To my mind Burger King came up with a fantastic marketing ploy when they announced their “have it your way” campaign. If, like me and Sally Albright, you are a high maintenance diner you’ve probably asked in various restaurants to “add some of this” or “leave out that” or “can I have the sauce on the side”? The simple truth is I am that pain in the butt diner who does want it her way. I’ve never eaten at BK where I didn’t ask for “no mayo/sauce” so letting me know it was ok to do that was just totally brilliant.
Let’s face it we all have our little food quirks. I’m happy to admit my aversion to “wobbly food”, simply put if it wobbles of its own accord I’m not putting it in my mouth (and yes I’m shuddering now just at the thought of it, bleurgh!). Think of jelly, cold custard, cooked egg white or mayo and you’re on the right track, mousse can be tricky if it is too fluffy and I don’t like whipped cream. “What???” I hear you cry, “this girl is bonkers” but to me those food stuffs, or palate abominations as I prefer to call them, are just plain wrong.
This week I’ve been thinking long and hard how to set down in writing just how wonderful our dinner on Friday night was. Now I know I’m a pretty good cook but I’m not blowing my own trumpet – we went out for a fine dining experience here in Phuket at the Royale Nam Tok restaurant.
There are some meals that stay with you for a long time, thankfully most of them are for the right reasons. I can still recall the delight of eating rock lobster followed by sheep’s milk ice cream at Konrad in Copenhagen and that was back in 2000. So I know both Thomas and I will delight in this meal not just for the food but also the fabulous experience and service for time to come.
A fine dining experience is not something that’s in our typical budget so imagine how thrilled I was when Thomas received a voucher from Worldwide Dive and Sail to thank him for 5 years at the company. I was even more excited after reading that our chef to be, Marc de Schrijver, has a Michelin star to his name. So on Friday evening we set out for our adventure. Almost to be thwarted by a sudden downpour and lack of directions we eventually found the restaurant tucked away on a side street in Kathu and received a warm, friendly welcome from our host Corry Ringoet.
Marc and Corry moved to Phuket from Belgium to run their own fine dining experience. The restaurant is their home by day which at night becomes a 5-table dining extravaganza- complete with unique touches, rich decorations and plenty of homemade treats.
We started off with a champagne cocktail and marinated tomatoes, before moving on the amuse bouche. Yes my mouth was positively laughing as I wolfed down spiced mackerel and pine nuts, sautéed shrimp, moringa soup, herb bread and rillettes, as Corry meanwhile explained the health benefits of the various items.
The evening followed a gentle pace with our next course being king scallops with black truffle paste and pumpkin butter sauce, paired with a fruity Chilean sauvignon – and not just a single glass! The taste was phenomenal and already we were starting to feel a little full but also excited for the next course as our waiter readied the hot plate and iron. Yes an iron! I thought I had misread the description but indeed our Angus beef tenderloin was to be doused in herbal oil and ironed at the table.
Corry did the honours, allowing the herbal steam to waft over us, as we salivated in anticipation. The beef was a perfect medium and the ironing created a crispy crust and served with a potato and bacon spring roll, moringa pancake and stir fried vegetables to give an iinteresting Asian twist. For our wine accompaniment a bottle of Bordeaux was decanted and served in huge bowl sized glasses.
As if I wasn’t already in food heaven our final course was a choice of a sweet plate or cheese. Hmm cheese – well clearly that was my selection and what a choice! The cheese tray appeared with a mix of soft, blue, goat and hard cheeses from which I chose 8 and I did finish every last morsel. Meanwhile Thomas enjoyed his pudding with chocolate and strawberries, passion fruit sorbet and warm fruit wine.
Our meal was capped off with strong black coffee, chocolate truffles, a blackberry foam and buttery palmier. Three and a half hours after our arrival, with heartfelt goodbyes and promises to return, we donned our rain gear and hopped on “Little Blue” for our ride home.
Most certainly a meal to remember and not one I’m likely to attempt to recreate. Thomas has popped off to Truk Lagoon for a month so I’m back to cooking for 1, which isn’t half as interesting. Note to self – work harder and save up for a repeat visit to Royale Nam Tok.
