Busaba Eathai: Snazzy New Summer Menu! | GIFTED

I come across a LOT of food porn in my work as a blogger. I mean, I count myself as one lucky girl. I get to try new things on a regular basis and my phone is always full of beautiful food that I’ve just had to catch a snap of, even if it’s not mine to snap (apologies to friends and family for that one!)

I was lucky enough to be invited along to Busaba Eathai recently to try their new summer menu recently and all I can say is YUM!

Busaba Eathai’s Executive chef, Jude Krit Sangsida, whose special skills include highly detailed fruit and vegetable carving, and who has worked all over the world with his incredible food, has designed a whole new selection of dishes for the summer menu and every single dish I can honestly say, I would happily go in and order again – and probably will do over the next few weeks!

On arrival in the gorgeously set up Chelsea restaurant we were presented with a cocktail menu (it’s a tough life!) with another incredible selection – luckily I had the chance to try a few over the course of the evening (hic!) because just choosing one when they all sound so great was REALLY tricky!

I decided on a Pineapple Khao Cha to start and definitely did not regret it – sweet and fruity with just a little edge that reminds you that it’s actually alcoholic, it took me right to the white beaches of Thailand in one sip – and with a little kick of lemongrass and lime too! 🙂

The staters on the new menu all follow the Busaba Eathai theme when it comes to food – all their food has incredibly vibrant flavours and aromas, with crunchy and fresh textures as well as all feeling very light – perfect as the weather decides to heat up and all we want is something scruffy that isn’t going to make us feel lethargic and clammy for the rest of the evening in the summer heat.

We had their new speciality, which I think is going to become a trademark of Busaba Eathai in about 3 minutes flat, their Bang-Kick Prawns (Picture at the top of this post!) – anyone who has been to Busaba Eathai before will have probably tried their Salt and Pepper Squid, which is their big seller – I’m convinced this may well take over – so so good – they come with a deliciously spicy sweet chilli dressing too – YUM!

We also got the chance to try their “Duck and Pineapple Lettuce” which was refreshingly light and really really tasty – I’m going to try this the next time I have guests over for drinks – simple and fresh and really really scrummy – and you can eat it with your fingers as the duck and pineapple is nestled into baby gem lettuce, perfect for a sharing starter I think!

Alongside our starters we also had Thai Slaw – not being a fan of coleslaw at all, I was intrigued to see what a thai alternative would be, and, having been a little sceptical, I am completely sold! I could eat this by the bucket load – sprinkled with coriander and drizzled in lime, this was nothing like the burger bar staple that we have come to know, it was gorgeous! I may well be emailing for the recipe just to have some for BBQs and just for nibbling on whilst at my desk (it’s very healthy too!)

Moving on to the main courses we were spoilt rotten – we got to try everything. I mean almost literally. There was not chance of us going hungry!

We got to try the most amazing salads – their Thai Summer Beef Salad and Grilled Chicken and Mango salads are both absolutely GORGEOUS (I’m also sitting and writing this on one of the hottest days of the year, its 33 degrees outside and just thinking how amazing it would be if one of these salads and a portion of the thai slaw, and maybe a portion of the bang-kick prawns could appear on my desk please?!)

We also got to try the “Patpong chicken noodles” which were completely delicious and had just the right amount of kick, and the “Fish Curry with Starfruit” which for me was the absolute outstanding dish for the evening – perfectly cooked kingfish fillet with a light sauce with a really good kick and such amazing flavours I can’t even begin to describe them (just try it, ok? I promise you won’t regret it!) all served with jasmine rice – I could honestly eat that every day and not get bored – such unique flavour combinations and absolutely perfect with a nice cool cocktail alongside. I’ll definitely be ordering this again – absolute standout – it might actually be my restaurant standout meal so far in 2016. Maybe I’ll do a “Girl On A Journey Food Award” thing at the end of the year…..could be fun! In which case, this fish curry is winning so far!

Another thing that really impressed me about the food was the prices. Every single new dish on their menu is less that £14. with all the new starters being under £7.50 – incredible value for money with such high quality produce!

To end the evening we were treated to a cocktail making masterclass with cocktail master extraordinaire, Ali Monteiro, who has made cocktails for Lionel Richie and Leonardo Di Caprio.

Ali taught us bloggers how to make the perfect Thai Basil Martini – which I will definitely be making an appearance at any BBQs or drinks do’s I have over the summer!

Ali’s top cocktail tip is also completely brilliant: “Just like the key to a great marriage; a lot of passion and some craziness is always required!” – ummm Ali, will you marry me?! 🙂 (I’m only slightly kidding – I tried quite a few cocktails over the evening and I could totally marry into those recipes!)

All in all an amazing evening with fantastic food and really great company too – I’ll be back!