You can stay in Bombay and still eat excellent Thai food

It’s a funny thing but until recently there were few good smart Thai restaurants in Bangkok.

There was lots of great food to be had of course – you’d have to try very hard to eat badly in Bangkok – but it tended to be found on the street and in dhabas.

 

   If you went to an expensive (well, relatively expensive; on the whole, eating out is cheaper in Bangkok than in Bombay or Delhi) restaurant, you were likely to be disappointed. You got tarted-up versions of Thai staples (the standard curries, Pad Thai noodles, Tom Yom soup, Som Tam papaya salad etc.) at prices that were six times higher than those on the street and usually, the flavours were much worse.

 

   It is ironic that the only Thai restaurant with a Michelin star is Nahm in London run by David Thompson, an Australian who is something of an honorary Thai and author of the definitive Thai cook book. A year ago, when I interviewed Thompson, I asked him about his recommendations for Bangkok. He conceded the general point that it was hard to eat well at proper restaurants, suggested some un-fancy places but recommended two expensive establishments.

 

   The first of these was Sala Rim Naam at the Oriental Hotel. Now, I love the Oriental as much as the next man having written extensively about it and made a TV show about the hotel’s heritage. But though the chefs at its Thai restaurant have been unfailingly helpful to me, I’ve never been very excited by the food.

 

   Thompson’s second recommendation however was one that hit the spot. Bo.lan is a new restaurant on Sukhumvit Road (not far from Emporium – a mall familiar to most Indian visitors) located in an old house and set up by two chefs who worked with Thompson at the London Nahm. The food was nothing like the usual rubbish you get at expensive Thai places, the dishes were made from old recipes and you had the sense that you were enjoying the richness and complexity of real Thai cuisine.  If you are craving for Pad Thai, don’t go. But if you want the real thing, Bo.lan is worth exploring. (There is lots of fish on the menu so if you are not a fish-eater, think again.)

 

   Thompson’s influence on the global Thai food scene is immense. Many years ago he came to Bombay and cooked at the Thai Pavilion at the President Hotel and retains a high regard for Ananda Solomon, the chef.

 

   It is hard to imagine but this November, the Thai Pavilion will be 16 years old. Virtually the first proper Thai restaurant in Bombay (though, I think that the Delhi Baan Thai – now deceased – came first), it was a brave and pioneering effort by Ajoy Mishra, the then General Manager of the President (and now head of Sales and Marketing for the Taj group) and his chef, Solomon. They were encouraged by Ajit Kerkar who then ran the Taj and sent them off to spend weeks in Thailand before Solomon took up temporary residence in Bangkok, developed a working knowledge of the Thai language, and even served time at a street stall in Sukhumvit.

 

   Sixteen years later, the fashion for Thai cuisine has come and gone but the Thai Pavilion (now redecorated by Japan’s Super Potato) remains the Taj Group’s most consistently successful restaurant in terms of food quality and revenue. It is the sort of place where you’ll see movie stars, politicians and company chairmen all getting the same treatment from the waiters. Last week, Ratan Tata was there for a long dinner (he is a regular) and on previous occasions I’ve seen the mother and daughter team of Hema Malini and Esha Deol, Dimple Kapadia with the designers Abu-Sandeep and much of Bombay’s glittering set. But I’ve also seen families, out for a night together, getting exactly the same level of service.

 

   Part of the reason for the Pavilion’s popularity with people who are not on expense accounts is the pricing. Solomon wants real people to eat there so all of his starters are priced at Rs 525 each. For this money you get two large pieces of foie gras with sea asparagus in mango sauce, soft shell crabs with pomelo, scallops with an orange and rice wine reduction and much more. If you are not so hungry, then his soups are just Rs 200 each.

 

   Main courses are similarly priced. For Rs 750, you can get roast duck on spinach (Solomon’s great hit – it has been on the menu for 16 years), lobster with pepper and garlic, tiger prawns with Kaffir lime leaves and scallops that combine sweet, spicy and sour Thai flavours.

 

   I have been eating at the Pavilion ever since it opened and I have never had a bad meal there. Ananda Solomon is our David Thompson.

 

   Among the chefs who worked with Thompson when he ran a Thai restaurant in Sydney was Ian Kittichai. According to Thompson, he was not just a talented chef but “a really sweet and gentle guy.”

 

"David Thompson opened a Nahm in Bangkok at the end of last month so the Bangkok scene may well be hotting up. But, as of now, you can stay in Bombay and still eat excellent Thai food!"

   Kittichai has gone on to fulfil his early promise. He was Executive Chef of the Bangkok Four Seasons (the first Thai to get the job), and then opened Kittichai, a restaurant at New York’s trendy 60, Thomson Hotel. A parallel career as a TV chef has led to superstar status in his own country. He is now Thailand’s best known chef (people stop him in the street for autographs) and a global ambassador for Thai food.

 

   Over the last year, Kittichai has broken off with his New York partners (though the last time I was there I noticed that they had kept his name), become part owner of Hyde and Seek, an excellent gastro-bar on Bangkok’s Soi Ruam Rudee and planned new restaurants in such  far-flung destinations as Madrid, Brussels, London and yes, Bombay.

 

   Last month his Bombay operation, Koh, opened to a rapturous reception at the Marine Drive Intercontinental, a lovely, small hotel run by two ex-Taj veterans (Raman Mehra and Romil Ratra). Koh is aiming for a different crowd than the Thai Pavilion (the Wasabi regulars I would guess), the prices are higher than Solomon’s (but lower than Wasabi’s) and has been flooded with celebrities; Sachin Tendulkar, Deepika Padukone with Siddhartha Mallya, and then, daddy Vijay with another group etc.

 

   On the night I went, Kittichai, who knows me, was in the kitchen and Romil Ratra who I have seen through a variety of Taj restaurants (including the Shamiana and the Golden Dragon) was in the dining room so I cannot pretend that I was anonymous or that I had the same experience as the average punter.

 

   That said, the food was absolutely brilliant

 

   The yellowfin tuna ceviche (Rs 895) is Kittichai’s answer to Wasabi’s whitefish carpaccio and should fly out of the kitchen; pan-seared scallops on a pomelo salad (Rs 775) married the taste of good quality fish with such Thai flavours as makroot and chili. The rock shrimp tempura (Rs 655) took a Nobu idea and transformed it with egg plant and tamarind flavours. Kittichai’s signature baby back ribs had the chocolate flavour of his Bangkok version but a naughty chili twist distinguished them.

 

   The main courses were uniformly good but a slow cooked Lamb Loin (RS 1425) was a standout. In Bangkok, Kittichai does a slow-cooked Kurobuta pork (using Thai pork) and I do wish he would import that here. Two other dishes came with interesting presentation. The garlic fried rice (Rs 595) was finished at the table in a hot stone pot and the curries (from Rs 695 to Rs 825) came on fire-proof paper with a flame heating them from below.

 

   Kittichai has always paid attention to desserts so I was not surprised by the delicate flavour of his jasmine ice-cream (Rs 395) or his lychee flan (Rs 395).

 

   At present, Koh imports its ingredients, mainly from Bangkok (which is not very expensive) and Kittichai promises to be in Bombay every month.

 

   As long as these two conditions persist, the restaurant seems set to be a huge success.

 

   It is strange that while Bangkok struggles with good, smart Thai dining (I would also recommend Celadon at the Sukhothai), Bombay has two outstanding upmarket Thai restaurants. David Thompson opened a Nahm in Bangkok at the end of last month so the Bangkok scene may well be hotting up. But, as of now, you can stay in Bombay and still eat excellent Thai food!

 

   Sala Rim Naam, The Oriental Hotel, Bangkok + 662-659-9000

 

   Hyde and Seek, Soi Ruam Rudee, Ploenchit, Bangkok + 662-168-5152

 

   Bo.Lan, Soi   26, Sukhumvit.Road, Bangkok + 662-260-2962

 

   Nahm, the Metropolitan Hotel, Sathorn, Bangkok +662-625-3333

 

   The Thai Pavilion, The President, Cuffe Parade, Bombay +22-6665-0808

 

   Koh by Kittichai, The Intercontinental, Marine Drive, Bombay. +022-6699-2222

 

   Celadon, The Sukhothai, Sathorn, Bangkok + 662-287-0222