The Dark Side’s secret
finally
revealed!
How can we miss a very large restaurant on a major road,
and one which has been there for three years? Very easily it seems, but
possibly because the Dark Side residents wanted to keep the secret to
themselves. Well, too late - it’s out now.
The restaurant reviewed this week is The Courtyard Food &
Drink on the road that joins Siam Country Club Road with Soi Nernplabwan. If
you are coming from Siam Country Club you pass the driving range on your
left and turn right at the major cross-roads intersection with the new
7-Eleven, and head towards the Elephant village. The restaurant is not far
and on your right. If coming from Nernplabwan, head down until you reach the
T-junction with the temple, turn left and the restaurant is on your left
about one km along the road.
The restaurant is run by Nongyao (Nute), a vivacious lady
who spent many years in Canada teaching Thai cooking, so when she and her
husband Geoffrey decided to return to Thailand, it was natural that she
should think of running a restaurant, and that thought was finally realized
when she took over The Courtyard Food & Drink.
When you see the layout of the restaurant, you begin to
understand the name. The air-conditioned first section has the street
frontage as well as tables and a sit-up bar, but behind that there is a
garden courtyard with pergolas, a horseshoe bar, a fountain and some
free-standing tables.
We decided to dine in the air-con section, but had a
glass of house wine each (eminently quaffable, both red and white) while we
perused the menu and made our choices.
The first impression on looking at the menu was the very
reasonable prices, both in food items and drinks. It was obvious this was
not a restaurant which would break the bank. It begins with breakfasts, then
soups (B. 90-150) then salads (around B. 100) and snacks (B. 60-150) and
quick meals (B. 100), then sandwiches and burgers (B. 100-160). Mains cover
fish, beef, pork, chicken and NZ lamb (B. 190-390), and pastas and Thai food
(around B. 100) and even a page of vegetarian items (B. 100). It is also
advisable to look for the blackboard specials, on our night a soup, salad
and a roast duck breast for B. 220. Bottled wines (Jacob’s Creek and Hardy’s
B. 850) and local beers B. 50-65.
I ordered a French onion soup starter (B. 90) which came
piping hot with the cheese melted over the bread on the top accompanied by a
hot bread roll. A very pleasant dish. Madame had ordered a small salad which
she also enjoyed.
For mains, I selected the grilled John Dory (B. 250) with
mushroom sauce, roast potatoes and vegetables. A good sized serving on a
pre-warmed plate, the fish had no bones and the thick, creamy mushroom sauce
was delicious.
Madame had ordered a spicy pla goong, and it was
served with true Thai spiciness. Farangs might be better to stick with
western choices, but for the seasoned Thai palate, this was a very genuine
taste.
We had stuck with the house red and house white, with no
regrets. However, we had to turn down K. Nute’s offer of an apple crumble
dessert, as we were just too satiated, and there was no more room.
The Courtyard Food & Drink has a very friendly, ‘family’
atmosphere, and combined with good food (western and Thai) and very
reasonable prices, we have no doubt that this will become a very well known
restaurant for both the Dark Side and the rest of Pattaya. This restaurant
comes highly recommended by the Dining Out team. Do try it, you will not be
disappointed. By the way, they do a roast on Sundays from noon (B. 220-300
depending upon the size of your appetite) and cater to takeaways.
The Courtyard Food & Drink, 1/6 M7, Soi Siam Country
Club, telephone 081 250 6400, 038 734 522. Open 11 a.m. until 11 p.m.,
closed Mondays. Plenty of parking outside and more down the laneway behind
the garden courtyard.
Lemon ginger vegetables
Another easy stir-fry and you can use whatever vegetables
you have sitting in the refrigerator, but do make sure the ingredients are
fresh. With stir-fries such as this, the vegetables are only lightly cooked
to retain their individual flavors. The secret with this dish is in the
lemon ginger sauce.
|
Ingredients Serves 4
Blanched almonds 1/2 cup
Vegetable oil 2 tbspns
Onion, medium, chopped 1
Garlic, crushed 2 cloves
Bell pepper (red, green or yellow) chopped 1
medium
Green beans, chopped 250 gm
Cauliflower, chopped 1/4 medium
Zucchini, chopped 2 medium
Thai green beans (Sa Taw) 100gm
Bean sprouts 1 cup
Lemon juice 2 tspns
Fresh ginger, grated 1 tbspn
Ground cardamom 1/4 tspn
Sugar 1 tbspn
Cornflour 1 tbspn
Water 3/4 cup
|
Cooking Method
Toast the almonds on a baking tray in a moderate oven
for five minutes. Heat the oil in a wok, add onion and garlic and
stir-fry over a medium heat for two minutes. Add bell pepper, beans and
cauliflower and stir-fry for another three minutes. Now add the zucchini
and continue stir-fry for one minute.
Blend the cornflour with the water and then pour into
the wok. Add bean sprouts, lemon juice, ginger, cardamom and sugar and
stir-fry over high heat until the mixture boils and thickens.
Serve immediately with steamed rice and sprinkle
almonds on top.
