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CELEBRITY CHEF Dominic Miles has opened a new standalone charcoal BBQ and grill at the Bahrain Rugby Football Club (BRFC) which continues to expand its facilities for new and existing sports-loving members on the island.
The food guru who entertains listeners every week with recipes and cooking tips on popular presenter Marie-Claire’s ‘am-to-pm show’ on Radio Bahrain will be helping to mastermind the alternative catering option called The Blindside Barbecue & Grill, which will complement the fare offered by the highly-regarded Mano’s Restaurant.
Dominic, 48, a father-of-two, from Saar, who has been involved in the hospitality and food sector all his working life, said: “I still enjoy my hour a week on the radio talking foodie topics with Marie-Claire and this opportunity allows me to get back in the game from a catering perspective.
“Although I won’t be doing all the cooking as I have other business commitments I will be there on a regular basis to ensure our high standards of quality and service are maintained and I’m lucky to have Kate Gibson, a fellow foodie, as my head of operations.
“I’ve been a member of the club for many years and the committee approached me in the spring asking if we would consider providing the members with some alternative catering options to support the current offerings.
“After discussions and negotiations we agreed that a ‘grab & go’ facility adjacent to the main rugby pitch would be ideal for those wanting some really good quality ‘fast’ food.
“You can’t provide top quality food unless you start with the best ingredients and, with the years of experience I have in both F&B and importing food from around the world, I feel confident that we have the best products to meet the members’ and guests’ expectations, not just on quality but on price too.
“The flavour that you get from a real charcoal grill can’t be beaten and we believe we have a great selection of healthy, fast food that will be enjoyed by everyone.”
Dominic, who has lived in the kingdom for 17 years, is also currently involved in a growing food import business based in Dublin called Global Irish Food Traders which supplies a myriad of products to the retail and wholesale markets across the GCC. He also works with an Australian food consolidation company in Melbourne as well as one from the UK and the catering business is already looking at other locations and contracts too.
The grill’s name was suggested by one of the BRFC’s executive committee members and, with ‘blindside’ being a rugby term, it fitted the bill nicely and the ‘soft opening’ for business took place last week. It is located at the back of the grandstand that overlooks the main pitch. Construction started in July with the aim of ‘exceeding all the necessary health and hygiene requirements’.
Dominic said: “We have had much of the equipment fabricated by a very professional stainless steel company in Isa town who have built our BBQ, designed and installed our extraction and all our equipment is stainless steel, including the fridges, worktops, warmers and under-counter fridges.
“We have two large windows looking into the kitchen so people can see what is going on which adds an element of theatre to the whole proceedings. In the near future we will be adding a large charcoal spit-roaster to the outlet to allow us greater flexibility and the capability of serving large numbers of people during the club’s numerous events.
“Initially our offering will be quite limited, however, we are keen to get feedback and suggestions from members.
“We taste-tested numerous fresh and frozen burgers including organic, Certified Angus, Wagyu and all natural and have chosen a burger made fresh in Bahrain by one of the most reputable and established suppliers to the catering industry.
“The hot dogs are from the US and are Black Angus supplied by a premier food importer who also supplies all the 5-star hotels and top-notch restaurants across the island. The bread is freshly-baked daily and the Irish products we import ourselves as we know the manufacturers personally and their passion for their products is obvious to anyone who has tasted them.
“In the future we hope to be able to provide a delivery service from the Blindside and extend our menu to include shawarmas and a selection of kebabs, including the British favourite late-night snack Donner Kebabs.”
BRFC chairman Mehdi Honar is delighted with the enthusiastic response the opening of The Blindside BBQ & Grill has received.
He said: “One of the reasons that the executive committee decided to have another food outlet is to ensure that our members and guests are provided with an alternative, but yet again high-quality food offering and services.
“As the number of our members increase and due to the limitation in the size of our existing kitchens the new outlet should provide added value.”
