“ Vui thay chúng ta sống, không tham giữa cuộc đời đầy tham

“ Vui thay chúng ta sống, không tham giữa cuộc đời đầy tham;
Vui thay chúng ta sống, không sân giữa cuộc đời đầy sân;
Vui thay chúng ta sống, không mê lầm giữa cuộc đời mê lầm.”

Tipping at restaurants

Tipping at restaurants is not compulsory, although it has become fairly standard to tip about 10% to the waitstaff. Despite being banned, some restaurants still include a 10% service charge in the bill. Should your bill include a service charge, feel free to strike it from the total and leave a tip on the table instead.
Arabic coffee in Souq Waqif
to large 5-star international hotels. Bars are required to see identification (i.e. a passport) at the door, although this is rarely enforced. Residents with a special liquor license may purchase alcohol at the QDC (Qatar Distri-bution Company) on the outskirts of town. Importing al-cohol is not permitted – all bags are x-rayed upon arrival and any alcohol will be confiscated and held for you. With a claims receipt you can pick up your bottle again when you leave.
Some of the places favoured by local expats are the
Crystal Lounge and Waham Poolside Lounge (W Doha Hotel), Sky View Bar (La Cigale Hotel), the Belgian Café (InterContinental at West Bay Lagoon), and Trader Vic’s (Hilton). The Irish Harp (in the base-ment of the Sheraton near City Center Mall) has frequent live music.
 Tea and coffee

Karak is the local specialty, a very sweet concoction made from tea and evaporated milk available from stalls every-where, some of them drive-through (just park your car outside and honk). A particularly popular place is Cha-pati & Karak (tel. +974 4408 1408) at Katara Cultural Village.

Most international coffee chains (including the ubiqui-tous Starbucks) are well-represented here, especially in shopping malls.

PappaRoti, C Ring Rd, ☎ +974 4421 2001, e-mail: info@papparoti.ae. Daily 12PM-12AM. This branch of the popular Malaysian café chain offers a good selection of coffee and teas, along with special roti buns.

Seafood

Best Fish, Al Mirqab Al Jadeed St, ☎ +974 4443 8507. 11:30AM-2:30PM, 5:30PM-12AM daily. Popular with Qataris. Cheap local fish dishes - the grilled hammour with garlic butter is recommended. Take away and home delivery available.

Fish Market, Al Isteqlal Rd, West Bay (InterCon-tinental Hotel), ☎ +974 4484 4444. Sa-Th 6PM-12AM, Fr 12:30PM-3:30PM. The best fish in town at upscale prices, much of it local. Reservations rec-ommended, particularly for the Friday brunch.


L'wzaar Seafood Market, Katara Cultural Vil-lage, Bldg 27, ☎ +974 4408 0710/11, fax: +974 4408 0722, e-mail: info@lwzaar.com. S-W 12PM-2:30PM, 7PM-10:30PM; Th-Sa 12:30PM-3:30PM, 7PM-11:30PM. A good selection of seafood, with good views. Reservations recommended.

6.7.7  Grocery stores

For self-catering options there are a few hypermarkets as well as a number of smaller neighborhood grocery stores distributed throughout the city.

Carrefour. 8AM-midnight daily, closed Fri 11:30AM-12:30PM. This French-based chain has three hypermarkets in Doha: in Landmark Mall, Villaggio Mall, and City Center Mall. They also have a smaller grocery store in Lagoona Plaza.

Family Food Centre. 7:30AM-midnight daily, closed Fri for midday prayer. Three branches on Al Matar St, Al Mirqab Al Jadeed St, and Al Rayyan.

LuLu. 8AM-midnight daily, closed Fri for midday prayer. This UAE-based chain operates two full hy-permarkets: on D-Ring Rd (near the airport) and in Al Gharrafa (across from Landmark Mall). There is also a smaller express store near Education City.

Mega Mart, The Centre, Salwa Rd (not far from the Ramada and Radisson Blu hotels). 8AM-11PM, closed Fri 11:30AM-12:30PM.

Quality Hypermarket, Salwa Rd, ☎ +974 4460 4242. 7AM-1PM daily, closed Fr 11AM-noon.

Spinney’s. This Lebanese chain operates two stan-dard grocery stores: one at the Pearl-Qatar (in Porto Arabia), and one at The Mall (D-Ring Rd).

Middle Eastern

  Middle Eastern

Al Shami Home Restaurant, C-Ring Rd (oppo-site from McDonald’s), ☎ +974 4443 3666. 8AM-12AM daily. A Doha institution, featuring tradi-tional Syrian and Lebanese dishes, as well as shee-sha.

Al Hamra, Al Rayan Rd (opposite from McDon-ald’s), ☎ +974 4443 3297. 6AM-1AM daily. A family restaurant offering Lebanese dishes. Service is a bit slow, good for large groups.

Al Mourjan, Al Corniche (white building behind the giant Orry statue). An upscale place with tasty Lebanese dishes and some of the best views in Doha.

Ankara Pastry Restaurant, Ahmed Bin Ali St (across from Al-Ahli Hospital), ☎ +974 4487 1861. Good pastries and shwarmas, popular with Turkish expats.

Istanbul Sultan, Mesaimeer Rd (near the left cor-ner of the strip mall behind Abu Hamour Petrol Sta-tion). Very small place with great schwarmas.

Layali, Salwa, ☎ +974 4431 0005 /06 /07. One of the more expensive Lebanese restaurants. It is rumored that the former Emir himself has eaten here on occasion.

Shebestan Palace Restaurant, Al-Sadd St (east of C-Ring Rd), ☎ +974 4432 1555. 12PM-12AM daily. Good Persian food.

Turkey Central, Al Mirqhab Al Jadeed St (off of C-Ring Rd, near the Doha Clinic), ☎ +974 4443 2927, +974 4442 3423. 8AM-12:30AM daily. Of-fers good, cheap Middle Eastern fare. The portions are large (try the mixed grill or shish tawooq) and the appetizers are excellent, particularly the chili lab-neh. Delivery and take-out available.

For local street food, nothing beats the home-made good-ness dished out by the Pancake Ladies in Souq Waqif ev-ery evening in the square by the car park. The crepe-like mankouche is particularly tasty, filled with your choice of labneh (cheese), za’atar, or the less-traditional Nutella for QR5. Other local specialties feature meat, chicken, and fish, and there are even a couple of vegetarian options.

There are also many good restaurants in Souq Waqif worth trying. Perhaps the best include Tagine (Moroc-can) and Le Gourmet, particularly good for sheesha and a cup of tea. These are not as inexpensive as the Pancake Ladies but are good for ambiance and people watching.

European

European
Ciao, Salwa Rd (near Decoration Roundabout), ☎ +974 4468 9100. 12:30PM-12AM. Offers thin-crust pizza baked in a traditional oven, along with a good selection of pastas and risottos.

J&G Sandwich Cellar, Ras Abu Aboud St (near the C-Ring flyover), ☎ +974 4435 7559, fax: +974 4435 7936, e-mail: Sandwich.cellar@gmail.com. S-Th 7AM-10PM, Fr-Sa 8AM-10PM. Doha’s only British café, with full English breakfasts as well as Yorkshire pudding. Free wi-fi; delivery and takeout available.

Lo Spaghetto, corner of Al Difaaf and Al Ham-dani St (behind Royal Plaza Mall, Al Sadd), ☎ +974 4434 1601. 6:30PM-11PM. Classic Italian food, prepared by Italian chefs.

Mykonos, Al Isteqlal Rd, West Bay (InterConti-nental Hotel), ☎ +974 4484 4444. Daily 12PM-11:30PM. Solid Greek food, outdoor pool-side seat-ing available.
 Indian

Doha is home to a large Indian population. As such, the city centre is full of small Indian restaurants, with many other excellent Indian restaurants scattered throughout the city.

Aalishan, Ibn Seena St (near the Ramada), ☎ +974 4431 5999. Sa-W 12PM-11PM, Th-Fr 12PM-11:30PM. Recommended for the Friday afternoon buffet.

Al Zarka, Al Mahtuf St (near Qatar National Mu-seum, Al Salata), ☎ +974 4432 0655, +974 5552 7338. 6AM-1AM. Very popular with South Asian workers as well as Qataris. Menu features primarily Indian as well as Arabian dishes.

Anjappar Chettinad, Al Khaleej St, ☎ +974 4427 9833. Sa-Th 11:30AM-11:30PM, Fr 7AM-11AM, 12:30AM-11:30PM. Vegetarian, good value for the thali set menu.

Bukhara, Khalifa St (opposite Bennigan’s and Fud-druckers, by Khalifa Tennis Centre), ☎ +974 4483 3345. Daily 12PM-3.30pm, 6PM-1.30am. Deli-cious northern Indian cuisine, with especially good fish tandoori and chicken vindaloo.

Chingari, Ramada Hotel (corner of C-Ring and Salwa Rds), ☎ +974 4428 1555. Daily 6PM-11PM. Expensive and good northern Indian food, with live Indian music on a small stage.

Garden Annapoorna, Najma St, ☎ +974 6668 3856. Formerly located in Musheireb, serves great south Indian dishes.

The Garden Village Restaurant Doha, Fereej Kulaib St (opposite Yaarmuk Petrol Station & Nis-san showroom, ahead of Al Ahli Hospital while go-ing from Ramada signal), ☎ +974 4488 5115. Rec-ommended for its good ambience and nice Indian village model interior.

Taj Palace, Al Faisal St (near the corner of Al-Khaleej and Al Rayyan Rds), ☎ +974 4431 9200. Reasonable northern Indian food, worth trying if you're in the area.

Taj Rasoi, Marriott Hotel (near the airport), ☎ +974 4429 8888. Daily 6:30PM-11:30PM. One of the most expensive (and excellent) Indian restau-rants in Doha, and the place to go for Indian seafood.

Qatari sweets at Souq Waqif

American Informal fish market along the Corniche


Most major American fast food chains have multiple branches here, including McDonald’s, KFC, Hardee’s,

Arby’s, Burger King, Subway, and Dairy Queen.


Pizza places include Pizza Hut, Little Caesar’s, Pizza Inn, and Papa John’s. Many of these are located in the


 EAT
major shopping centres, and at Ramada Junction (the in-tersection of C-Ring and Salwa Rds).

There are also a number of more upscale American chains, including TGI Fridays (in the Landmark, Vil-laggio shopping malls, Bin Omran Opposite the Civil Defense and Suheem Bin Hamad Street, Al-Sadd), Ap-plebee’s, Chili’s, Fuddruckers, Bennigan’s, and Pon-derosa Steakhouse.

Ric’s Kountry Kitchen, Sana Complex, Ras Abu Abboud St (southeast corner of Ras Abu Abboud St and D Ring Rd), ☎ +974 4443 7846. Serves up large classic American breakfasts, and one of the few places in Doha with real bacon and pork sausages.

Yellow Cab Pizza, several branches, ☎ +974 4488 8310. 11AM-1AM daily. This is undisputedly the most popular pizza in Doha, surprisingly offered by a well-established and efficient Filipino operation. The barbequed chicken pizza is particularly tasty. Delivery and pick-up available.
  Asian

Noodle House, three locations, ☎ +974 4411 5063 (City Center Mall), +974 4417 5682 (Landmark Mall), +974 4495 3876 x2531 (The Pearl-Qatar, Porto Arabia), e-mail: info@thenoodlehouse.com. noon-11PM. Offers a number of southeast Asian-style dishes. Their portions are not very large, but the taste makes up for that. Their prawn crackers are particularly good. Delivery available.

Oishi Sushi, Al Sadd St (Royal Plaza Mall), ☎ +974 442 8989. Decent sushi, with sushi train. On Monday and Tuesday evenings they offer an all-you-can-eat for QR 135 (reservations recommended).

Royal Bafilyon, Salwa Rd (behind the Al Jazeera petrol station, across from Quality Hypermarket), ☎ +974 7721 9865. This Cantonese restaurant is a fa-vorite of the Chinese and Singaporean expat com-munities.

Shanghai Garden, City Centre Mall (West Bay), ☎ +974 4493 3188. 11AM-11:30PM. Favored by local Chinese expats.

Sri Kebaya, Souq Waqif, ☎ +974 4434 0838. 11AM-11:30PM daily. Good Malaysian food.

Thai Corner, The Centre, Salwa Rd (adjacent to MegaMart), ☎ +974 6640 7858. Sa-Th 10:30AM-10PM, F 1:30PM-10PM. Tiny place with two ta-bles, with fantastic Thai food. In nice weather you can eat in the courtyard.


Thai Smile, Al Corniche (Rumaila Park), ☎ +976 4431 6466. Su-Th 11.30am-10.30pm, F-Sa noon-10.30pm. Casual and delicious Thai street food, with outdoor seating.

Thai Snack, Al-Mirqab St (near Doha Clinic, adja-cent to a Thai massage parlor), ☎ +974 4432 9704. Daily 10AM-2:30PM, 5PM-10:30PM. A Doha in-stitution, offers authentic Thai street food for very reasonable prices.

Yee Hwa Restaurant, Al-Kinana St (in the Doha Downtown Hotel), ☎ +974 4441 9898, e-mail: YeeHwaDoha@gmail.com. Daily 12PM-11PM. This restaurant specialises in both Korean barbecue and Japanese cuisine, and is one of the better places in Doha for sushi.

The availability of English-language

The availability of English-language books in Doha is fairly limited but improving, and there are several shops which offer some current titles as well as regional travel guides. Carrefour, Lulu Hypermarket, and Megamart all sell international magazines and newspapers along with local maps.

ISpy Book Shop, City Center Mall, Level 3 (West Bay), ☎ +974 4493 4482, fax: +974 4493 4253, e-mail: info@ispybookshop.net. Stocks a wide range of fiction and non-fiction books in English, as well as a small selection in French and German. Has a decent selection of travel guides and maps.

Jarir Bookstore (Salwa),  Salwa Rd (near
the  junction with C-Ring  Rd, not far from
the  Ramada),  ☎  +974  4444  0212,  e-mail:
jarir@jarirbookstore.com. Sa-Th 9AM-10PM; F
4PM-10PM. Sells Arabic and English language
books, and a good selection of international maga-
zines and newspapers. Also has a Costa coffee bar.
There is a second branch near Education City, on
Al Rayyan Al Jadeed Rd.
Tribe Bookstore,  Student Center, Edu-
cation  City, ☎ +974 4481 7196,  e-mail:
info@tribebookstore.com. Sa-Th 8AM-9PM.
Carries fiction and non-fiction, as well as magazines
and stationery. Special orders are welcome.

Virgin Megastore, Villaggio Mall, ☎ +974 4413 5823. Stocks books and magazines in Arabic, En-glish, and French. A second branch in Landmark Mall has a much smaller selection.

WH Smith, Ezdan Mall. Doha’s newest and largest bookstore is currently in a soft-opening phase, and expected to be fully open in November 2013.