13 June 2008

Thai Orchid Restaurant


As BITO’s due date rapidly approached, many strange happenings had been reported: an unusually bright star was shining over North Perth, a group of shearers were startled by an apparition in fields near Katanning and three exotic kings from the East had been seen wandering Beaufort St with parcels in hand. More importantly, the soon-to-be-grandparents of young Stinky had converged on Perth from all corners of the globe (well, Gippsland and South Perth) to rejoice in the impending birth.


Thus it was with lightness of step and gladness of heart that the Bloggers (plus MOBITO, FOBITO and Mother of Sponge) descended upon the Thai Orchid to celebrate BITO’s potentially last Blogging experience before separating into two distinct beings and undergoing a celestial transformation to become BOOTO (Bun Out Of The Oven).


Not much was known of the Thai Orchid beforehand, other than it was a Gold Plate winner and the waitresses wore gold and silver lacy costumes. This, coupled with the obligatory bling and kitsch, signalled that we were in for an authentic Perth-style Thai experience. And we were not let down:
Ably facilitated by The Brains, the starters consisted of very passable satay sticks, golden bags and fish cakes. Mains were a little late in coming – a minor complaint, but one which carries potentially serious ramifications when coupled with the ever-present galleon of wine that seems to accompany the Bloggers wherever they venture. Accordingly, the main course seemed to meld into a maelstrom of sizzling prawns, chicken and cashew nuts, penang curry and a peculiar dish called the Crying Tiger. (Not sure how many tigers perished in the making of that dish, but it was worth every endangered tear duct.)


Prominent through the wine-induced fog though were the beef massaman and pad thai – two more stalwart Thai accompaniments it would be harder to find, yet the Thai Orchid seemed to take them that extra step. The bottomless steamed rice bowl, served by an attendant, was also of particular note.


Aside from a slight delay in initial menu-presentation and service of main course (which, giving the benefit of the doubt, could well have been intentional as we waited for (guess who) the Deliberator to arrive), the service was friendly and efficient.


In all, a cut above your average Thai.


In summary:


Service: Friendly and no-nonsense (if ever so slightly tardy).


Food: Very tasty, if a little on the mild side.


Ambience: Golden and lacy.


Highlight: The Massaman.


Lowlight: If anything, it didn’t completely blow us away.


Rating: 3.8 golden funbags out of 5


Will we be back? Maybe, maybe not.


Details: Call them on (08) 9473 1300. The bill worked out at about $40 per head with starters and corkage.


Coming up: We may try and backtrack to Inglewood Pizza or Ankara Kebabs prior to, or immediately after, the arrival of Stinky. Otherwise, onwards and upwards towards Walcott!


Thai Orchid on Urbanspoon

4 comments:

Anonymous said...

Congratulations on the arrival (I mean of Stinky not the golden bags)!

Hopefully this results in a more fulfilling Beaufort Street experience for BOOTO now that she can eat delights such as Brie Cheese and Chicken Ceasers.

It is a shame that Thai Orchid has lost its sparkle (other than the faux gold) - I was conversing with people last weekend about how wonderful it used to be, but the head chef has now moved to The King & I Thai Restaurant in Guildford. Research has indicated The King & I has rave reviews, not that it helps anyone after all this is the Beaufort Street Blog not the Guildford Road Gander.

Beaufort Street Bloggers said...

Thanks grrlfrommars, BOOTO has already managed to put away more than a few wheels of blue cheese, as well as a few cheeky glasses of Piper.

Interesting about the chef from Thai Orchid leaving, as a couple of us also remember the golden days of the Thai Orchid with fondness.

Good luck to him in Guildford - with The Brains being a former Guildford resident, and the rest of the Bloggers having more than a soft spot in their heart for the Rose and Crown - we are happy he's gone to such a fine part of the world.

Anonymous said...

Hey just documented Dial a Chopstix building. The fish and chips next door was not getting a good rap either. I think I had a good meal at The Orchid, but I can't remember how long ago.

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