[Travel] In the Heart of Bangkok - Dinner at NAMA Japanese and Seafood Buffet @ Centara Grand Bangkok Convention Centre Central World

Made reservation for 7pm but traffic was bad so we reached around 730pm instead. Just head on up to level 24 for the buffet.

signage

Let the staff at the counter know which package for all the pax in your group. There were two price range to choose from, and we decided to go for the ฿999 package. 

Made payment and staff led the way to our table. The place was quite big and plenty of diners that night.

There's a QR code to scan for the buffet menu but none of us could connect to it. Asked the staff for help and turned out, we needed to connect to their wifi. So we practically handed over our phone to the helpful staff to help key in the wifi password. 

Even so, not sure why but only one out of three mobile phones were able to connect to the buffet ordering platform. So I was the de-facto 'orderer'.

Our package came with one-time order of Japanese oysters (3 pieces) with toppings, grilled wagyu cubes with foie gras and some sushi (3 pieces).

Japanese oysters (one-time)

steak cubes with foie gras (one-time)

Then, the rest of the stuffs came from the buffet. Besides the online menu, one could walk around to see the items already available at the counter for diners to take. For example, the deep fried section for fried dumplings, deep fried beef etc. Non-alcoholic drinks are included and one could just go  towards the drink counter to fetch your own glass and ice-cubes, and self-serve from the machines. There's milo, soda such as fanta grape, yuzu drink etc. 

Cold seafood section is also available with the usual oysters, prawns, mussels but I was too busy ordering from the online menu to walk around. 

deep fried stuffs

marinated seafood (scallops, salmon, prawns)

wagyu beef sushi

duck liver sushi?

beef sushi

beef steak

hamachi and salmon belly sashimi

Loved the sashimi here. Thick cut and fresh. 

hotate, anago and unagi sushi

I love hotate

Service was quick and the food arrived pretty quickly once you've successfully sent it to the kitchen. If your order didn't arrive, most likely it is because the order has yet to be confirmed to send to kitchen.

aburi sushi

grilled river prawns

The staff who helped with the initial wifi setup, came back to our table and showed me her phone. Turns out, she used the translation app on her phone to inform us the location of the dessert counter. So sweet of her!

tamago that was too sweet

unagi

honeydew

The dessert that one could take directly are mostly the cheesecakes. I only tried one type as the stomach ran out of space.

cheesecake

raindrop cake (order through the online app)

Looking back at the photos, I realised that I only ate a fraction of what I photographed. Mainly because the journey back to the hotel would take about 1 hour (due to the jam) and didn't want to risk an upset tummy.

Overall, good value and there's plenty of variety to satisfy Japanese food cravings. Thank you to the staff whose help had made our dining experience enjoyable, especially for first-timers to Nama.

NAMA Japanese and Seafood Buffet

Address: 24th floor Centara Grand and Bangkok Convention Centre, 999/99 Rama I Rd, Khwaeng Pathum Wan, Pathum Wan, Bangkok 10330, Thailand

Website: https://www.facebook.com/NAMAJapaneseandSeafoodBuffet/

Business Hours:

Daily: 11 am–10 pm

[Tasting] Omakase Seasonal Lunch Course @ Monte Risaia

Been wanting to try exquisite omakase using premium and seasonal ingredients? 

Monte Risaia offers Omakase Seasonal Lunch Course for just $79++ per pax. Definitely good value for a lovely 5-course omakase treat! 

The place is cosy and tends to get very busy hence, recommend to make your reservations to avoid disappointment. Do come early around 12pm for lunch.

As in omakase, the item served would depend on season and availability on your day of visit. Below are a list of what I tried recently in Dec 2021.

Staff would check with the guests for their dietary restrictions, before commencement of the meal.

Omakase Seasonal Lunch (5-course)

Engawa (flounder fin) fillet, wrapped with Japanese eggplant and topped with Mozzarella cheese and Italian anchovy butter sauce

The first dish was delightful and comforting. There were layers of soft, smooth texture of the engawa, sweetness from the onions, juicyness from the eggplant (initially I thought it tasted like bittergourd!), topped with salty-creamy mozzarella and plenty of that wonderful tasting, anchovies butter sauce/broth. Just give me some bread to mop up the deliciousness.

Speaking of which, Monte Risaia do have its own housemade foccacia that one could order separately. Oooh, I fancy this because of its cake-like bread texture, plus it goes really well with the anchovies butter sauce.

housemade foccacia (not part of omakase)

The first course was so tasty that one couldn't help but to keep on eating. The plate was polished off pretty quickly.

Next course, was lobster bisque. Now, what I didn't expect, was it to be served inside a parchment paper. So interesting!

Lobster Bisque with Japanese Scallop and Minced Shrimp

hi there

lovely Japanese Lobster Bisque

The flavours of the Japanese Lobster Bisque was pronounced, and each bite had plenty of those sweet scallops and shrimps. Nice.

Next, was the Triple Dashi pasta dish. Lovely shiso fragrance from this dish. Sauce was a good balance of tangy and sweetness. Had enjoyed the previous version of this signature dish back in 2019, and am  loving this version too!

Triple Dashi

A meat dish was served for the next course. We had duck. 

The texture of the Irish duck was expectedly good; firm but not tough. Must try with the plum crystal sauce. Basically horseradish, plum and there is a surprise element in it. A good kind of 'crystal' surprise that adds to overall enjoyment of the dish.

Irish Olive Fed Duck served with Grilled Endive paired with Balsamic Reduction and Plum Crystal Sauce

Almost too quickly, we have reached the last course; dessert. Okinawa black sugar gelato with fresh fruits such as blueberry, raspberry and gooseberry. Berry good.

Fresh Fruits with Okinawa Black Sugar Gelato

The portion was good for the omakase lunch. Do come early to enjoy all the 5 dishes in the Omakase Seasonal Lunch Course at a comfortable pace.

Kudos and thank you to Chef Taizo, Chef Kent and team as all the dishes in the Omakase Seasonal Lunch Course were superbly tasty and comforting. Pronounced flavours that hits all the right spots.  Special mention of Alby, for being such a delightful presence.

Thank you Jennifer (Jennifer Yeo Consultancy) for the invite, and Monte Risaia for hosting the lunch.

Monte Risaia

Address: 59 Duxton Rd, Singapore 089523

Contact: 6970 0067

Reservation: https://www.chope.co/singapore-restaurants/restaurant/monte-risaia

Business Hours:

Mon to Sat : 12–2:30pm, 5–10:30pm

Closed on Sundays.