27/13 Soi Rangnam, Phayathai Rd
B-Resto owner Rawiwan Sukavaj thinks of her one-year-old restaurant as a comfortable living room where her guests can linger over good food. The high-ceilinged eatery is painted in orange and black with touches of brushed steel and large black-and-white photos capturing everyday city life. Music ranges from classy jazz to boy bands of the 90’s like Westlife and O-Town. The ground floor dining room has just added a wood-fired pizza oven, while the second floor offers a more pub-like feel with low-rise tables and tartan cube chairs. If you are afraid to be out of earshot of the helpful staff, fret not. There is a little bell sitting on each table. Rawiwan herself often saunters from table to table serving food, changing plates, and even sprinkling oregano on pizzas. This neighborhood eatery has a surprisingly large menu, so predictably there are some misfires. You won’t be missing much if you skip mieng som-o. Served with lettuce and roasted bread, the pomelo salad was bland with scarce traces of coconut milk. The spaghetti with mushroom ragout came with textbook al dente pasta, but otherwise was not exceptional. And you’d be wise to avoid the tiramisu, which was a damp half-frozen glob. Fortunately, B-Resto has no shortage of dishes that make up for the misfires. Pizzas get an A thanks to their thin crust and generous high quality toppings. Among our favorites are the Napoletana (mozzarella, tomato sauce, anchovy, black olive, garlic, oregano) and Salmon (mozzarella, smoked salmon, tomato sauce) that stood out with subtle spiciness derived from dry chili. A delivery service for all menu items, including pizzas (Mon-Sat 6-11pm, with a B40 charge), is a bonus for the neighborhood. French fare like coq au vin (stewed chicken in red wine) and ratatouille (vegetable stew) are genuine French homestyle comfort food. Succulent and juicy New Zealand mussels served in fresh tomato sauce are also recommended. As for Thai food, B-Resto is aces with pastes. Accompanied by crisp fresh veggies, nam prik ma kham piek (tamarind chili paste) struck a fine balance between sweet and sour. You can’t go wrong with kaeng paa nuea (beef jungle curry) either. The paste used to make the soup was lovingly prepared by grinding together garlic, shallots, galangal, chilies, cilantro and kaffir lime leaves. The result was a pleasantly fiery soup packed with herbal flavors. The thing we love most about B-Resto is its friendly, welcoming atmosphere. And the food is reasonably priced, made from quality ingredients and served in generous portions. A big feast for four will run a bit over B1,000.
