|
|
| Thai Orchid |
 |
| |
Stepping into the Thai Orchid on St. Clements, I was struck by how far removed it is from the urban hustle and bustle of Oxford. The restaurant is truly a beautiful Thai 'oasis' as they advertise - intricate carved wood paneling, lush green hanging plants and servers in Thai dress all help create the illusion. And the cuisine truly transported us to Bangkok with rich spices and aromas.
We were escorted to our table by a lovely server wearing a rose-pink traditional dress, and were seated in the gorgeous conservatory, greenery and the evening twilight surrounding us. After ordering two refreshing Thai beers (Chang, of course!), we perused the menu and decided on Banquet A, which combines starters, mains, dessert and coffee. Why not let the experts decide?
Our starters were incredibly well presented, artfully arranged on a platter complete with lotus blossoms carved out of vegetables. The chicken satay was moist with a flavourful peanut sauce, and I highly recommend the poh piah tod, the deep fried spring rolls filled with pork, chicken, mushrooms and Thai herbs.
The main course was just as impressively laid out, each dish on its own warmer with a lit candle beneath it, which kept them nice and hot while we made our way through the meal. My personal favourite was the the kaeng kiow wan gai, which was chicken and Thai aubergines in a green curry paste. Nathan enjoyed the koong phad priew wahn (sweet and sour prawns) nearly stealing them all before I could stop him! All the four dishes were delicious, both the neua phad nam man hoi (stir-fried beef) and the phad thai did not fail to satisfy.
Having enjoyed the starters and mains so fully, it was difficult to contemplate dessert! However when our server rolled the sweets trolley up to our table, we couldn't refuse. Each of the large array looked delectable, but my attention was drawn to the mangoes and cream with golden spun sugar topping. Nathan opted for the raspberry trifle. Our coffees complemented the luscious desserts to perfection.
All of this for a very reasonable price as well. If you want an escape from the typical Oxford restaurant experience, we cannot recommend the Thai Orchid highly enough for its wonderful food and atmosphere.
Reviewed by Kimberly Manning and Nathan Wiles
|
| |
|
