Pattaya never ceases to amaze me. Just when you think
you’ve tried them all, along comes another restaurant to challenge the
well established ones.
The restaurant this week was one of those. Chez Georges
was opened five months ago by Georges himself, who had previously been the
chef at another French restaurant. This new establishment reflects the man
himself.
The
restaurant is spotless, with Georges greeting most customers personally,
while one of the bevy of delightful young service staff in immaculate white
shirts with a black French tie and black skirt take you to your table.
The table is covered with a spotless, gleaming white,
heavy linen tablecloth with three glasses ready waiting for water, and red
or white wine. The air-conditioned dining area is pristine with white and
cream accents and some Thai wood artifacts on the wall. There is also a
framed Le Petit Journal with King Chulalongkorn’s photograph. Outside is
an enclosed, but non air-conditioned, area for those who enjoy
‘pavement’ dining - or need a cigarette!
The
menu is in three languages - French, English and Thai and begins with three
set menus. These are B. 290, B. 390 and B. 580. Even the least expensive has
choices of entree, a main of fish or meat and a dessert. On the next page
there is an a la carte selection of entrees, mains and desserts, with most
of the items already in the set menu selections. A very brief addition will
show that ordering by the set menu is a financially sound idea! A daily menu
is also inserted with different items to prevent boredom with regular
diners.
There is also a wine list, which has been very well
thought out, with wines from France (naturally), Italy, Germany, California
and Chile. House white/red is as low as B. 380 per bottle, while other
bottle selections range in price from just under B. 1,000 to around 4,500.
Georges had prepared a ‘tasting’ evening for us, to
allow us to sample more than one dish each. We began with a smoked salmon
and crabmeat entree with garden greens. As an opener, this was superb.
Georges also sent over a selection of terrines and pates with mustard and
gherkins. Once again we were amazed by the quality. Despite there being
toast available, I went for the fresh crusty French (is there anywhere
else?) bread, which came with a sealed butter pat. This turned out to be my
only disappointment of the evening, as I hate sealed butter pats, but at
least the butter was French!
Next up was a hot dish, a Prawns ‘cassolette’ with
cardinal sauce, again a superb item. We were also given three styles of fish
to taste, each with its own sauce. The mackerel with the stronger taste
needing the pepper sauce, while the black plakapong went well with the
seafood sauce. By the way, our dining plates (porcelain) arrived hot to the
table.
By now we were starting to slow down, but Georges and the
staff did not. Three meat samplers were next plus a lamb casserole, followed
by a plate with five desserts! All were truly excellent.
We came away from our evening at Chez Georges amazed that
nobody had told us about this restaurant. Probably since all the diners on
our evening were native French speakers, this may explain the conundrum.
Don’t let the French take this one away from us! Do try it, I am sure you
will not be disappointed. The set menus are fabulous value and have enough
choices within them to satisfy everyone.
By the way, Chez Georges has multiple course special
menus for Xmas (24th and 25th) at B. 810 and two special sets for New Year
(31st) at B. 930 or the ‘Gastronomique’ at B. 2,200 which includes 600
gm of fresh lobster.
Our award for the best new restaurant of 2003 has to go
to Chez Georges. Very highly recommended.
Chez Georges, 340/7 M10, Pattaya Third Road (300 metres
from South Pattaya Road heading towards Central Pattaya, and almost opposite
Pat’s Pies) telephone 038 723 219, 06 151 4200. Open daily from 6.30 p.m.
Ample street parking outside.
