Really different looking over the sea
by Miss Terry Diner
The Royal Thai School of Culinary Arts in Bang Saen was
established in 1997, and 12 months ago, the school decided to open its own
fine dining restaurant to complement the school. At the invitation of Chef
Chris Kridakorn-Odbratt, we decided to venture away from Pattaya
surroundings in search of something new.
The drive to Bang Saen takes around 45 minutes to an
hour (traffic permitting); turn down towards the Bang Saen beach and
follow it along for around four kilometres. When you get to "monkey
hill" you are almost there, but be careful, the simian population is
now huge, sitting defiantly on the roadway, worse than Thai dogs in
Jomtien!
The restaurant is built on the ground and first floors
of an old family residence, right on the beach, and looking towards Bang
Saen on the left and directly over the water. Upstairs is a sundeck which
is great for a cool drink and watching the sun go down. Downstairs, you
walk through a band and bar area and then into a glassed-in
air-conditioned restaurant section looking out over the beach. The
restaurant has heavy starched white linen tablecloths and huge antique
Siamese chairs with mother-of-pearl inlaid backs. Table settings are Thai
bronze and the glasses are also of an excellent quality.
The menu begins with Starters and Appetizers ranging
from B. 125 for a Pate d’Bourgignone, with home made pickles and Melba
toast, through to B. 255 for a Tuna Carpaccio. Following these there are
soups (B. 145-195) with the Lobster bisque with brandy sounding very
promising.
Next up are five pastas, generally around B. 95 and
then it is into the seafood mains with Pan fried herring from the Faeroe
Islands, with mashed potatoes and onion sauce at B. 195 at the low end,
running up through Chile glazed Salmon fillet, with Duchess potatoes at B.
295 to the top with the wonderfully romantic sounding Langoustines,
flambéed in Pastis and brandy, with a Lobster bisque and Hollandaise
sauce over jasmine rice at B. 795 for 2 persons.
In the mains for the carnivores these range from the
traditional "Pytt I Panna" (Swedish Hash: Beef, Lamb, Pork,
Chicken, Potatoes, Fried Egg & Pickled Red Beetroots) at B. 195,
through several steaks, Australian lamb and pork dishes, all under B. 495.
These lead on to Poultry mains (B. 175-275) with a Breast of Chicken,
potato gratin, and Roquefort sauce at the top.
Rounding it out are seasonal cheeses and then desserts.
There is also an extensive (and not too expensive) wine list.
Before we began ordering, Chris warned us that,
"Everything here takes time - because everything is cooked from
scratch." We began with a shrimp cooked in Scandinavian style with
salty Swedish caviar which Chris had hand carried in from overseas. Done
in dill, salt and beer, the shrimps were delightful. Following the
appetizers Madame went for a steak, while I stayed with seafood, ordering
a Gravad Lax (Salmon) with dill creamed potatoes and sweet mustard sauce.
Both were very well presented, and both were of a high standard. To wash
it all down we drank a well-priced (B. 995) R.L. Buller, 2000 Shiraz -
Grenache, from Australia.
The Dining Out Team felt that Bahn Pratabjai had one of
the nicest venues along the Eastern Seaboard. The sunset deck and
air-conditioned restaurant are superb, and the adjoining convivial bar
area and jazz band made this a restaurant at which to spend several hours,
not a gobble and go! On our evening, the food was good, but the service
was not to the same standard. Chef Chris Kridakorn-Odbratt did acknowledge
that he had a problem with a lack of experienced staff at that moment, but
the problem was well in hand. I hasten to point out that the service did
not detract from the evening - it was just that in such a venue one
expected the best. This is certainly a restaurant for jazz lovers, and
worth the drive around the scenic areas of Bang Saen. Just watch the
monkeys!
Bahn Pratabjai, 5 Thanon Rob Kau Sammuk, Bang Saen, telephone 038 748
404, fax 038 748 405, email [email protected]
