Though we are also an Asian country, the majority of us Lankans don’t always know much about the cultures of the countries to the east of our magical island. That said, we do tend to know about their food.
Last week, Ambassador-Designated of Thailand to Sri Lanka Poj Harnpol together with Cinnamon City Hotels Area Vice President Kamal Munasinghe hosted an intimate reception to celebrate not only Thai culture but also the launch of an all-new menu at the Cinnamon Lakeside’s Royal Thai restaurant.
Thai artistes performed Thai cultural music and performances at the event
An evening of Thai culture
Speaking at the event, Harnpol shared that the Royal Thai Embassy was pleased to be able to partner with the Royal Thai restaurant as a place in Colombo that gave Sri Lankans and foreign travellers alike the chance to be able to experience the flavours and techniques of authentic Thai cuisine.
The evening also featured performances from a group of Thai performers visiting Sri Lanka specifically to show off the vivid colours, fluid movements, and unique musical stylings that make up Thai culture.
Cinnamon City Hotels Area Vice President Kamal Munasinghe also addressed the gathering, sharing that the revamp of Royal Thai’s menu had been handled exclusively by the two new Thai master chefs who had recently joined the Cinnamon City Hotels family; Chef Wirat Narongchai and Chef Paweenthip Lankan. This new menu has been designed by the chefs not just to show off their unique talents, but to provide Royal Thai’s patrons with the very best authentic Thai cuisine.
Munasinghe also explained that this new menu was one part of a larger exercise by Cinnamon City Hotels across all its venues to create new and exciting travel and culinary experiences ahead of the upcoming Christmas season and add value for both its local clients as well as foreign travellers.
The flavours of Thailand
The experience of Royal Thai is always one to behold, and this evening was no exception, from the beauty of the cultural performers to the ambience of the restaurant itself. While the new menu is still being tweaked and improved, we were treated to a huge selection of the dishes on offer, including a tantalising selection of finger food.
One incredibly refreshing dish was the minced pork served in hollowed cucumber, which excellently cut the heaviness of the pork. Of course, the prawn spring rolls were superbly done and the seared spiced scallops were also beautifully cooked to melt-in-your-mouth consistency.
All dishes put forward by the ingenious chefs at Royal Thai were packed with flavours that were most certainly unique to Thai cuisine. From the simpler dishes that are not strictly Thai like the fresh salmon with spicy seafood wasabi sauce to Thai staples like the traditional Phad Thai noodles with seafood. Each dish was perfectly executed and wonderfully flavourful.
The Royal Thai is indeed a royal treat.
PHOTOS PRADEEP DAMBARAGE