Flavours to savour

November 2011

Caitlin Cheadle rethinks her stance on Thai fine dining after a night at The Thai Kitchen, Park Hyatt Dubai

The Thai Kitchen

To me, Thai food has always been a cuisine that doesn’t suit fancy décor and pricey menus – if you’ve ever visited Thailand, you’ll know that a simple pad thai cooked up in a shanty kitchen on a beach is usually better than any fancy restaurant’s version.

Or so I thought. The Park Hyatt Dubai’s Thai Kitchen impressed me from the moment I arrived and was greeted by a small congregation of smiling Thai staff, who lead my companion and I to a candle-lit table for two on the terrace, overlooking the peaceful Dubai Creek Marina.

Even more impressive was the food. Soon after serving us our drinks and setting out a mouthwatering amuse bouche of fried beef with basil, our server brought out plate after plate of flawless, authentic Thai dishes, courtesy of chef Supattra Boonsrang, who hails from Esarn in northeast Thailand.

We started with a rich and tangy chicken galangal in coconut soup - the seasoned mushrooms and bay leaves accenting the creamy, lime-infused broth perfectly. Next was a green papaya salad, which was as good if not better than any I have tried in Thailand, followed by the ‘wing bean’ (a tasty Thai vegetable similar to ladyfingers) and prawn salad, with spicy peanut sauce and crunchy fried onions. The roast duck curry was the crowning glory of the meal; tender chunks of duck meat, aubergine and potato are served in a clay pot full of rich, savoury red curry, which I used to spoon over an equally good dish of crispy hot and sour sea bass fillet.

I’m not too familiar with Thai deserts as I’m a chocolate lover, however I’m glad I saved room for the utterly delicious black bean ice cream, the coconut, taro and corn ice cream, and the water chestnut dumpling, which isn’t at all what it sounds like: sweet, crunchy water chestnuts and chunks of fresh honey- jackfruit come floating in sweetened iced coconut milk.

I might have to re-think my stance on fine-dining Thai restaurants: when the food is this good, the service and ambience had better live up to it. Thankfully that’s the case at Thai Kitchen.

THE IMPORTANT BIT

What: The Thai Kitchen, Park Hyatt Dubai
Cost: From US$40 per head
Contact: Park Hyatt Dubai