DATE NIGHT

Last night was my favourite night of the week...date night with the mister.

Last week he treated me to a lovely meal at Hakkasan, and this week I took him for steak at the Anvil Rooms at Tornado Tower in the city.

A beautiful tornado shaped building, home mainly to businesses and corporate offices, but also home to two beautiful restaurants; Anvil Rooms - probably the best steak in Doha and multiple Time Out Doha winner in its category, and La Varenne, a French restaurant that I'm yet to try. Matt and I poked our heads in there on the way out to pick up a menu and it looks gorgeous, so I'm excited for an upcoming visit.

Outfit wise, I erred on the side of caution with a high necked LBD, for when the occasion requires something a little more covered up.

As Tornado Tower is, primarily, an office building and not a hotel, I'm never quite sure if wearing a dress will be appropriate (once you're in its fine, but it's walking in, as it is also situated right by a main road), but everyone else seems to do the same so I guess it's okay!

I teamed this monochrome look with a black and white Aztec print cropped jacket, black clutch and nude shoes. Elevator selfie to demonstrate!

The weather has dropped in Doha to a Baltic 20 degrees in the evening, so I was glad for the jacket. I don't know how my body will function when I return to the UK!

We were met outside the restaurant by a festive cow.

Once inside, I was pleasantly surprised that they were playing Christmas music, given that we are in a Muslim country, but it was lovely and I bobbed along to Mariah Carey and the like throughout the meal.

Now, hopefully this will be my final blog post where the picture quality is crap and grainy from my iPhone camera, as I may have treated myself to a shiny proper camera which may currently be in business class transit from the UK with one of my lovely studio pundits, and will be arriving in the desert tomorrow morning! Exciting stuff.

Even if I did have a proper camera, however, the Anvil Rooms is so dark that I think anybody would struggle.

We had a table by the window, overlooking the building that nobody knows the name of, but is shaped like..well..you know.

Drinks ordered (red wine for Matt, mixed berry virgin mojito for me), we waited (im)patiently for the main event....the bread basket.

I don't have a photo of this but it is what you go to Anvil Rooms for (other than the steak). A huge basket piled high with freshly baked bread of many varieties - pumpernickel, cheese bread, cheese and beef bacon bread, pretzel bread... Needless to say we were full before our epic feast of dinner arrived.

10oz steak with fries and buttered spinach for Matt, sirloin and oxtail burger with compte cheese and garlic mayo on an onion bun for me, with maple glazed carrots and truffle mac n cheese. Mmmm.

Needless to say, I over ordered and the truffle mac n cheese has come home with me for tonight's dinner.

If you are visiting Doha, or live here and have never been to the Anvil Rooms, then go. Go, go, go.

Skip the starter, devour the bread basket, but don't be surprised when you can't finish your main course.

If you can, and still miraculously have room for dessert (well done you), I recommend the cheesecake (which I discovered on one particularly piggy indulgent night)

Love a good date night :)

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