LA SPIGA: A VERY SPECIAL BIRTHDAY MEAL

Part two of Jemma's birthday celebrations took us to the W Hotel and involved drinks at Wahm, followed by dinner at La Spiga.

I could literally eat at La Spiga all day, every day. It is no secret that it is my absolute favourite restaurant in Doha (I have gushed about it countless times on the blog before!), so when Jemma chose to celebrate her birthday here I knew a lovely evening would be in store for us.

The birthday girl looked gorgeous - her family had sent her lovely gifts from home, and Marion and I gave her our presents before we got ourselves ready and set off for an evening at the W.

It was Happy Hour at Wahm Lounge, and we kicked off the evening with Pimms out on the terrace.

Wahm is one of the outlets at the W that I rarely give a mention to (normally because I come to the W to eat myself into a food coma, rather than drink!), but the last two times I have been here I have been really impressed with the service. The staff have always found us a table, even when we didn't have a reservation, and provided attentive table service. When I came last week with my French colleagues, they even brought over platters of complimentary hors d'oeuvres which were delicious.

When we had finished our drinks, we made our way downstairs to La Spiga.

Originally we were taken to a table by the terrace doors, however it was a little bit cold for us so we asked if there was another table available. The manager, Dennis, came over immediately and told us that there were three glasses of bubbles waiting for us at the bar, and in the meantime he would arrange a special table for us.

We were in no rush, so were happy to relax on the sofas in the bar area, sipping delicious pink bubbles and chatting until our table was ready.

When Dennis returned to take us to the table, it became apparent that La Spiga had gone all out to make the evening very special indeed for our birthday girl.

The table was decorated with tiny silver stars, and two beautiful red roses.

Absolutely set on our decision to have dessert (we had turned down the temptation of milkshakes earlier that day at Banana Island), we went straight for the main courses.

Jemma and I both opted for the gnocchi. Jemma had hers as per the menu in the tomato and cream sauce, and I asked if I could have mine in white sauce. One look at Jemma's and I thought I had made a mistake as hers looked so good...

However as soon as I tried mine, I was in food heaven. The white sauce was absolutely beautiful and full of flavour, and the gnocchi was cooked to perfection.

Marion opted for the fussili pasta with shrimp and zucchini, which she displayed very proudly!

The three very empty dishes at the end of the meal were hard evidence that we enjoyed our food!

Just when we had decided that, even after promising to have dessert all day, we were too full to eat anymore, our waiter very kindly brought over a 'Happy Birthday' Panna Cotta with a candle for Jemma.

Deciding we could probably definitely manage one dessert between three of us, we all dived in! The Panna Cotta at La Spiga is beautiful and light - the perfect dessert to have if you're "too full" to have dessert ;)

Our lovely waiter then brought over another complimentary dessert for us - the Tiramisu - which looked gorgeous, although I had to sit this one out as sadly I'm not a coffee lover!

Dennis and his team at La Spiga really went all out to make Jemma's birthday special - they really could not have done more for us.

I can't recommend this restaurant enough - not only is La Spiga in a prime location at the W Hotel, so perfect as a post-drinks dinner destination, but the staff are fantastic and the food is amazing, every single time.

I also must mention the social media team behind the @WDoha Twitter handle - they make booking a reservation so easy - not just at La Spiga but for any of the W outlets - and get back to you within minutes. After Jemma had made her birthday reservation, I tweeted @WDoha to ask them if the chef could write a happy birthday message on her dessert plate, which they happily organised and more!

I can't think of any other restaurant where I would choose to spend a special occasion - so thanks for having us, La Spiga - I can't wait for my next visit already!

If you missed part one of Jemma's birthday celebrations, you can find our Banana Island adventures here :)

BANANA ISLAND: A VERY SPECIAL BIRTHDAY TRIP

The middle of the week marked the birthday of one of my very dearest friends, and it was only right that a special friend should celebrate their birthday at a special location.

When Jemma suggested spending her birthday on Banana Island, we knew we would be in for a real treat. Sadly Marion couldn't take the day off work, but we knew we would be catching up with her later that evening for part two of the birthday celebrations.

The newly opened Banana Island Resort Doha is Qatar's answer to the Maldives. A 25 minute luxury catamaran ride from the mainland transports you to a tranquil paradise, so far removed from the hustle and bustle of Doha, that you would be forgiven for thinking that you were in another part of the world altogether.

We arrived at Al Shyoukh Port like two excited children.

We were invited to sit down in the beautiful reception area, whilst our island reservations were checked and our tickets paid for. You must have a reservation at Banana Island to board the catamaran - this can either be a restaurant reservation, or a spa reservation - we were greedy and had both!

You can purchase a day pass for 200 QR which consists of your return boat trip at 50QR, and the remaining 150QR is credit to be put towards either your restaurant bill or your spa treatment.

Paperwork processed, it was time to board the boat! Although not before a scaled down sneak preview of the island...

All aboard!

The catamarans leave every hour, so we hopped aboard the 10am departure and set sail for Banana Island!

Making the most of the empty catamaran, we got snappy happy with our cameras, wanting to document every minute of the day.

As we approached the island, the excitement ramped up!

After a quick stop in the cavernous reception, we hopped in a golf cart and were very kindly taken on a small tour of the island.

First stop, the Wellness Centre.

Home to separate male and female gyms, fitness class studios and treatment rooms, I could certainly imagine time spent here would make you feel very well indeed. The decor was absolutely stunning, and we were more than a little intrigued about what we might have found up here...

Sadly, we were whisked off in the golf cart to finish our tour before we could find out. Next time!

The resort had a very Sri Lankan feel to it with all of the greenery, and beach huts with thatched roofs nestled in amongst the trees.

After saying goodbye to our guide, we set off on foot to explore by ourselves.

Banana Island is home to it's very own cinema. The movie of the afternoon was Dispicable Me 2, and Jemma and I were very kindly allowed to pop in to the theatre to satisfy our curiosity - a generous cinema screen dominated the far wall, faced by rows of comfy sofas and tables.

We headed over to Ted's Diner for a drink, before making our way to the Anantara Spa for our midday treatments, passing the islands miniature golf course en-route.

We were very early for our treatments, so the staff very kindly let us use the jacuzzi, sauna and steam areas whilst we waited, although we found ourselves a spot outside on a giant double sun lounger and made the most of the afternoon sun instead, before heading back inside to don our snazzy spa robes!

We emerged 60 minutes later, pampered and feeling very relaxed. I had opted for the 60 minute back massage (520 QR), during which my lovely therapist worked very hard on kneading the knots from my very tense shoulders and neck. The birthday girl went for the 60 minute Anantara Signature Massage (off the menu, but call up and ask them about this - around 600QR).

Whilst the treatment prices are quite steep, the Anantara Spa itself is beautiful, and the staff are lovely. They really couldn't do enough for us, and we rounded off our treatments by sipping sweet ginger tea in the sunshine before getting ourselves ready for lunch at Q Lounge.

The setting of Q Lounge reminded me so much of the Fortress Hotel in Sri Lanka, where Matt and I stayed on our recent holiday together. An open fronted restaurant, overlooking the pool and the Gulf.

We ordered berry mocktails (Banana Island is a dry resort), and perused the menu.

I found the prices to be so reasonable. For 125QR, you could opt for three items from the world mezze list, which Jemma and I both did - a great way to sample smaller versions of a few of the items on the menu if you can't quite decide on one (which we couldn't!)

I opted for the French omlette with goats cheese, the chicken quesadillas, and black olive tapenade, all of which were absolutely delicious.

Jemma chose the Spanish omlette, glass noodles with prawns, and mini chicken shawarma.

The meal was lovely, and our 150QR credit from our day passes covered the best part of the bill.

There are so many dining options available on Banana Island, but I would love to come back to eat at Q Lounge again. The food was amazing, the staff were so lovely and friendly, and the view was stunning.

I can't wait to bring Matt here for a date night.

We took a stroll along the pier to walk off our lunch, and stopped for some photos with the beautiful Maldives-esque water villas in the background.

I can only imagine what they look like inside!

After a thoroughly relaxing afternoon of pampering and eating, we decided there was only one thing to do before boarding the boat back to reality.

Bowling!

We were expecting a small scale lane or two but no - Banana Island is home to a proper full size bowling alley.

Being a good sport, I let the birthday girl win ;)

I actually lost miserably - Jemma had some bowling skills!

Realising it was a few minutes before the hour, we made a mad dash for the 4pm boat back to the mainland, and set sail back to reality after a magical day on the beautiful Banana Island.

I can safely say, and I know Jemma agrees, that this was one of the best days we have had since arriving in Doha, and I can highly recommend a trip to Banana Island to all Doha dwellers (and any visitors to Doha!)

Back on dry land, we hopped in a car home to get ready for part two of the birthday celebrations - but that is a blog post for another time :)

Note: Banana Island requires couples to produce a marriage certificate to stay overnight at the resort.