Pass the Pad Thai: Benjarong Royal Thai Restaurant

From top left, clockwise
Miang Takhrai Krathong Thong, Orchid Setting
Thua Dum, Thai Jasmine Rice

The stiff, starched linen. The tasteful use of purple orchids on tabletops and garnishes. The soft, soothing sound of traditional Thai music played on a khim (dulcimer) by an actual Thai musician in a corner. The fine benjarong (hand-painted bone china; from which this restaurant is also named after). All red flags signaling a meal here probably isn’t going to be too budget-friendly.

Benjarong Royal Thai Restaurant is the Thai restaurant of the Dusit Thani Manila which specializes in Royal Thai cuisine. This regional style of cooking originates from Central Thailand and was only meant for royal court and families but has been made available of late to the public. Basically it’s a mix of the fiery Northern cuisine and the South’s profuse use of coconut milk. And while Thai home-style cooking focuses on the balance of the taste of food itself, Royal Thai cuisine basically ups it a little with emphasis on aesthetics as well.

However I wasn’t here for all the frou-frou. I’d be happy to eat with my hands, seated over gutters as long as the food was worth it. This place just happens to be the place to get proper Thai food when in Manila. True there are a handful of good ones in the Makati/Taguig area alone. But I feel Benjarong still gives the best value amidst the competition in terms of the quality, portions and uncompromising authenticity of ingredients and preparation. And yes, the food tastes great. As if I were in a “proper” restaurant back in Bangkok.

For this lunch we had Miang Takhrai Krathong Thong to start. Tuna, lemongrass, dried shrimp, shallots, lemon and chili in crisp pastry cups. Flavorful, aromatic with just that tiny bit of heat to kick-start the palate. Almost too pretty to eat.

From top left, clockwise
Table Setting, Gaeng Phed Moo
Phad Phak Kana Pla Kem, Tom Yum Talay

Just as with Filipino meals, wherein the soup and other viands are eaten with rice at the same time, our mains arrive altogether. We had Tom Yum Talay perfectly cooked mixed seafood in a pleasantly mild sour broth. The Phad Phak Kana Pla Kem, or wok-fried but still crunchy kailan with flaked fried salted fish, is a Chinese influenced dish with a smoky flavor imparted by the high heat cooking. The Gaeng Phed Moo or red pork curry with coconut milk was actually a second choice after the unavailable massaman beef curry (a "dry" red curry) but was excellent as well. The gravy alone was good enough to eat spooned over fragrant jasmine rice. The key to ordering Thai food is to balance out tastes across several dishes; textures from crispy to creamy, flavors ranging from delicate to very spicy. Not all Thai dishes are fiery as some people fear. But given I tend go overboard with the Phrik Nam Pla (condiment made of fish sauce, chili, garlic & manao) its pretty normal for my tongue to be throbbing from the chili burn after a good Thai meal. Dessert always provides the solution.

The fat found in coconut cream helps moderate and dilute the capsaicin from the chilies and cool sugar solutions provide relief from the burn. Not surprising that a number of Thai desserts come in form of cool or cold milky liquids. The Sago Thua Dum (pandan scented sago and sweet black beans in coconut milk) provided some tasty reprieve. The sweet sticky soup coated the mouth; the chewy sago and tender beans provided the needed distraction. After finishing my serving the heat was not a problem any more. Yet another satisfying meal at Benjarong.

Definitely not the type of place to have meals at regularly but I’ve been to one too many Thai restaurants (or those that try to pass themselves off as one) in the city and have been left with a broken heart AND with a thinner wallet just the same. Not to say I’m unwilling to try other Thai restaurants that’ll come up but if I were to reward myself or celebrate a special occasion I wouldn’t think twice coming here because I know the experience would be worth it.

Now if only a price friendlier Isaan (Northern Thai) style grill would open here.

Benjarong Royal Thai Restaurant
Mezzanine Level
Dusit Thani Hotel
Ayala Center, Makati City
Tel: (02) 867 3333 ext. 3351

Table Conversation: The Never Ending Discussion

from top left, clockwise

Caruz's Guinataang Kuhol, Adarna's Bicol Express,
Vigan Longanisa and Lechon na Baboy

This is a question that Pinoy foodies have been asking for decades.

In an article in the Los Angeles Times, the question was asked again. Despite having some very talented Filipino chefs running and, in some cases, owning prominent Los Angeles restaurants, Filipino cuisine rarely finds itself on the American gastronomic radar. Why hasn't Filipino cuisine found popularity as a world cuisine?

This article made me both proud and depressed. It is amazing to read about chefs of Filipino heritage who are well established in the American food scene. Yet I get the sense that as much as we claim to love our food, we almost seem embarrassed to share the delights of our cuisine with the rest of the world.

To read the full article, please click here.

Much thanks to Erik Lacson and Anonymous Paul for the photographs

On the Table: Chef Godfrey Laforteza

Chef Godfrey Laforteza is the executive chef of The Establishment, the new chi-chi entertainment venue in Fort Bonifacio Global City. While he may have earned his chef’s whites working with the likes of Chef Jean Georges Vongerichten and Chef Nobu Matsuhisa, he credits two important women with starting him down the path of gastronomic adventure: his mother and his wife of eight years, actor Carla Guevara. "[While living in New York], my wife was working as a barista for a café. When she gave birth, I took her place. Then, I was transferred to the kitchen to help with the prep work. I became good friends with the chef and he taught me the basics. I decided that I wanted to take up the culinary arts…the rest, as they say, is history.” An avid car enthusiast and golfer, this former theater performer is also the proud father of two wonderful children, Basil and Sophia.

Who in your life has influenced your cooking the most?

My wife, Carla Guevara-Laforteza, who taught me how to cook.

Which book has had the biggest impact?

The first book of Nobu Matsuhisa.

What was your first job in the food business?

La Boulangeria in New York. I worked as a food delivery guy and a dishwasher.

What is your inspiration for the menus of restaurants of The Establishment?

After nine years of being away from the Philippines working as a chef for established restaurants and hotels in the United States (and some parts of Asia) as well as a personal chef to some high-profile names in the USA, Hong Kong, Jakarta and the Philippines, I've compiled all that I've learned and put it into one menu.

What is your favorite item on the your menu?

Pan Seared Beef with Lychee Truffle Sauce.

Which restaurant meal (foreign or local) do you remember the most?

Jean Georges at the Trump Tower, New York

Besides your own place, what's your favorite restaurant in Manila?

Sala Bistro

What junk food do you love?

Gummy Bears. Love them.

Is there a food you just can't seem to enjoy?

Ox brains. Any animal brain. I hate it.

Just between us, what are your future plans?

Secret.

The Establishment
Unit A, The Fort Entertainment Complex
26th Street corner 5th Avenue
Fort Bonifacio, Global City,
Taguig
Tel: (02) 844 6364

Pass the Pad Thai: AzuThai

Crispy Duck Salad

Like many of you out there in the interweb, I love Thai food.

Maybe it is the levels of balanced tastes in every dish–the mellow interplay of the sweet with the sour and the dramatic tug-of-war between the salt and spice. Or maybe it the sensitive to textures–the contrasting mouth feel of well-braised softness of some dishes and the fresh crispy crunch of fresh herbage and greens of others. On the surface, Thai cuisine seems so simple and yet is very much complex.

But for the ever more cosmopolitan Pinoy palate, it is all about the comforting deliciousness that we crave. Traditional Thai food has become such a staple of Manila's dining scene that it is almost synonymous with our own homegrown comfort dishes. How else could one possibly explain the growing number of Thai restaurants? Some Thai restaurants fade away but there always seems to be another one sprouting up to take its place.

Not all of these restaurants are created equal. Some are the proverbial hole-in-the-wall eateries. Others are sadly soulless fast food chains. And there are exceptional few that elevate what is essentially Thai home cooking to almost the levels of fine dining.

That is exactly what AzuThai hopes to bring to the table.

Fresh Thai Spring Rolls

Opened by the brother-sister restaurant super duo of Malu and Chef J Gamboa, AzuThai pays homage to home spun dishes of any northern Thai household by sprucing up the look of each dish and yet maintaining the flavors and textures we have all come know and love.

Upon the gracious recommendation of our server, we start our meal with a perennial AzuThai favorite, the Poh Pia Paksot or Fresh Thai Spring Rolls (P195). A combination of garden green, slices of tomatoes and onions and traditional-used thai herbs is tightly wrapped in rice paper. While the sliced spring roll itself is fresh and layered with texture, it is somewhat bland in undressed salad fashion. But what really brings this dish to life is the accompanying dipping sauce of peanuts and tamarind. The sweet/sour sauce coupled with bitter astringent qualities of the spring rolls make for a balanced and appetizing introduction.

In keeping with our resolution of eating healthier this year, we decide to try to the Yam Ped Grob or Crispy Duck Salad (P325). Thin slices of duck are deep-fried to a chip-like consistency and mixed with savory mixture of tomatoes wedges, rings of red onions, slices of spring onions, and chilis, salad green and herbs. To spice things up a notch, a light dressing of tarmarind and chili are added to the mix. The first initial mouthfuls are a spicy delight with the mixture of contrasting tastes and textures playing a symphony in my mouth. But midway through the meal, the heat of red chilis slightly overwhelmed my taste buds to the point where I was tasting less and just sweating more. (I realize it was my fault. Against the recommendation of my server, I asked for a spicy level normally reserved for chili-proof Thais.)

I need to cool things down a bit. Served with a fragrant bowl of steaming jasmine rice and made with coconut milk, I was hoping that the Massaman Gaeh or Massaman Lamb Curry (P395) would help cool down some of the burn. Slowly braised in a light curry, cubes of tender lamb are cooked with a healthy serving of shallots, potatoes and peanuts. This curry was simply delectable. Even when we had consumed ever bit of lamb, potato and peanut, I could not help myself from drizzling the curry gravy over my rice, savoring every last drop of goodness on each grain. Hands down, to eat this dish again is enough reason to return to AzuThai.

Massaman Lamb Curry

On perception alone, I am always skeptical of restaurants like AzuThai that take traditional cuisines and try to jazz it up with non-traditional plating and/or cooking techniques. Most restaurants fail at this horribly while only a precious few seem to get this mix of old and new in harmonious balance. AzuThai is happily part of the latter.

I ended my meal filled with a sense of comfort as if I had been wrapped in warm blanket, ready for an afternoon nap.

AzuThai
Ground Floor
Milky Way Building
900 A Arnaiz Avenue (Pasay Road)
Tel: (02) 817 6252 or (02) 813 0671