Chaophraya - review of the restaurant
Apparently I like writing up the reviews for the restaurants we visit (actually it's true) so here I am with great news from South East Asia, well OK, just a little bit of it right here in Manchester - Chaophraya seem to have spent their previous lives as artifact collectors judging by the sheer volume of weird and wonderful objects liberally adorning and contrasting with the modern design of the building. This combination of old and new could well have gone horribly wrong, but somehow, the choice of deep reds and creamy whites for the decor manage to provide just the right tones to offset the deep dark wood and metal of the numerous statues, bells, tables, chairs and unusual lighting - visually it is stunning! Worth a visit just to check out the wealth of history that must be represented here - makes me wish I knew lots about Thai history and culture - I doubt many of them are true artifacts - but hey - it works and is inspiring and evocative of the country of which we are about to sample the cuisine...
Personally, I really like Thai food but am often reluctant to take it on because of the sheer intensity of heat that some dishes have. Fortunately for our 'western' tastes, a similar Anglicization process that is so often applied to Indian cooking seems to have influenced the chefs at Chaophraya as none of the wonderful dishes we chose blew my head off! In fact I would go as far to say it was all pretty mild in comparison to most of the Thai food I have eaten in Thailand - this is not a criticism - far from it - the reduction in heat has allowed the rest of the flavours to shine through and there wasn't a hint of generic sauce in sight. Everything was fresh, zingy and darn tasty! Starters included POH PIAH TOD, SATAY GAI, GOONG YANG BBQ ahem, thats Spring rolls, Satay Chicken and BBQ King Prawns to you and me (we all tried and failed to pronounce them properly when ordering - looks like we all need more practice he he) and the mains, that we all shared to experience as much of a variety as possible included NUENG MA NOW (Sea Bass with lemon grass,fresh garlic,chilli and lime), GAE YANG SAUCE MAMOUNG (Grilled New Zealand lamb chop in mango sauce), GAI YANG GOR LET (Favourite dish from the south ofThailand,grilled marinated chicken with home made special Thai curry paste) and PHED MA KAAM (Grilled DUCK BREAST with tamarind sauce,topped with deep fried shallot,cashew nuts and dried chilli). In a word WOW! We likes!! The recommended wine was a damn good choice too!
After paying up we went downstairs to check out those wonderful little seats that are set into the floor with the triangular cushions (MON KHWAN) for a little Jasmine tea and a bit of a chat before heading off into the night... Cheers guys another excellent outing - well recommended! (let me know if you decide to go - I want to go again he he)
