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By Marie Moon
The sun set rapidly over the Andaman Sea in a dramatic, fiery blaze
as the staff of the Beach Restaurant cleaned and preened and prepared
for the evening ahead. As the house lights came on dimly, candles
were placed on crisp white tablecloths, paper lanterns were lowered
from the roof and the moon began to shine with majesty.
From the balcony of our Deluxe Cottage at the Chedi Phuket, my
partner and I watched the goings-on of the restaurant and contemplated
what we were going to order. We had stopped in earlier to peruse
the menu. My partner got excited about the delicious range of seafood
dishes and I all but committed myself to one of the charcoal-grilled
steaks. Some three or four cocktails later, my resolve was faltering
with mention of lamb Saltimbocca and roasted lobster tail and I
was anxious for a second reading. Without any further discussion,
we emptied our drinks and headed straight down to the Beach Restaurant.
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The restaurant is small with a capacity of only 50 people and what
was immediately impressive was the number of staff present, seemingly
one for every guest this evening, as the restaurant was not busy.
The indoor sections gleamed with polished wooden flooring and soft
moody lighting and a flautist was meandering around the tables,
filling the air with romantic music. We were seated at one of the
alfresco tables, which place diners almost directly on the beach.
With a bold moon above, the gentle shh of the waves and the lyrical
song of the flute, the setting was impeccable.
We eagerly consulted the menu, having sent the waiter away for
the next ten minutes. My partner ordered the only apparent appetizer,
seared prawns and scallop with oriental vegetables, pumpkin oil
and balsamic reduction and I opted for one of the three salads.
Caesar, Greek and green papaya salads are offered, each designed
with the chef's own little twist, however after a few drinks I was
rather craving something salty and chose the Caesar salad with breaded
anchovy.
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We deliberated over the main dishes waiting for something else
to catch our attention. The range of succulent seafood items interested
us both. There are some old favourites such as Phuket lobster Thermidor
and some unique blends such as pan-fried king prawn with soya and
ginger butter or roasted lobster tail with black rice and vegetables
with a curry cream sauce. The Mix Grill and the Seafood Grill are
ideal sets for two and the array of live and fresh seafood cooked
to order will delight Asian and European patrons alike. A number
of the fish items looked very tempting, like pan-fried seabass meuniere
with pak choi and mashed potatoes, I had recently seen a similar
dish prepared on television, but my eyes darted straight down to
the grill. US T-bone steak with shallot red wine sauce, sirloin
with green pepper corn cream or Australian lamb cutlets with roast
garlic and rosemary sauce. It was all mouth-watering, but it was
the caf? de Paris sauce served with the US rib-eye that sounded
delicious and curious enough to tempt me and I pledged my choice
to the very patient waiter. My partner finally decided on the Phuket
lobster ragout with zucchini, carrot and caraway seeds and to accompany
the meal he ordered a bottle of Chilean white wine. The dry wine
was light and savoury and would go well with the lobster. However,
it lacked the full richness of a velvety cabernet sauvignon, as
would have been my choice.
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The appetizers arrived speedily and both were delicious. The prawns
and scallops were lightly seared and the balsamic reduction added
a bite to the oriental greens. The generously sized Caesar salad
was highly palatable yet perhaps a little over-dressed with the
tangy, peppery mayonnaise.
The break between courses was perfectly timed, for we had just
finished the wine and had begun casually glancing over toward the
kitchen when our main course arrived. I always love this part, for
me it can be the climax of an evening. Whose meal is the biggest,
the most well presented? Whose dish smells the best? It is one of
my family's rituals and I still get a kick out of it every time.
At the Beach Restaurant, my dish was definitely the most impressive;
the rib-eye steak was very large and deliciously thick and was served
with a heaped portion of saut?ed vegetables and a baked potato laden
with sour cream, chives ad bacon bits. The steak, charcoal-grilled
to a medium state, was extremely tender and juicy and the caf? de
Paris sauce was a light creamy mixture similar to a b?arnaise but
with a mustard-like flavour to substitute tarragon. The flavours
combined to create a sweet, buttery taste that was wonderfully complimented
by the potato. The lobster ragout was small in comparison to the
steak but consisted of generous chunks of succulent steamed lobster
and tender vegetables tossed with a creamy sauce.
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The dessert menu was too tempting to ignore even though our main
courses were very satisfying and we both felt rather full. The dessert
list features items like homemade ice-cream and sherbet, cheese
crumble pie and lime mousse with crepes Suzette. I was taken with
the white chocolate mousse with cointreau and citrus sauce; the
citrusy flavours of the cointreau and sauce lessened the sweetness
of the white chocolate mousse, culminating into a very rich, creamy
and tangy dessert. My partner ordered the chocolate truffle, which
is flavoured with dark rum and orange and ginger sauce. This too
proved to be a wonderful combination of tastes; the dark chocolate
was enriched by the rum and the orange and ginger laced the dessert
with a sharp glaze that spiced up each mouthful.
After dessert and coffee we lingered at the Beach Restaurant, so
wonderful was the setting, right down on Pansea Beach. Excellent
food, wine, moonlight and music combined to make this a memorable
evening and well worth another visit. The Beach Restaurant has three
sittings daily with an a la carte menu for lunch, afternoon snacks
and dinner. Every Saturday night the Beach jazzes up with a special
Jazz Dinner featuring live entertainment and an Asian favourites
buffet. Due to the small capacity of the Beach Restaurant, reservations
are recommended.
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