chocolate pudding, which was topped with cold, rich vanilla ice cream ... so much for trying the healthy option.
Currently, there are 175 Hard Rock locations in 53 countries. The Hoora branch may not be as large as others around the world, but it still serves up all the right ingredients to make sure it rocks ... hard.
