A confused Dining Out this week, so do not worry if you
become confused too. No more so than Miss Terry Diner and Madame, I can assure
you.
This state of perplexity all occurred after Madame had to
have a few days in Bangkok-Pattaya Hospital. Since she has spent time working
professionally in hotel kitchens, I knew she was not relishing the concept. Not
so much the procedure, but the food! Hospitals have not been known for
presenting haute cuisine. In fact, as preferred dining out venues, hospitals
probably do not make even the top 100 listings.
In
Thai fashion, I was also going to be staying nights in the hospital room with
Madame, and I have to admit that neither was I looking forward to my thoughts of
the ‘usual’ hospital offerings in the nourishment line. A friend of mine in
the UK once described British hospital food by saying, “If the operation
doesn’t get you, then the food probably will!”
You can imagine our surprise when on our first evening, there
was a knock on the door and a nurse came in escorting a young man with
“Amari” on his lapel badge, bearing a tray with Thai food for Madame and
then another with European food for me.
Both
meals were well presented and hot. Three courses, with bread rolls as well. The
Thai food was also well presented, with a particularly good tom kha gai (chicken
in coconut milk soup) having plenty of tender chicken breast and no bones. This
was restaurant quality food, there was no doubt about that.
The next morning the ritual was performed again, a knock on
the door, a nurse with an Amari waiter in tow and breakfasts served on large
trays. Traditional Thai style for Madame with khao tom, and scrambled eggs for
me, complete with toast, bread rolls and Danish pastries. I should also mention
that all meals came with heavy starched napery and good quality cutlery. Amari
style. But in a hospital setting.
The final question was just what was the connection between
the Amari and the Bangkok-Pattaya Hospital? Or had we somehow dialed a ‘room
service’ number by mistake?
The answer to the conundrum is, of course, a felicitous
partnership between the Bangkok-Pattaya Hospital and the Amari Orchid Resort.
For the 6th floor of the hospital’s private rooms, it was decided that as well
as having ‘hotel standard’ accommodation, there should also be ‘hotel
standard’ food. At that point, enter the executive chef of the Amari Orchid,
Flemming Schulthess, who looked at the logistics of preparing hotel standard
meals for the hospital. Simply preparing everything at his kitchen in the Amari
and ferrying food up town was not the answer, especially for a professional like
Flemming, whose reputation stands by the food he cooks. He needed a preparation
kitchen in the hospital, so some space was made available on the 8th floor to
accommodate his needs. The end result is probably some of the best
‘hospital’ food in the world.
Items on offer from the rotating daily menu includes such
gourmet items as saut้ed beef cubes with hot bell pepper sauce, home made
noodles and glazed carrots for lunch and a very succulent cordon bleu pork
medallion stuffed with ham and cheese, complemented with roast potatoes with
Rosemary; and chilled Spanish gazpacho soup or fresh Vietnamese spring rolls,
and in the evening choose from the grilled red snapper steak, or a roasted duck
curry with pineapple, tomatoes and basil.
So, if you are in need hospitalization for any reason, and
are someone who enjoys their food, the Dining Out Team can certainly recommend
the 6th floor of the Bangkok-Pattaya Hospital. Madame was very satisfied with
her few days there and the food, while Miss Terry, who just ate there, enjoyed a
very satisfactory culinary experience!
As I wrote at the start of this article - a somewhat
confusing Dining Out, but still an important one! Recommended by an in-patient!
The Amari Orchid Resort, 240 M 5, Pattaya-Naklua Road,
telephone 038 428 161.
The Bangkok-Pattaya Hospital, 301 M 6, Sukhumvit Road, telephone 038 427 777.
