Kathie, Bob and Others:
When time permits, would you please give me your "short list" of places you recommend for both lunch and dinner in Bangkok - All areas welcome: Riverside and Sukhumvit, etc. Thanks!

Some of my faves: LaNa Thai at Face, Lemongrass, Harmonique, The Gallery is good (as long as they aren't installing lighting fixtures while you are there), China House for Peking Duck.

China House, Lord Jim for lunch, Lemongrass, Pen (not in the Peninsula), Jim Thompson House restaurant for lunch

I will never forget the experience of dinner atop the Banyan Tree Hotel at Vertigo restaurant. I do not remember the food, but the sunset views were breathtaking. They also have a bar there even if you do not have dinner.

kathie---china house?? are you softening??

DD---i have a prepared listing if you want it tell me at: [email protected]

short list:

biscotti for dinner at the 4 seasons--lunch or dinner but dinner is best

harmonique for dinner, closed sundays and from xmas to mid-january

tongue thai for dinner

jim thompson house for lunch

main store of jim thompson for lunch---the one on suriwong rd at rama IV--2nd floor---very reasonable---have dessert too...

any food at face on soi 38, sukhumvit---thai at lunch or dinner and indian at dinner

dim sum at the liu rest. on 3rd floor of conrad hotel for lunch---fantastic...eat from a menu

dim sum at chinese rest. at the peninsula---limited choices but very different...

gallery cafe near ROS....dinner or lunch

le delat indochine on soi 23, sukhumvit---vietnamese---lunch or dinner....res necessary

sunday brunch at rang mahal on top floor of rembrandt hotel---make a res and ask for a window table...fantastic...and great view

senses for lunch on 2nd floor of gaysorn plaza

lunch or early dinner at loft rest. in the central chitlom dept store---7th floor--plenochet rd---walk in directly from the skytrain stop....fancy cafeteria with all fresh foods and many diff. cuisines....

jesters in the peninsula hotel

the thai rest. in the garden at the peninsula hotel

NOTHING AT CHINA HOUSE

dinner at himili cha cha off new road near to river

8 degrees off convent rd--dinner--italian

that is the short list

Hi there rhkkmk, any specific reason why you avoid china house? its on my to do list for bkk, and on other websites (chubbyhubby) it gets great reviews for its peking duck ... yum cha etc.
thanks,
C

The remodel at China House is not popular among us. Bob (and GPanda) had a terrible experience at China House soon after the remodel. I was there right after the remodel, didn't like the new glitz, but thought the Peking Duck was still excellent. So the frequent posters are divided on whether the remodel has ruined teh food (as well as the decor) at China House. Go and give us a review.

i have been to CH three times....i liked the old setting and the gracious way they you were seated and served and the food was excellent...

after so much 'peking duck' talk last year on this forum, the 4 of us (rhk's and gpanda's) made a reservation and anxiously awaited out meal there...

total disaster from start to finish...

the new restaurant is best described as "tight"....the lobby is small, the waiting room is small and the eating spaces are even smaller...its very cut up...

it is artistically beautiful and nostalgic of a by-gone era... i am sure on paper it looked good and in pics, it probably looks good but realistically it is a nightmare....

here is an example....we were seated in the largest area....for someone to serve me, they had to leave the room we were in, walk through the waiting area and approach me from the back...

there are stairs at one end of the building...when women go up and down in heels it sounds like horses are approaching at a gallup....no sound proofing...

the waiter spilled something between me and my plate...i finally had to ask him to clean it up....his answer was to drop a napkin on it...more like a 2* restaurant...

we thought the duck was over rated and a bit boring...

the staff had a bit of an attitude as well which we have never encountered in bkk nor at the oriental itself...

its off my list!!!

Hi

If you enjoy wine you should check out V9 at Sofitel hotel on Silom. They had a pretty good selection of European wines and the prices were not bad at all. And you get a great view of the skyline of Bangkok

Regards
Gard
http://gardkarlsen.com - trip reports and pictures

Hi Kathie,

will give it a go seeing as opinion is divided, and make sure i post when i get back. i like the look of the reno from pics, but its always different in rl,
C

We haven't decided for sure, but may well go back to the China House in November. Note that for two people. you can be seated in the little "booths." They are attractive and have a feeling of privacy.

A side note: the remodel made the aisles between the tables so small, they couldn't use their carts for carving the duck! They used a small portable table instead, with all the juices dripping to the floor, then cleaned up the floor. This was the first day teh CH was open after the remodel. It was not well-planned. You can read my full review in excrutiating detail on my November 2006 trip report.

Does it bother anyone that they serve shark fin soup at the China House?

Almost all good Chinese restuarants have shark fin soup.

you should try the shark jaw soup if you want something really fantastic...
i had one recently that still had a tooth with a gold filling in it....

Our friend Maeng just opened a place on soi 13. I think its called the "Little Kitchen"?

She speaks great English, and will cook about anything if you make a special request.

I'll take Kuranosuke there next month, and we'll post our reviews.

ddunn, we had a great meal at Cabbages & Condoms. Unique atmoshere!

BradinBangkok thats sounds promising. please be sure to post reviews. i am looking for smaller authentic restaurants to go to in Thailand this dec/jan and would really appreciate any info,
Thanks,
C

We"re planning on checking out Little Kitchen when we're there.

Maeng's Little Kitchen would most definitely be AUTHENTIC, even though she seems to have some western dishes on the menu. She's a very dear friend. I hope this new little restaurant does very well for her!
Carol