Blue Stone DEBUT – MAKING RIPPLES IN THE BAR SCENE

Your Guide in Sharm El Sheikh

Blue Stone DEBUT – MAKING RIPPLES IN THE BAR SCENE

There is a new kid on the block; I’m talking about the down-town dining block, not old down-town, but the golden triangle of eateries in Naama Bay.

The golden triangle which spreads from the quaint age-old Dananeer restaurant to the full fusion Little Buddha across to the music idol Hard Rock.

This triangular block attracts franchise brands and modern ‘a mix of everything’ restaurants like pennies to a magnet. Yes they must be coining it in, hence the addition of the new kid ‘Blue Stone’.
The name is quite hip and on trend and so is the modern décor – Blue Stone sits on the Tropitel façade on the same strip as Little Buddha, the large decked terrace looks out towards Hard Rock and the other franchise eateries and if it wasn’t for the gentle hum of street noise of people meandering around, you could probably get a glimpse of what’s going on at Camel Bar – so yes Blue Stone is right slap bang in the centre of Naama Bay’s Golden Triangle.
The décor of natural stone highlight walls, soft lighting and warm wooden tables dressed with blue accent table settings suggest a modern European style restaurant/bar – akin to the ‘All Bar One’ brand in the UK, but whereas some of the others have got the mix of bar/restaurant/club down to a fine art, Blue Stone is slightly struggling to find the balance, by this I mean the high decibel ‘Gangster Rap’ music.
However to be fair and not to bully this new kid, we did on recommendation dine fairly late to ‘catch the atmosphere’ and I am sure the waiting staff had just upped the tempo as all the other bar/restaurants do, and being biased I am truly adverse to Gangster Rap.

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Another point to note is in Sharm’s beautiful autumn climate the temperature would be perfect to eat ‘al fresco’ on the large spacious terrace, where the music has been filtered.

When we dined, the night temperatures where still hitting 30 degrees so eating inside the air conditioning was the only option.
We initially sat at the bar tables – where quite a few people were enjoying a drink; the fully licenced bar stocks imported liquor alongside Egyptian beer and wine brands.

The waiting staff where smartly dressed and attentive. After looking at the menu we decided to sit at one of the tables set for dinner, apart from the size and height of the table it is really no different from sitting in the bar – and that is why Blue Stone is called a pub/restaurant.

The menu is extensive and very much follows the template of all other ‘mix of everything’ restaurants – you will not find anything different here, but will find good old traditional favourites like home-made burgers, pizza, pasta, steak and mixed appetizers.
We ordered the mixed appetizer of fusion spring rolls, Buffalo wings, potato wedges etc. which arrived at our table in a tall tower with the spring rolls in a cocktail glass surrounded by the other tasty treats.

It was a very nice appetizer perfect to pair with a beer and a great choice if you are out in the pub and in need a few salty snacks to share with friends.

The Manager strongly suggested the burger and the chicken in mushroom sauce for our main dishes. My partner obeyed and ordered the chicken and I went against the grain and ordered the ‘fillet’ steak.
Both dishes came with mashed potato, sautéed vegetables and a garnish of salad. The chicken was tender, tasty and plentiful. So you definitely won’t go hungry here.

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My steak wasn’t the plump fillet I had hoped for – it was more entrecote cooked well done and smothered in a thick creamy peppercorn sauce; there was even extra in a little pot in case I decided to drench it some more.
Blue Stone is a nice addition to the pub/bar scene in Naama Bay, giving tourists a much needed extra venue. The British who made up the majority of the bar crowd will enjoy this place as in recent years Naama was becoming a bit of a ‘two bar town’ with a well-worn path being trod between Camel and Tavern. Blue Stone sits in between making it ideal to stop off for one or two in the much loved tradition of a ‘pub crawl’ or ‘bar hopping’.

 

Now is the time to enjoy the terrace and probably this will become the main feature of this ‘on-trend’ eatery. It is a recipe for success; Blue Stone has followed the blue print of the main bar/restaurant franchises and yes it will work well as recognisable firm favorites are what tourists want.

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