There’s more than one reason to visit Sel & Miel at The Ritz-Carlton, Doha. SD sampled signature dishes from across the French bistro’s breakfast, business lunch and dinner menus to find out which options deserve your attention.

Have you ever wondered what it’d be like to eat breakfast, lunch and dinner in one sitting? If that doesn’t sound exciting to you, then you’re probably not a big foodie. We’d be okay if you moved on to the next non-food section because that’s exactly what the team at Sel & Miel, at The Ritz-Carlton, Doha, had in store for us during a specially curated tasting.

The restaurant has been serving classic French fare for a few years now, bringing a little slice of Parisian bistro culture to the city. In winter months, you get to dine al fresco on the beautiful terrace, while in summer, you’ll be indoors, like us, in a cosy French bistro.

Sentana, our delightful host for the night, tells us we’ll be starting with some of the breakfast menu’s signature dishes. We settle down and sip on some water before a ginormous, larger-than-our-heads croissant lands on the table. If you’ve reached this part of the review, you’ve probably already realised this experience is turning out to be something else. The big, buttery croissant is served with more butter on the side – a sweet truffle option, whipped butter, a pistachio version and a strawberry preserve. We have no idea how they did it – but this croissant is flawless. Flaky, crunchy and soft on the inside – it’s a miracle that it tastes exactly like a handheld version (yes, that’s what we’re calling it since we’ve upgraded to a 24-inch mega pastry!). “This is just a sneak peek of our breakfast offering,” Sentana says, and that is truly worrying. We have to stop indulging because who knows what else is in store? Are they going to serve us a rib-eye the size of a cow?

Thankfully a cheese platter arrives next, quickly followed by a cast iron bowl of steamed eggs. The eggs are jammy when we slice in, and this is a properly indulgent breakfast with dried anchovies and sun-dried tomatoes. A light cheese on top and some chopped chives make it more savoury. We’re huge fans of this dish and we can see why they wanted us to try it.

Are we done yet? “Yes. With breakfast,” Sentana retorts. What does that even mean? Apparently, we’re about to be served the best sellers from the Business Lunch menu. A plate of Rillettes De Saumon and Magret De Canard. The salmon rillettes, a French dining favourite, is luxuriously delicate and we spread it onto crispy toast. Moving on, the Magret De Canard is a rather rich main course. Pan-seared duck breast is served with a celery purée and duck jus. The cooking is spot on and the jus enhances the gaminess of the duck.

If it was a regular night, we’d be having dessert by now. But it’s not a regular night and our à la carte courses are finally arriving. We’re served two generous salads. The Niçoise is colourful and comes with seared tuna, a nice change from the usual. It’s hearty and fresh. The Burrata Salad is even better. Creamy burrata, juicy tomatoes and a generous drizzle of good quality olive oil come together in a dish that relies entirely on the quality of its ingredients.

It’s time for mains, and finally it’s the last round. A beautiful portion of rib-eye appears, and it is not the size of a cow, as wrongly predicted earlier. It’s seasoned well but we always love a little extra rock salt. Alongside is the Salmon in a Herb Garden – a plate of cooked salmon atop a sauce made of crème fraîche, fennel and asparagus. It’s rich enough to feel indulgent but light enough to be refreshing. This has been quite the feast and our savoury marathon is coming to an end. As much as we love the food tonight, we cannot have any more.

A Crème Brûlée marks our last stop on this culinary adventure. A few satisfying taps on the caramelised, glassy top, with the sounds of sugar crackling as we mix it with the creamy pudding below, and we are ready to close the tab on this night.

While tonight’s specially curated tasting gave us a glimpse of all three menus in one sitting, we’d recommend returning on separate occasions to experience Sel & Miel’s breakfast, business lunch and dinner. Each has its own charm, unique flavours and plenty of French flair.

GO: Call 5576 4278 or visit www.selmieldoha.com for more information or to make a booking.