[Travel] Sala Lakorn - Theatrical Dining Experience @ Anantara Riverside Bangkok Resort

Sala Lakorn is a riverside theatre restaurant located within the Anantara Riverside Bangkok Resort. Made reservation for 630pm on my first night in Bangkok, recently. It is not often that one gets to enjoy a cultural performance in a buffet setting.

signage

Staff was friendly and welcoming. Was ushered to the outdoor table where it was pretty near the stage.

solo dining

close to the stage

Was attended to by Rich and she has a motherly vibe. I asked for recommendation on cocktails and she recommended Singapore Sling. Hehe, noOooo.. I wanted something local in Thailand, not local to Singapore! She did mention that it is popular. Keke, ordered a Burapha instead where it uses Issan rum.

Burapha @฿490++

There wasn't many diners at 630pm and the Chef's stations were rather relaxed. So went around the various outdoor stations for the food available. There are more food options in the indoor dining as well.

roast lamb, grilled sausages and sirloin steak

Was disappointed that they didn't have rib cap that was listed in the buffet menu. Instead, there was sirloin and flank instead for the beef options. Most of the order to prepare stations will require the guest to come back after 5 minutes to prepare the food.

roast lamb and sirloin steak

Though the sirloin was medium rare, it was rather chewy. Enjoyed the roasted lamb much more for its tenderness and the absence of the gameyness.

welcome drink of longan tea and a mini canape of crispy seabass

cold towel to freshen up

The longan tea was sweetened and nicely chilled. Nice start to cool down in such a hot humid weather. The beverages included in my buffet package was water and soft drinks. 

scallops in beurre sauce

foie gras in pumpkin sauce

I was pleasantly surprised by the aesthetically pleasing plating for the scallops and foie gras. Unfortunately, the scallops texture was not as expected and while the outer layer was fully cooked, its center was undercooked.

Rich did ask on the reason why I didn't finish the scallops, and gave her the feedback and she asked if I need the Chef to cook another one. I declined.

The foie gras was awesome. Wobbly and flavourful.

foie gras - closer view

The Burapha cocktail was nicely refreshing but one could hardly detect any tamarind flavour in it. It tasted like lime soda with alcohol. But it did help to cut down the richness of the foie gras and the grilled lamb.

closer view of Burapha

The sky was getting darker as it approaches 7pm and there were some flicker of activities near the stage, almost as if signaling that the show was about to begin.

Went back to fetch the grilled prawns that I ordered but the Chef was no where to be found. So, went for the BBQ pork ribs instead as these were already cooked.

grilled BBQ pork ribs, crab omelette, pad thai and pomelo salad

 Soon, the announcement informed that the show would be starting.

show commences with energetic drum beats

The narration of the show is in English, but sometimes the audio was not really audible. Not an issue as I was in awe with the costumes and expressions of the performers.

bravo to all the performers

Somewhere in between of the performances, Petche who had been kindly topping up my drinking water and bringing the soda over, suddenly delivered the plate of 2 grilled river prawns to my table. I was surprised as there was no table number indicated to the Chef when I made my order, so how did he know. 

grilled river prawns with spicy dipping sauce

yums

Thank you to the performers for the lovely performance and to Rich and Petche who had been attentive and kind throughout the dinner.

Do I recommend this? Yes, come and experience Sala Lakorn Theatrical Dining Experience when you're in Bangkok.

I spent ฿2158.54 (~SGD87) for the experience.

Sala Lakorn - Anantara Riverside Bangkok Resort

Address: 257/1-3, Charoen Nakhon Rd, Samrae, Khet Thon Buri, Bangkok 10600, Thailand

Website: https://www.anantara.com/en/riverside-bangkok/restaurants/sala-lakorn

Business Hours:

Daily: 6:00 pm - 10:00 pm

Show starts from 7:00 pm onwards

Meat & Foie Gras Dinner Buffet @ Ellenborough Market Cafe Paradox

One of those rare occasion where we opted for buffet. I think Tracy saw it from some viral post in insta and decided to try. Thanks to Shermaine for making the reservations!

first plate

I was a tad hungry, so went to the counters where there were less people. There were long lines to the foie gras and grilled meats, so I went elsewhere instead.

Took some babi tau yu (soy sauce braised pork), nonya chap chye (braised vegetables), wagyu beef something, pasta bolognese and bendi (blanched okra) paired with sambal belachan.

recommended

The okra was tender and tasted lovely with the chilies. Pasta was good too and I saw the kids at the neighbouring table enjoying the pasta. Braised pork and the cooked wagyu were enjoyable too.

foie gras and rilettes

The Chefs decided to do thin slices of foie gras during that round, so the presentation wasn't great.

grilled pork and lamb chops

grilled chicken

wagyu beef

Thank you Tracy and Shermaine for getting us the grilled meats. Best in the lot was the grilled wagyu. It was more tender than the lamb chops. Chicken breast was firm. The satay sausage was interesting for its yellowish hue and sweet taste.

wagyu beef shoyu ramen

Singapore nonya laksa with prawn

The wagyu beef ramen tasted like sweet shoyu while the nonya laksa broth was good.

kueh pie tee

Thank you Shermaine for constructing the kueh pie tee for us. 

cold seafood - prawn, salmon sashimi

pineapple and rock melon

I liked the taste of sweet pineapple with a dab of wasabi soy sauce. Yums.

hot cross bun with butter

ice-cream

reconstructed

And of course, can't miss the durian pengat (which got replenished). Tasted intense.

durian pengat

Thank you Tracy, Hence, Ivan and Shermaine for the get-together! 

Side note: Do check with staff on which credit card that has the best promo for the buffet before payment as Citibank was the highest at 50% off during the date of visit.

Buffet Info:

Website: https://www.paradoxhotels.com/singapore/dining/ellenborough-market-cafe

Thursday to Sunday & Public Holidays

$98++ per adult | $42++ per child

1st Seating: 6:00 - 8:00PM

2nd Seating: 8:15 - 10:15PM

[Ala-Carte Buffet] Dinner at Tunglok Seafood @ Park Regis

Four of us decided to dine there on a whim. Thanks Wendy for making the reservation! If you're driving then can park at the Park Regis Hotel and get the carpark coupon from the restaurant.

our table

There were two ala-carte buffet packages available; Seafood Buffet menu (Adult: $43.80++) or Deluxe Seafood Buffet menu (Adult: $59.80++). Minimum 2 pax for the buffet and we were in a party of 4. Drinks are not included, and take note that for Chinese tea order at $3 per head, a minimum of 2 pax is required.

Took a brief look at both the buffet menu and the Deluxe menu had 6 single-serve items while the other menu had 3 single-serve items. We opted for the Seafood Buffet menu.

Staff was friendly and brought out the QR code for the table to scan and order for the buffet. Unsure of the portion size, we ordered a few plates to try.

crab meatball (五香蟹枣)

Hmm, crab meatball was smallish and the temperature was lukewarm. Probably these had been left out for quite a while? We did order another round of these later, and its color was visibly darker and the temperature was better.

salmon sashimi (三文鱼刺身)

Salmon sashimi was satisfying, and we had another plate of these.

The jellyfish appetiser was one of my favourite dish here. I think I ate half a bowl!

chilled jellyfish in pomelo sauce (柚子酱凉拌海蜇)

prawn paste chicken (虾酱鸡翅)

Prawn paste chicken wings were decent with its meat still juicy. If you have stomach space, do try the Hot and Sour Soup (酸辣汤). Tangy, spicy and whets the appetite.

The special items (single-serve) arrived 30 minutes into the meal. Fish maw soup was one per pax, scallop was one piece per pax and chili crab is one crab per table.

Braised Shark’s Fin with Fish Maw (红烧鱼鳔翅) - one serving per pax

Steamed Scallop with Garlic and Vermicelli (蒜蓉粉丝蒸扇贝) - one serving per pax

TungLok Chilli Crab with Deep-fried ‘Man Tou’ (辣椒螃蟹伴馒头) - one serving per table

When the staff brought out the Chili Crab, he was saying that this is the "重头戏" or main highlight of the buffet. Keke.

additional photo for the chili crab

The fish maw soup was good with plenty of julienned mushrooms and fish maw. Added black vinegar and pepper for extra kick. The scallop was smallish and the chili crab sauce was good.

tools to eat the chili crab

I was feeling full after the soup. Hahaa.

chicken yakitori (日式串烧鸡)

The chicken yakitori was surprisingly tender. However, I'd prefer if it was grilled slightly longer.

Stir-fried Fish Fillet in Black Bean Sauce (豉汁炒鱼片)

Stir-fried Young Cabbage with Garlic (蒜蓉炒奶白豆苗)

I'm usually a fan of nai bai (milk cabbage) but the version here was the healthier choice. Crunchy vegetable with very little oil and not strongly seasoned. 

Spicy Clam Meat with French Bean (香辣贝肉四季豆)

The french bean dish went in the opposite direction of the young cabbage. I liked the plump french beans but the clam meat probably need a bowl of white rice to go with it.

Smoked Duck Breast with ‘Mala’ Sauce (老干妈烟鸭胸肉)

The smoked duck breast dish, I think the sauce translation may not be accurate as 'lao gan ma' sauce was more of savoury fragrant than 'mala'.

We ordered all the available dessert in the ala-carte buffet menu to try.

Ice-cream Puff (雪糕夹心酥)

Red Bean Soup with Glutinous Rice (红豆紫米露)

Staff was accurate when she informed that the ice-cream puff was currently still frozen. Had to wait for awhile to let the frozen ice-cream soften. We were worried if the red bean soup with glutinous rice would be too 'heavy' after the buffet. Actually no, since there was more 'soup' than the ingredients.

Chilled Herbal Jelly with Honey (养颜龟苓膏)

Chilled Coconut Jelly with Osmanthus Flower (椰汁桂花冻)

close up shot of the osmanthus jelly

The coconut osmanthus jelly dessert, I liked because the osmanthus taste is not too overpowering. Tasted more of coconut pudding instead.

Sesame Glutinous Rice Ball coated with Peanut Crumbs (擂沙汤圆)

The sesame glutinous rice ball was mochi-soft and served warm. Yummy and not too sweet.

Thank you Mien Ta for the treat, and Eric and Wendy for sharing the calories too!

TungLok Seafood (Park Regis by Prince Singapore)

Address: 23 Merchant Rd, Level 1, Singapore 058268

Website: https://www.tunglokseafood.com/en/home

Business Hours:

Monday - Saturday:

Lunch: 11:30 AM - 3:00 PM (Last order: 2:30 PM)

Dinner: 6:00 PM - 10:30 PM (Last order: 10:00 PM)

Sunday & Public Holidays:

Lunch: 11:00 AM - 3:00 PM (Last order: 2:30 PM)

Dinner: 6:00 PM - 10:30 PM (Last order: 10:00 PM)