Pizzeria Giotto @ Meechok Plaza

Pizza Giotto is a relatively new Italian restaurant opened earlier this year by a young Thai chef. She did a fantastic job with the restaurant providing lovely Italian fare, including thin crust wood fired pizzas, lovely pasta, and various other dishes. There's even breakfast too!

Another good thing about it is, it's just a few doors down from my office at Meechok Plaza. This is welcomed addition to the various restaurants and eateries, providing a nice mix of International cuisines from Thai to Chinese to Korean, Japanese, Vietnamese...and now Italian.

The service is very friendly and warm, and the staff very well trained.

Ok...on with the food!

Ceasar Salad with Prawns. This this the first time I've had caesar salad with prawns, and it was lovely! Beautiful, creamy dressing that I can just keep eating non stop. The prawns were well seasoned and full of flavour, and I was quite pleasantly surprised with this as the prawns I've had in Thailand are generally tasteless. 185 baht.

Pesto Pizza - also quite lovely, cooked in one of those impressive igloo looking wood fire pizza ovens. Crispy thin crusted pizza topped with pesto sauce (crushed garlic, basil, parsley and nuts blended with parmesan and olive oil) and topped with mozzarella cheese. I love the thin crust that actually felt quite healthy, and I was able to un-guiltily enjoy the pizza...after all, there's lot of calcium in cheese, right? The flavours, by the way, came together very well.

Just as a general note:  I find the food at Pizzeria Giotto not too salty, and I could enjoy the "real" flavours of the cheese (beautiful!), and the pesto sauce.  250 baht.

The Oven

Home Made Potato Fries. I think potato chips and fries must be the ultimate comfort food. I particularly like thick cut fries and potato fries / wedges. There's something about biting into the crispy "skin" into the warm and soft "centres" that's immensely satisfying, especially on a rainy day or when you're tired and hungry! So...being very hungry and tired that day, I couldn't help myself but order these potato fries served with spicy mayonnaise... And the fries were scrumptious, especially with the paprika sprinkled on top for a little added kick. 95 Baht.

Spaghetti Olio Garlic, Prawns, Mushrooms and Dried Chilli. This was a great dish infused with beautiful garlic aroma, and quite strongly flavoured and pretty spicy. The prawns were very well seasoned. A very nice dish. 250 baht.

The Verdict

The food here is very nice, and the staff very friendly and knowledgable. Great addition to the variety of restaurants at Meechok Plaza. Not cheap, but comparable to other Italian restaurants around town.

Pizzeria Giotto
206/24 Meechok Plaza
T Faham, A Muang, Chiang Mai
Tel: 0835821551
Opens: 10am-9pm (Closed on Tuesdays)

I'm trying out the New Google Maps. Hope you like it!

David's Kitchen @99

First impressions. Long winding driveway through a picturesque park and manicured lawn, white restaurant with terrace. Lovely lawn and garden area leading to the river bank. Very genuine and warm, slightly formal welcome by the owner, Khun David and his staff. I must say the setting  and the service is fantastic, as you would expect from a fine dining restaurant.

We decided to dine indoors. The indoor setting was lovely too. Elegant and little formal, yet still quite simple and unpretentious. There was a lot of attention to details, like a little welcome card on the table with my name on it.

I think Khun David tries really hard to provide exceptional service and to look after the customers. I suggested some cushions for the wooden chairs as they were a little comfortable for shorter ladies like grandma, who was dining with us, and Khun David wrote me an email later in the week to say that they're going to replace the chairs with more comfortable ones!

Our waitress was excellent too, and recommended some great dishes (in case you were wondering about the food!).

BTW, the chef and partner of the business has worked at Farang Ses restaurant at Dhara Dhevi Hotel and also at Le Crystal.. pretty impressive credentials.

Classic Ceasar Salad - very nicely done with a herby dressing with a hint of anchovy. The croutons were great too made from herbed bread. 180 baht.

Pumpking Soup - what can I say, but it tastes just like the one I make at home (which means it's great!.. LOL), but creamier, and served with truffle cream (I don't have truffle cream at home!) and the croutons.  I do find the soup quite salty though. 160 baht. 

Braised Lamb Shank. Firstly, I must say that I don't eat a lot of meat, let alone lamb. Admittedly, I did have some lamb in a couple of restaurants in previous posts, as I wanted to try something different from what I normally have. I don't really know what lamb is supposed to be like. However, I did enjoy it. It was so tender meat was falling from the bone. The gravy was good too, but again, quite salty for me... and it was HUGE! 690 baht.

Grandma went for the Steamed Snow Fish, which turned out to be really lovely. 720 baht.

Other dishes available from David's Kitchen include various pasta dishes, priced from 220 baht - 380 baht. They are also starting new Thai fusion menu soon as well.

So all in all, a lovely restaurant. Beautiful setting, great food, lovely staff, great service. The price may seem high, but I think it's quite reasonable for what you get. Would love to go back to try more dishes, especially the Thai fusion!

David's Kitchen @99
99/9 Moo 3, Sanphiseur Rd
Sanphiseur, Muang, Chiang Mai
Tel: 053 110 732
Opens:
Mon: 10am-11pm
Wed - Sun: 10am-11pm
Facebook page

View David's Kitchen @99 in a larger map

Fiore Rosa - Homemade Italian in Doi Saket - Now closed

Dining at Fiore Rosa is like going to a friend's place for dinner...not just any friend though..a friend who can cook, and is passionate about cooking.

Roberto and his wife, Khun Dao makes a great team. As soon as we sat down, Roberto, the man behind the kitchen, started recommending and explaining recommended dishes straight away.

The first dish.. Beef Capaccio - I've had this before a couple of times at other Italian restaurants, but didn't actually know that Beef Capaccio is actually raw beef until Roberto told us, and the reality of its rawness dawned on me when the paper thin, super fresh, bright red beef slices came topped with cheese, rockets and I think, lemon juice (as opposed to lime). I never knowingly eat anything raw except for sashimi, so I told myself, I've eaten capaccio before..just eat it! ..And I was glad I did, because it was lovely! The cheese on the beef was very creamy and smooth, and the lemon added a slight hint of tanginess.  170 baht.

Mediterranean Salad - This was also beautiful in terms of looks and taste! Comprised of lovely salad greens, anchovies pieces which added a nice accent to the salad, fetta cheese (mmmm!) and olives. The dressing was lovely and light. 130 baht.

Fish Fillet in olive oil, vinegrette, lemon and almonds served on a bed of spinach. This was SO good.. very, very special. Never had anything like it before. Gorgeous and smooth with a lovely rounded fragance of what I think is almond and lemon wedge that has been placed in the pan with the fish.

Roberto explained that we should never squeeze lemon juice on the fish, rather, the lemon should be placed in the pan. Squeezing lemon juice on the fish will "kill" it. Wow.

Very good value at 160 baht.

Unfortunately, that's all us 2 ladies could fit in that night, well we did have some very nice house red wine as well. I guess we'll just have to come back. Would definitely want to have the fish fillet again, but also want to try other dishes to....choices, choices!

The other great thing about Fiore Rosa is the ambience... very casual and relaxed. You have a choice of dining outside or in an air-conditioned room indoors.

Getting there involves driving down a windy road passing through rice fields, which feels almost like an adventure!

Fiore Rosa
Opens: Mon-Sat 5:30pm-9:00pm
(It's a shame they don't open Sundays otherwise I would go quite often!)
Tel: 053 039 221; 085 032 5865

View Fiore Rosa in a larger map

Casa Diverso (Mediterranean and Thai Food)

I was kindly invited by Khun Oh, the ex-manager of Oyori The Grill to come and try out his recently opened Mediterranean and Thai restaurant in Chiang Mai's Old City. Khun Oh and his partner, Chef Lek have a lot of experience in the hospitality industry, having worked in Pattaya, Bangkok and Chiang Mai. Their  dream is to open their own restaurant one day, and Casa Diverso is that dream coming true!

The Casa Diverso is in a lovely spot, just around the corner from The Rim Hotel. There's a large outdoor dining area in the garden, and also a rather stylishly decorated indoors area, giving the restaurant a classy, but still relaxed and warm feel.

I was quite surprised by the menu offering both a large selection of European food and Thai food as I was expecting only European food. My friends and I all opted for European food, but I would think the Thai food would be good as well. I hope I'll have the opportunity to go back soon to try the Thai food and other items on the menu!

Some very nice bread with herbed and garlic butter was served.

A green salad was ordered as an entree....and it was... green!...comprised of various types of nice and crispy lettuce with balsamic dressing.

Bruschetta Mozzarella Cheese was highly recommended by Khun Oh. It was lovely with chunky pieces of tomato, mozzarella cheese, and pesto sauce. The bruschetta was quite large and a little hard to eat gracefully without using the knife and fork. 120 baht. 

For my main course, I chose the Grilled Pork Tenderloin (very, very juicy and tender!), which was topped with a blueberry gravy sauce. The gravy was cooked a couple of days in the traditional way, and the blueberry gave the sauce a slightly sweet tang. The potato wedges were great too! 320 baht.

I didn't try this one, but my friend reported that the slow cooked salmon was very good, served with horseradish sauce, as well as pesto sauce on the side. 340 baht.

I just had a little taste of the Spaghetti Alle Vongole - a very simple pasta with clams, oil, garlic and parsley. It was lovely and fragrant, and quite spicy! Very good as well. I wouldn't mind going back to have this all to myself next time!

For dessert, we shared a rather large Creme Brulee (120 baht) which was spectacularly "torched" in front of us by Khun Oh. It was nice, creamy and smooth, but unfortunately, quite sweet. I mentioned this to Khun Oh, and he was really happy to receive the feedback. He seems very dedicated to providing good service and making customers happy. :-)

We all had a very enjoyable time, and we all thought the food at Casa Diverso was great, and the prices very reasonable. Definitely a place we can go back to, and I'm happy we have another quality addition to the Chiang Mai eating scene!

Casa Diverso
184/1 Rachamankha Rd
Phrasing, Chiang Mai.
(Old City)
Opens daily: 11am-11pm
Tel: 084 174 0699




View Casa Diverso in a larger map

Steak of the Day

Wonderful food at reasonable prices by an ex-Four Seasons chef in a relaxed informal setting. 5 star food at 3 star prices!

Thanks to a recommendation by a friend, I've been to Steak of the Day 3 times since it was opened several months ago, and it seems they're just going from strength to strength. They just seem to be getting better and busier each time I go, and there are new dishes to try each time.

I think their success is mainly due to the great, quality food at reasonable prices, and the location. There is a lack of quality Western restaurants in the area (other than in resorts and hotels). There are a lot of expats living around here, as well as lots of resorts, so Steak of the Day is in a pretty ideal spot.

Ok, on with the food...

New Zealand Tenderloin - It was great! -  Nice and juicy, very well seasoned and presented. Served with lovely silky smooth mashed potatoes (very nice!). 439 baht.

Salmon Steak - . I stole a little bit from grandma, who said it was "Aroi MAK" - "VERY nice", and I agreed. It certainly looked great too.  259 baht

Pork Loin and Mashed Potatoes - this is from Steak of the Day's standard lunch time menu, which also has other items eg. chicken, sausages, etc on it. Very nice and tasty pork and gravy, and the same mashed potatoes and side salad. Fantastic value at 89 baht!

Steak of the Day has other things on the menu as well eg. various salads, hamburgers, pasta, etc. The Caesar Salad is fantastic (highly recommended!), as is the cheese tortilla. 

Even though they can get really busy, I found the service still very warm and friendly. 

Steak of the Day
Mae Rim Plaza, Mae Rim
11am-8pm
Closed on Sundays
Tel: 081-256-7292
https://www.facebook.com/steak.steakoftheday


View Steak of the Day in a larger map

I am Gourmet

Merry Christmas, everyone! Sorry I'm a couple of days late! 

Today's post is about an unexpected Christmas dinner I had. My family don't really celebrate Christmas, but we thought we would pay a second visit to a restaurant recommended by a friend. 

I will have relatives coming to Chiang Mai soon (tomorrow!), and I'm always scratching my head as to where to take visitors. You'd think I'll have a list of restaurants ready in hand, and I do, (and will share with you soon), but it's always nice to put in a mix of new restaurants. 

... So here we were, back at I am Gourmet, to try out other dishes on their menu to see if it makes the cut (to bring visitors). 

I am Gourmet has a selection of good American food, as well as good Thai food...and it's not easy to find a restaurant with good Thai food, and Western food all in one place! 

So, there we were for our Christmas dinner! 

The special of the day was the Turkey Dinner Set. My first ever Turkey Dinner, and I had it in, of all places, Chiang Mai! There were several pieces of roast turkey (very nicely done, I must say), mashed potatoes (very good!), stuffing (I haven't had these for years! ... and it was great!), bean salad, and what I thought was beetroot (LOL), which turned out to be cranberry jelly (I guess), and a plate of salad. The whole thing was great, but my favourite on the plate was the stuffing! 250 baht for the set - very, very good value! 

The next thing we wanted to try from the previous visit were the BBQ Pork Ribs, which were nice and tender, and falling off the bones. The sauce was very tasty as well. You have a choice of chips or salad on the side.  Only 100 baht!

As my 6 year old nephew and 3 year old niece from Australia will be visiting, we were on a look out for something that they'll eat. I am Gourmet has a good selection of Thai dishes at very reasonable prices. Last time we tried the Pad Thai, which was pretty decent. This time, we had the spring rolls, which were very nicely done - nice and crispy, probably too peppery for the kids, but fine for us.

The most astounding thing for me here is the very reasonable prices, particularly of the American dishes eg. Pork or Chicken Burger cost 50 baht plain and 70 baht with cheese, onions and bacon; a reasonably generous serving of green tossed salad cost 35 baht! And as mentioned before,  the BBQ ribs were 100 baht.

The restaurant itself is simple and unpretentious, and it's totally unexpected to have a Western restaurant in a setting more like that of a large Thai noodle's shop. So don't expect anything fancy here! The service is warm and friendly, and the American owner very approachable. 

I am Gourmet

Chiang Mai-Doi Saket Rd (118)

If you come from the city towards Doi Saket,  once you pass the pedestrian bridge at Bohin, slow down and stay in the left lane. I am Gourmet is on the left just before the next U-Turn. 

GPS: 18.851894,99.093761 

(Keep in mind the restaurant wasn't there when Google came around a few years ago!) 

View I am Gourmet in a larger map

Cafe Mini

Mini is certainly the theme of this funky little cafe on Nimmanhaemin Rd - "Cafe Mini". The entrees, and some other dishes, the tables (which are kind of small), but thank goodness the chairs (and mains) are more regular sized!

Although rather small in size, the food at Cafe Mini is very good - beautifully presented, and more importantly, very good quality and tastes great.

The first dish to arrive was the Bruschetta - fresh vine ripened tomato salsa on garlic crouton with parmesan and extra virgin olive oil. The "crouton" was nice and crispy and the tomato salsa lovely and refreshing. 79 baht.

Fish and Chips - another appetizer dish (which means..mini sized), and the presentation totally unexpected! I've never had fish and chips this way before, and it was very good. The chips were nicely fried, and the fish sticks were nice and crispy. Don't worry about the cutleries - just use your hands! Served with tartar sauce and malt vinegar, and tomato ketchup. 99 baht. 

The mains, I was told by the waitress, are "regular" size. It's certainly is a more substantial portion. Here is the House Style Baby Ribs - slow cooked pork spareribs with barbecue sauce, sweet corn and french fries, and as you can see, a side serving of lovely vegies. The ribs were lovely -  tender and  succulent. The sauce was on the sweet side, but nicely flavoured and tasted great. 249 baht. 

The menu also boasted lots of other interesting sounding dishes that I'd love to try...eg. Duck breast - Roasted duck breast served with basil, potatoes, vegetables and cherry orange sauce. The Salmon Steak with saffron lemon cream sauce also sounded pretty good. I guess I'll just have to go back and try other dishes!

I really enjoyed having dinner at Cafe Mini. The servings are quite small, but it is a bit of an experience dining here - funky ambience, friendly staff, good food. 

Cafe Mini
12/2, Soi 9 Nimmanhaemin Rd, Chiang Mai
(Opposite Monkey Club)
Tel: 053 212 468, 088 411 4668



View Cafe Mini in a larger map

Piccola Roma Palace (Italian Restaurant)

Having been opened 22 years and still going strong is a testament to how wonderful Piccola Roma Palace is. I think the restaurant's popularity is due to the very skillful and lovely chef / owner Angelo who comes an greet diners, give recommendations and take orders personally. This combined with excellent food and excellent service, is a sure recipe for success!

The restaurant is lovely, and has a classy yet comfortable feel. The staff are very attentive - I could hardly touch the water bottle on my table - as soon as I reach for it, a waiter comes and takes it off me to refill my glass. This actually makes an amusing game between my friends and I - let's try to touch that water bottle before a waiter comes running...lol...and yes, I would give the service 5 stars.

And the food....I must say it's excellent - excellent in quality and very, very large portions. You might want to consider sharing. The three of us ordered 3 entrees, 2 mains (pasta) and a dessert to share - I felt it was just right, but I don't normally eat a huge amount.  Just let Angelo know (if you want to share) when you order and the waiters will bring everyone extra plates and cutleries.

...And importantly, the pasta here is homemade.

Some of the dishes we had:

Prawn Cocktails - Simply delicious, tasty, oh-so-fresh prawns with lovely creamy sauce just to get the appetite going.

Bruschetta with olive oil, tomato and basil leaf - lovely and refreshing,  but I thought the bread was slightly dry (?). The table next to us ordered Bruschetta with garlic - wow, it was so fragrant and smelt so delicious, I must try it next time! 

Penne Carbonara - I don't usually order carbonara, mainly because for some reason, I have always thought that it's a creamy dish, and I can't eat too much cream....but this one was fantastic. The menu lists the ingredients for the "sauce" as bacon, egg and parmesan cheese, which I guess would be the "original" recipe. I could really taste the parmesan! Check out the chef's recipe here.

The next pasta dish wasn't on the menu. Angelo made it for my friends before and he did it again for us. I think it was Spaghetti with garlic, olive oil, chilli and tomato and prawns - beautiful!

...And of course, we have to leave room for dessert. My friends tell me that the tiramisu here is great. Tonight though, we opted for Profiterole with whipped cream and chocolate sauce to share.  and yes, it was wonderfully decadent. I think it would have been great even just having the cream and chocolate sauce!

The price: It worked out to be about 600-800 baht/person - on the expensive side of the scale for Chaing Mai, but well worth it for the quality.


Piccola Roma Palace 
144 Charoenprathet Rd
(Opposite The Chedi Hotel)
A. Muang, Chiang Mai
Tel: 053 820 297-8
http://www.piccolaromapalace.com

View Piccolo Roma Palace in a larger map