When I was living in Bangkok I lived in a very Thai area called Pinklao. It was a mere 2-minute drive (or a fifteen-minute walk if you could bear the heat!) to the Chao Phraya River, but it was miles away from an MRT (underground) or BTS (sky train) station.
Each trip to central Bangkok would require a painstaking 1-2 hour journey depending on traffic and how many people were using public transportation that day (clue: thousands. Erry’. Damn. Day!) It was a pain in the butt, but a necessary one as although I had some really nice food in my area, it was limited, and the majority of the restaurants I wanted to try were based somewhere in Sukhumvit. Well. Such was the case until Seven Spoons moved locations.
Seven Spoons is a minimalist gastro bar that serves modern dishes influenced by Mediterranean flavours. Their journey started in a location that housed just four tables, however, word spread about their amazing food, good service and use of locally produced and organic ingredients and it wasn’t long until the much-anticipated relocation happened—moving them from four tables to a restored Chinese shophouse; a much bigger establishment. And this relocation was good news for my tastebuds because it put them just ten minutes from my apartment.
I didn’t actually find out about the move until a little while after it happened, but one morning as I was running out of the door to work I found out, squealed a little and when I returned a few hours later, it was to the news that a friend had booked us a table for the following evening.
The smiles, soft lighting and quirky decor that greeted us had us feeling relaxed from the moment we walked in.
We started dinner with cocktails (Mojitos and Singapore Slings) and some freshly baked bread to help the tastebuds along with deciding what to eat.
Grilled chicken, cheddar cheese and smoked chipotle pepper quesadilla (180B)
Soft shrimp tacos with golden mango salsa and cilantro (160B)
We originally decided to share food and get a taste of everything (I absolutely adore Asia’s family-style dining culture. However, after biting into the delicate flavours that were my taco I swiftly changed my mind. Seriously. I’ve never been one to be selfish with food, always willing to let friends sample my culinary goods. But one bite of these tacos had me all “Joey doesn’t share food”
Then for mains, it was 24-hour slow-cooked beef stew (500B).
With meat that was soft and tender, served with a deliciously deep rich tomato and olive sauce that practically sang against the mustard mash potato.
And bacon-wrapped pork filet with blue cheese potatoes and apple mango chutney (340B)
Wondering how good our mains were?
That’s how good!
No matter how stuffed you are (and I was stuffed) there’s always room for dessert, and I couldn’t resist ordering the sea salt and caramel crème brûlée.
Which had just the right amount of salt to both bring out the sweetness in the caramel and balance it, stopping it from being overly sweet.
Seven Spoon’s is a special place, and I think one of the reasons it works so well is because it’s owned by five friends, who are all partners in the business. Each person has separate responsibilities in running Seven Spoons and as a result, they get to concentrate on what they do best. This is reflected not only in the standard by which the restaurant is run but also by the amazing dishes that flow from the kitchen.
Find Seven Spoons at: 22-24 Thanon Chakkraphatdi Phong, Wat Sommanat, Pom Prap Sattru Phai, Bangkok 10100, Thailand
