SOME dining experiences are just perfect for treating visitors from out of town to. Case in point: the new ‘Thai Gourmet Inspiration’ menu offered at Mode Sathorn Hotel’s chic Thai restaurant, Rice & Chilli.

Available every Friday from 6.30pm-11pm, this ‘all-you-can-eat menu’ takes diners on a gastronomic journey through Thai cuisine and all its vibrant flavours – sour, salty, spicy, sweet – and offers a myriad of appetizers, hot soups, curry, main dishes and desserts, from which guests can order as many as they like. 

THE Michelin Guide may be absent from Thailand but that doesn't mean the kingdom lacks its fair share of 'Destination Restaurants' – establishments whose cuisine and service are of such a high standard, they more than warrant the effort, expense and travel time put in to visit them.

BUILDING on the success of their first aLL Six To Twelve on Soi Langsuan, creative restaurateurs Kade Kulsuri Chaiyanoppakul and Pol Pornpot Kanpetch have now opened a second branch of the restaurant at 39 Boulevard community mall.

SINCE 1984 Sugar Hut Resort & Restaurant has been giving visitors the chance to enjoy luxury accommodation in traditional Thai-style houses which, while they may look ancient, come equipped with all the modern-conveniences a guest could wish for.

Take what appears to be a mattress on the floor, for example. It may not look like the most comfortable of beds, but lie down on it and you’ll find that a whole bed has actually been sunk into the floor. This means that while guests enjoy the illusion that they’re sleeping as they would in a traditional Thai home, they still get the same comfort as they’d find in any top quality hotel.

IF you’re looking for a good lunch or dinner option in the Silom or Sathorn area, look no further than Amontre. For here, top quality food at reasonable prices is the order of the day. 

Developed from the simple wish to “just give people a good time,” Amontre is a trendy-yet-casual restaurant with a real emphasis on good food. Ingredients from the owners’ own organic farm add plenty of freshness to dishes, and the expert hand of Chef Wanchai Chatchotianan, who has over 13 years’ experience cooking in top hotels in Thailand, ensures the international cuisine and fusion fare on offer has plenty of flavour and flair.

Chef Wanchai’s hotel experience shines through in both the taste and presentation of his dishes, which look like they’ve been prepared in the kitchens of a five-star hotel. But the difference here, of course, is that you’re not paying hotel prices.

The flagship restaurant of the flagship hotel in the Thai owned Dusit chain. This place has got to be good and it doesn’t disappoint. The interior is substantial with subdued lighting, heavy chairs and carpeting - definitely not a place for singlets and flip-flops. A large window looks out at a waterfall with outdoor seating surrounding it. The menu consists primarily of Royal Thai cuisine dishes, although less august items are also available. The wine list is excellent and the service impeccable.
Dusit Thani Hotel, Junction Silom and Rama IV Rds, (BTS Saladaeng or MRT Silom),Tel: 02 200 9000

Tasty Thai seafood and succulent steaks are the order of the day at this popular restaurant overlooking Hua Hin Beach

ESTABLISHED 10 years ago as simply a hobby restaurant, Veranda Grill has gone on to become one of Hua Hin’s most popular Thai seafood restaurants and now even operates its own boutique resort, Veranda Lodge, which is located in the verdant gardens behind the premises. 

The restaurant’s success is testament to how doing what you love can reap big rewards, because the restaurant and resort’s owner, Khun Mae, is clearly doing what she loves. Ask her about any dish on her menu and she’ll most likely break into a wide smile and tell you how, after first discovering the recipes when she was a child, she has spent the rest of her life tweaking them to be as good as she can make them.

She certainly isn’t short of fresh ingredients. Veranda Grill is located in the middle of Hua Hin Beach so literally everything she needs is right on her doorstep.