Bouquet of taste, flavours

Popular five-star Thai restaurant runs Flower Fantasia promotion

Le Meridien Dubai
Sukhothai

I didn't think Dubai had any surprises left for me - foodwise that is. I've had croc roast and octopus carpaccio and seaweed soup. But I hadn't eaten flowers. Not until yesterday.
Now I have.

Sukhothai, the very popular Thai restaurant at Le Meridien Village, Le Meridien Dubai, has just begun a "Flower Fantasia" promotion. Until February 24, Chef Chitlada serves a special a la carte menu for lunch and dinner using various edible flowers imported from Thailand.

Want some batter-fried mixed flowers with sweet and sour sauce (Rod Ja Na)? Or some stir-fried lotus stems & prawns in soy sauce (Sai Bua Phad Kung)? What about a bit of stir-fried beef with sesbania flowers in oyster sauce (Neua Phad Dok Cae)? Maybe even a portion of wok-fried morning glory in yellow bean sauce (Phad Phak Boong Fai Dang)?

You can have them at Sukhothai...

We began with some flower-shaped steamed chicken dumplings with a cucumber dip (Kha Mon Chor Moung). Light yet filling, coconut bits adding an extra crunchiness. Our next starter was crispy rice cakes served with a santon dip (Khoa Tang Naa Gra Ton), the topping of slightly-sweet minced chicken delicious.

For our main course we tried a deep-fried whole hammour with Thai herbs and flowers (Pla Gow Chom Suon). The fish was crunchy on the outside, soft and just rightly flaking in the inside. The shredded herbs and flowers added a strong, but pleasant, flavour/taste.

We had the fish with some lovely wok-fried mixed seafood rice with spring onions and tomatoes (Khoa Phad Talay).

We wanted some other seafood and we wanted something from their regular menu. Just to be different. So we had the Kung Kra Tiem Prik. Huge, huge, huge river prawns stir-fried with a delicate garlic sauce. We thought some about the "river" bit of the prawns. Must be specially-bred sweet water prawns, we said. Hope it's good.

It was. In fact, it was fabulous. The sauce - hot, sweet, sour, all amazingly at once - had gone right into the coil of the prawn and the meat was soft and succulent. We loved it.

We also tried some good Gaeng Kiew Wan Gai, the green chicken curry with eggplants and basil leaves.

We'd been eating for an hour and a half. We'd eaten well. But I still wanted a dessert. Thai food, I'd heard, was very healthy. So I thought I'd not eat something too sticky or too sweet and spoil the worthy meal. So I asked for a fresh fruit platter (Phalla Mai Rum).

The prettily-sculpted watermelon, papaya and sweet melon was very good, ripe but not too ripe, sweet and juicy. But my mango was a little sour. So I finished my companion's mango instead.

It was a happy evening. Excellent food, good presentation, generous portions, efficient service. Chef Chitlada came and talked to us about the flowers in her food. Clearly, she knows what she is doing and loves it.

What's more, I was told if I like any of the furniture/fixtures/crockery in the restaurant and want it at home, they can order it for me from Thailand. I'm thinking, I'm thinking... Could I have Chef Chitlada and some of her river prawn instead?