Dubai

Chef’s Table At Thiptara | And A Romantic Dinner Invite From The Palace Downtown!

June 3, 2013 / 66 Comments

Win a romantic dinner giveaway for a couple from Thiptara 
I’ve been writing on Thailand in my last few posts and I can only say that I’ve never been so inspired on my travels as I have been on this trip. Apart from writing travel posts loaded with images and food thoughts, I wanted to continue this brilliant journey with my readers in Dubai. I just mentioned this once to The Palace Downtown and they immediately organised this romantic dinner giveaway for a couple from Thiptara, the beautiful Thai restaurant serving the most delicious and the most beautiful Thai food. Beautiful is perhaps not the usual adjective used for food. But in Thiptara, there is no other adjective that can be used! Thiptara has been shortlisted as one of the ‘most romantic restaurant’ in Dubai in Time Out Restaurant Awards 2013. It has also won the Time Out Restaurant Awards for the ‘best Thai restaurant’ in 2013, while it had been the winner of the ‘best restaurant’ in 2012. It had also been the first winner of What’s On Awards for the ‘favourite Thai restaurant’ in 2012. To enter the Blog giveaway from such a restaurant, all you got to do, is to read through the post!

Chef’s Table at Thiptara
According to Wiki, a chef’s table is a table located in the kitchen of a restaurant, reserved for VIPs and special guests. Patrons are served a themed tasting menu prepared and served by the head chef. Reserved for VIPs… ahem! I am not a VIP but my companion was definitely a diva – fellow food blogger, FooDiva and the treatment that we were met with while dining at the chef’s table at Thiptara was no less than any VIP treatment. As FooDiva writes about it – A glass-fronted door opens into the kitchen and a cosy chef’s table seating four people, or less if you like. You’re really in the hub of the kitchen here with woks sizzling away, yet the chefs working ever so quietly away at their stations. And if you nab the seat I did, you can even glimpse the magical fountain lake show…worth noting, this is the only restaurant whose sound system is inter-connected to the musical score. Opt for à la carte where you are encouraged to highlight any special requests and dietary restrictions, or just let the chef recommend a Thai feast which is what we did. Here’s what I ate, a rather divine black pepper lobster included, with fellow food blogger Ishita Unblogged.

The magic at Thiptara
Thiptara means ‘Magic at the Water’. That magic definitely lends itself into the kitchen as well. I am a great fan of Thai Cuisine and every time I visit Thiptara, it manages to touch a soft spot in my food radar. Each dish is created as if it’s a work of art – fragrant, aromatic and bursting with Thai flavours. Combining that with brilliant presentation, a trip to the restaurant can only be defined as an ‘experience’. With the majestic dancing fountains and the Burj Khalifa forming a brilliant backdrop to the wall to wall glass windows of the restaurant, the dining room seems to be right there on the water. The bronze artifacts in bronze shining in the glowing torches and the reflections of the fountain on the lake, Thiptara’s ambiance is purely magical. With so many accolades raising one’s dining expectations, its a nice feeling when the expectations are met. Dining inside the kitchen of Thiptara is again a very different experience altogether – it’s like fine dining meeting warm hospitality of a home invitation! The regular menu designed by Chef Chaiwat Kawikitpraphat (above left) can be customised further according to an individual’s taste and liking. The day we were at the chef’s table, Chef Chaiwat was off and the sous chef –  Chef Thani (below) pampered us in a matronly way, personally serving each and every dish to us – almost like a Thai Mama hovering over us. She had prepared a few signature dishes and hoped that ‘we would like it’. Like it? As FooDiva and I tweeted later, almost simultaneously without each others knowledge – the evening surpassed all our expectations and imagination.

The food at the chef’s table
We started off with a Starters Basket consisting of Thod Maan Pla or Thai fish Cakes that have been deep fried and served with a sweet Chilli Sauce; Gai Hor Bai Toey or the deep fried marinated chicken wrapped in Pandan leaves and served with Ginger Soy Sauce; Satay Gai or the grilled Chicken Satay marinated in a yellow curry; Ko Noum Jeehp Song Sagai or the steamed lobster and scallops stuffed in wanton and served with Sesame Soy Sauce. Interestingly, each starter was paired with a different dip. The Starter Basket also had the Som Tum Talay or the popular spicy Green Papaya salad made with fresh seafood, long beans and tomatoes. Next, we had the Tom Yum Goong. This is perhaps the most famous soup, internationally. Made traditionally with prawns that have been flavoured with Thai herbs, lime juice and mushroom (FooDiva’s came without the mushroom as per her liking), the soup had all the spices and the perfect combination of sweet and sour taste that was needed to heighten the food drama of the evening. And the drama was calmed down by the home made lemon sorbet to cleanse our palettes before the next round of Thai dishes engulfed us.

Talking of Tom Yums, I’ve just come back from Krabi province in South Thailand, where the Tom Yum has originated… so I’m now officially an expert Tom Yum taster, having tasted the original Tom Yum in the land of Tom Yum!

Following on the footsteps of the Starters, the Main Course too, was stunning. The Geang Kiew Wan Gai (second pic below) or the Chicken green curry with baby eggplants and sweet basil leaves, is one of the signature dishes of Thiptara. Along with this, the Ped Nam Ma Kam (below) or the barbequed Duck Breast cooked in a sour chilli sauce and served with crispy fried onion rings, is another signature dish that I’ve tasted before at Thiptara. Our quota of greens was diligently met with the Pad Pak Ruam Mit – a delicious dish prepared with seasonal mixed vegetables cooked in Oyster sauce and fried garlic. But the show-stealer was definitely the Goong Mung Korn Pad Grappao or the Black Pepper Lobster (above) – an exquisite presentation combined with an amazing taste. The sweet sign off came with a Dessert platter consisting of fresh fruits – Mangoes, Rambutans, Pineapples, Watermelons and some traditional Thai desserts like the Sang kha ya or the Thai Custard Cake, the Foi Thong which is a dessert made with egg yolk and the Khanom chan  made with Pandan-flavoured sticky rice flour mixed with coconut milk.

Thiptara in The Palace Downtown – Thai fine-dining restaurant 
Tel: +9714 888 3444 or Email: dine@theaddress.com
For more info: Facebook; Twitter or the restaurant Page in the hotel website

For the Chef’s table, the price is Dhs 1500/couple with a full set menu (starter, soup, main course and dessert)
including 1 bottle of house wine (red/white), water and soft drinks. Or, the guest may choose from the a la carté menu or can request the chef to customise a special menu.

Click here to enter the Blog Giveaway

A couple can win an invite for a romantic dinner in Thiptara (inclusive of soft beverages only). Friends on referral who join the contest must mention you (referrals could get you an extra point!). The contest closes Friday, 14th June, 2103. Facebook likes, follows on Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest earn you points. If you are already following me, there are other ways to earn points (for example leaving comments on this blogpost as well as my other blogposts on Thailand). Please don’t un-follow me and then follow me again just to earn points – it really hurts me – after all, I do take a lot of effort in my blog just so that you have a good time reading my blog. And also, I do have a list of all my readers with me already!

My other posts on Thailand:
• Ruen Mai Restaurant In Krabi | A Tantalising First Experience Of Thai Food In Thailand!
• Koh Klang in Krabi, Thailand | A Photo Essay of An Island Life
• Baan Ma-Yhing Restaurant In The Fishermen’s Village | Recipe of Thai Red Curry As We Cook ‘fresh catch’ Baramundi!
• Kotung Restaurant in Krabi Town | A Taste of Thai Chinese
• Kayaking, Caves, Krabi Sightseeing… And Finally A Thai Spa!
• Island Hopping And Then Hong Island… Here I Witnessed God!

Recently, I had visited the Krabi region in Thailand on an invite from Tourism Authorities of Thailand Middle East. I was joined by bloggers and media personnel from different countries in Europe. I have been sharing about my experiences through Twitter, Instagram and a lot of write ups. I would love to know which Thailand post of mine has been your favourite? Do leave a comment on the post as well as this post (yes, it earns you points). Hoping that this blog giveaway and my blog posts will provide you with as much inspiration as I have got, while you continue to travel with me in my blogging journey!

Unblogging it all… Ishita

Disclaimer: The opinions stated here are my own and are independent of the dinner giveaway, kind courtesy of The Palace Downtown. Neither is there any collaboration between The Palace Downtown and the Tourism Authorities of Thailand Middle East. I hope you enjoy reading the posts with lot of visuals. Please do not use any material from this post. You can see more pictures of my travel and food journey here.

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