We had lunch at Backyard over the weekend and just loved our meal there.  They have two branches, one at the Argan Square in Shuwaikh, which after looking at Mark's photos over on his blog (248am.com) looks absolutely beautiful!  The second is at the Argan Square in Salmiya, which is just a stone's throw from the Symphony Mall.  They're located in the same complex where the new Arabica branch is supposed to open up shortly.  I also spotted a WH Smith, Scoop-a-cone, Ubon and a Diet Center with plenty more to open soon so that's exciting.  Parking is a bit a of a pain mind you.  Leave home with plenty of time to circle the parking lot a few dozen times.  I seriously will never understand how and why complexes come up without having to submit plans for sufficient parking, but that's a rant for another day.


I loved the minimalist interiors, grey walls, colourful furniture and quirky wall hangings.  The place had a casual and fun vibe about it.

Though we'd dined (lunched?) at around 1 pm, we were told that we could choose from the breakfast menu as well as they served breakfast till 2 pm.  The menu had great options on it and from the descriptions, there were so many that caught my eye.

Though not on the menu, our server said that he could make a Margarita Pizza for the kids which they happily devoured.  It was a decent size, had a lovely thin crust with a generous amount of cheese.  The kids couldn't have been happier.

For appetizers we ordered the Portobello Croquette (KD 1.550).  The description sounded lovely, breaded and deep fried portobello mushrooms, yum!  Delicious dish and well seasoned, but I was a little put off by the fact that the mushrooms had been blitzed.  I was expecting whole mushrooms and by blitzing them, they had lost some of that fabulous mushroom flavour.  Beautifully presented though.

For our mains we chose from the Chef's Choice page.  When there's a page dedicated to their best dishes, how can you not right?  And so we had the Swiss Butter Tabla Beef (KD 7.750) which was just heavenly and easily the dish of the day for us.  The tenderloin was juicy and it was served with a gorgeous sauce containing roasted garlic and herbs.  Just delicious!  I may have mopped up all that left over sauce with the bread we'd been served.  The dish also came with a simple Caesar salad and a choice of either roasted potatoes or french fries.  A fantastic dish and a definite must order!  They also make salmon and chicken versions of this dish too.

We also had the Grilled Beef Lomo (KD 7.650) which reminded me of the Gaucho Grill steaks.  (Bring Gaucho back please!)  Both are Argentinian so I get the similarities.  The tenderloin was marinated with garlic (I love my garlic!), herbs and olive oil and then carefully seared to perfection.  Again, juicy and perfectly cooked.  It was served with a side of broccoli and potato gratin.  If you love your meats, this is another must order.  Mimi approved for sure.

For drinks, my eye fell on the Pure Passion and the Spicy Mango Mint (KD 1.950 each).  The pure passion wasn't at all as I'd expected.  It was too sweet and syrupy and I was happy to have the kids attack it on my behalf.  It would be great if the drink had passion fruit seeds in it at least in stead of just being a drink made straight up with syrup.  The spicy mango mint however was right up my alley.  Mango and mint with a dash of tobasco - three flavours which I would never have pitted together, but they worked really well, loved it!

They say a meal is never complete without dessert and so even though we were stuffed at this point, we had the Chocolate Fondant (KD 2.250).  The chocolate lava cake had been overcooked and so the lava was unfortunately MIA, but combined with the cool ice cream and crispy tuile, it was a very satisfying end to an amazing meal.  

The menu at Backyard has so many exciting dishes on it, there is definitely something for everyone!  They're also on Carriage (click here!).