Le Bouchon

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The bistro at Patpong

If there wasn’t our French buddy also a food consultant in 5-star hotels showing us Le Bouchon, we would never have found this gourmet sanctuary in the Bangkok Patpong red light district. Judging from the eatery name we expected the fare was a bit provincial to the Southern France as ‘bouchon’ means a bistro in Lyon, and we later found that our guess was right as the owner Serge Martiani is from this peaceful and beautiful town.

Decoration of Le Bouchon promotes our imagination of being in a bistro on the street of Lyon, with a taste of French and homey added some romantic ambiance as bonus, prompting it a perfect place to cheer your girlfriend or even for friends gathering as we did on the night of boxing day. Good food doesn’t need fancy decoration to do the cover up. We were so glad that Le Bouchon do home cooking (both classic and bistro dishes) which matching well with the atmosphere in the bistro and our appetite. Choices of wine in Le Bouchon were extensive not only limited to French labels, but we chose the French red wine recommended by the house to kick off the dinner.

Le Bouchon didn’t have a big menu instead their limited daily selections were written on a blackboard as a bistro will do. Savory dishes started with the starter Petits Clams a La Cream (baby clams in cream sauce), and the Salade de Chevre Chaud (warm goat cheese salad). The goodness of the clam was on the cream sauce and the goat cheese salad was aromatic in taste and rich in mouth I almost didn’t want to share them with friends.

Soup selection was limited as Le Bouchon would like to offer only its specialty and freshness from the market. We had Soupe de Lentilles (lentils soup), and the Bisque de Ciqales de Mer En Croute (lobster bisque in puff pastry). Didn’t like to place a comment here as I would like you to see for yourself how good it could be. Especially the lentils soup was worth us a ticket to Bangkok.
We shared two entrees, they were the Cuisses de Grenouilles a La Bressane (frog legs Bouchon style), and the St. Jacques Gratinees aux Epinards (scallops with spinach gratinated). Simply good!

Followed were our main courses. We had, Jarret d’Agneau Sauce au Romarin (lamb shank in white beans sauce), a dish of French specialty and Le Bouchon version didn’t let us down either. Also we had Fillet de Daurade Facon ‘Bouchon’ (sea beam fillet Bouchon style); then two duck dishes as Cuisse de Canard Confit ‘Maison’ (home made duck leg confit), and Magret de Canard a l’Orange (duck fillet in orange sauce). The succulent taste of duck confit was the traditional culinary art of French while duck stored in its own fat preserved the meat for a long period of time before brought to a gourmet table. We also ordered the Lapin Faqon ‘Bouchon’ (stewed rabbit in white wine sauce), and the Filet de Sole Sauce Champignons (sole fish in mushroom sauce).

We did blame the pleasant waitress for not warning us ahead that the portion was big, so we left no room for desserts. But the honest waitress did warn us that their kitchen was too compact to prepare home made desserts. So they sell what they got from next door. Oh, in this case we didn’t owe ourselves some sweet.

Bread served in Le Bouchon was good although they didn’t bake it, but they ensure matching quality to their dishes. As most brilliant French chef will do, Le Bouchon makes the use of native ingredients to ensure freshness, and the technique in French culinary. This is the way leading Le Bouchon to define French home cooking to its highest array in Bangkok, the unpretentious way.

Our Ratings (1 to 5 the higher the better): Le Bouchon has [4.1]
(Ratings are based on Food, Service and Ambience, with Price taken into account in relation to Quality) Food =4, Service=4.5, Ambiance=4, Money Worth=4

Price range for two without drinks (incl. local water) in Thai Baht = BBBB
(B=below 200, BB=201-500, BBB=501-1,000, BBBB=1,001-2,000, BBBBB=over 2,000)

Details: Open daily Dinner only 6-11pm (Reservation highly recommended)
Le Bouchon French Bistro, 37/17 Soi Patpong 2, Surawong Road, Bangrak, Bangkok; Tel.: 02-2349109
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Hamilton's X'mas Day set lunch

46
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Christmas day 4-course lunch
Hamilton's Steak House @ Dusit Thani Hotel

4-course X’mas Lunch for B950++; it consisted of appetizer, soup, main course, and dessert.

Choices of appetizer were Pan-fried Crab Cake served with melted chili cheese and organic lettuces, or Terrine of Duck Liver served with wild roquette salad. I chose the Crab Cake, the cake was slightly crispy outside and the meat was soft, tasty.

Soup had two choices, Lobster Bisque with brandy and grissini in a baked puff, or Double Chicken Comsomme with vegetable pearls. Of course I opted for the Hamilton’s signature Lobster Bisque, with subtle flavor of cognac together with well balanced taste of fine ingredients made this soup marvelous.

Main course was Roasted Strip Loin of Beef served with home fries, mushroom sauce and assorted root vegetables, or Fillet of Roasted Turkey with its stuffing in cranberry sauce. I had the Strip Loin of Beef, tender and juicy, bravo!

Choices of dessert were American Apple Pie served with vanilla sauce, or Christmas Pudding in vanilla sauce. My pick was the American Apple Pie, so-so.All for B1,118 net ($34) it was a nice treat on Christmas day though.

Hamilton’s also offer regular 3-course Business Set Lunch from Monday to Friday, for B450++ only.


The Hamilton's Steak House ****
Dusit Thani Hotel Bangkok
946 Rama IV Road
Bangrak, Bangkok 10500
Tel.: 02.236.9999
Hamilton's

Open daily: Lunch 11:30 am - 2:20 pm; Dinner 6 - 11 pm
Pay (food only): regular dinner expect to pay THB 8,000 for two
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Pavilion X'mas eve buffet

BANGKOK AMAZING GOURMET
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Christmas Eve
Pavilion @ Dusit Thani Hotel

X'mas eve buffet dinner B1,900++ ($60)

Joy to the world, the gourmet has come! A plentiful buffet line-up and scrumptious seafood selections; incl. fresh oysters from France and Australia in whole shell, chilled seafood incl. Alaska king crab, caviar in a half boiled egg, few kinds of cold cuts such as rack of lamb, chilled salmon and beef, Dusit's homemade terrine and delicious tidbits, a wide selection of salad; hot dishes were less impressed than those cold one with exception that the grill was quite well prepared incl. of rack of lamb, baked whole salmon with seasalt, roasted beef, gammon ham and roasted turkey, also presented was pan-fried foie-gras; soup were lobster bisque and tomyumgoong (spicy and sour prawn soup); desserts were what we didn't pay much attention to. Good food, good quality, good night, a joyful festive treat!

(By paying respect to members from the Palace also dining here tonight, I didn't take any pictures.)

The Pavilion Coffee Shop Christmas eve buffet ***1/4
Dusit Thani Hotel
946 Rama 4 Road
Bangrak, Bangkok 10500
Tel.: 02.200.9000

Open daily 6 am - 10:30 pm (lunch 11:30 am - 2:30 pm, dinner 6 pm - 10:30 pm, both buffet and a la carte menu available)
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Shang Palace

44
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Shang Palace 香宮
@ Sharila-la Hotel Bangkok

One of top 3 hotels’ Chinese restaurants in Bangkok is China House (the Oriental Hotel) serving nouvelle Chinese cuisine in a 1930 old Shanghai-tang ambience with a bright red and darken interior after its renovation two years ago, the monkey look lead my hesitation to support this once famed restaurant anymore, besides I hate Chinese food being fusion. Then come to Mei Jiang (the Peninsula Hotel), good food good tea but snobbish service and I am always lazy to cross the river. So for years, Shang Palace (the Shangri-la Hotel) earns my praise for its Chinese cuisine with the Cantonese accent. Although compare to top eateries in Hong Kong, Shang Palace shall have a long way to catch up with; but in Bangkok where exquisite Chinese restaurants with a real twist is so hard to find, Shang Palace passes the mark.

My favorite starter is the Peking Duck (B1,100++), well marinated whole duck barbequed to perfection, then peeled (in front of us) the duck skin as thin as a sheet of paper without the trace of fat, eaten with warm small rice flour wrapper and condiments, bravo! Second choice maybe Roasted Goose (B600++) which is a popular dish in prominent restaurants in Hong Kong but not in Bangkok, Shang Palace includes this signature Cantonese roasted dish in the special menu.For soup it shall be the Shark’s Fin in the Egg-white Wrapper in Supreme Soup (B1,000++), creative and delicious. The soup with preserved vegetable with the (leftover) duck meat is another ideal choice to clear our palate; it is included in the Peking Duck order when we ordered one.

Shang Palace has an array of fruit dishes, such as Stir-fried Duck Meat with Mango (B500++), Stir-fried Beef Fillet with Rose Apple (B500++), Fried Prawn with Lemon Sauce (B650++), and Stir-fried Fresh Lily Bulb and Celery (B350++). They are very welcomed dishes in a tropical country likes Thailand.



From the sea, fishes, choices are always limited in Bangkok. Steamed Red Grouper (a coral trout) in Hot Oil and Soy Sauce (around B1,700++) and Deep Fried Sand Goby (bamboo fish) in Warm Soy Sauce (around B800++) are better choices in Shang Palace. E-fu (small flat noodles) with Crab Meat (B280++) and Deep-Fried Rice Flour Bun are good substitute for steamed rice.

To wrap up the dinner, I always go for a cup of Mango Pudding (B90++), with Chocolate Ice Cream (B300++) from the Next2 Café. If you are looking for something special, Double-boiled Hasima in Red Date Soup (B200++) will set you a height in the gourmet search; this is snow frog ovaries found in western desert of China. Exotic isn’t it? To pamper your skin try the Braised Bird-nest with Coconut Milk in Whole Grilled Coconut (B800++), best bird-nest dessert in Bangkok.Being a Shangri-la’s Prestige membership holder, I receive my portion of meal free of charge while dining with friend(s). So this is one more good reason to dine at Shang Palace on top of the chef’s above average culinary skills.

Our Ratings (1 to 5 the higher the better): Shang Palace has [4]
(Ratings are based on Food, Service and Ambience, with Price taken into account in relation to Quality) Food =4, Service=4, Ambiance=4, Money Worth=4

Price range for two without drinks (incl. local water) in Thai Baht = BBBBB
(B=below 200, BB=201-500, BBB=501-1,000, BBBB=1,001-2,000, BBBBB=over 2,000)

Details: open daily Lunch 11:30am -2:30pm; Dinner 6:30 - 10:30pm
Shang Palace Chinese Restaurant, Shangri-la Hotel, 89 Soi Wat Suan Plu, New Road, Bangrak, Bangkok 10500 Thailand; Tel.: 02-206 8677
http://www.shangri-la.com/en/property/bangkok/shangrila/dining

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LeNotre

43
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Café LeNotre Paris, Bangkok

It is a pride for Bangkok to accommodate the first Asia’s full restaurant service branch from Paris renowned pastry name LeNotre (found 1947), on Soi Langsuan. Café LeNotre here look pretty chic provides Bangkokian a cozy hideaway in the bustle of the CBD Bangkok.

There is no time to waste since we were late for lunch. We immediately ordered their scrumptious soup before our water and towel were being served. Our soup, the Potato Soup, the Tomato Cream Soup, and the Lobster Bisque, came in generous portions were aromatic and rich. Soon after we finished our soup, we shared the Pomelo Shrimp Salad, a smart usage of premium local ingredients brought out freshness and refreshing, and the yummy Shrimp on Toast with pink caviar and cocktail sauce, a complimentary dish we appreciated Chef Pierre’s very kind gesture.

Entrees, we had the Osso-bucco on bed of Fettucini and Fruits which was a true treat, the Duck Conserve was such a dish grandma missed so much, the Glazed Spare Ribs in red wine sauce was somehow fine but not outstanding, and the must order Poached Snow Fish in shrimp and pink sauce gave our taste buds a boost.

Although we were pretty full after 3 courses of gourmet, it was impossible not to sample the Macaroon which is a LeNotre specialty, and few cakes (I forgot their names).

What do we drink during lunch? Of course mineral water the human best friend.

Café LeNotre Bangkok is a bistro style eatery serving food connoiseur easy, inexpensive but unequally delicious fare. Their pastries are now the real threat to the Oriental Cake Shop I once found in love with.

Our Ratings (1 to 5 the higher the better): Le Norte has [3.6]
(Ratings are based on Food, Service and Ambience, with Price taken into account in relation to Quality) Food =4, Service=3, Ambiance=3, Money Worth=4.5
Price range for two without drinks (incl. local water) in Thai Baht = BBB (B=below 200, BB=201-500, BBB=501-1,000, BBBB=1,001-2,000, BBBBB=over 2,000)

Details: Open daily Lunch: 11am – 11pm
Café LeNotre Bangkok: 61 Soi Langsuan, Lumpini, Bangkok. Tel.: 02-2507050. Open daily from breakfast until dark. Second branch offering light meal and pastry is now open at the Siam Paragon ground floor.
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