Reflections

Hotel restaurants never have quite the personality of standalones. But when the hotel is a collection of rooms individually designed by different Thai artists, you get a restaurant with a Pepto Bismol meets wacky chandeliers meets global trash chic décor; different, sure, but mostly messy and pointless. (How we miss their last location, by the pool.) As for the menu, it is downright baan baan. For starters, the captain recommends the mixed plate: oily spring rolls and chicken wings, the Reflections sausage (a hotdog with some chilis stuffed inside) and, the only saving grace, flavorful stir-fried fish maw with bean sprouts. The steamed “ruby fish” (plaa tabtim) in lime sauce, a fresh whole fish with a tender flesh, is basking in an addictive saap soup that comes with free refills. The tom yum goong naam sai is just as uncompromising and satisfying, but we could have used a bit more fresh chilis. If only these delicious soups were the kitchen’s standard, but despite a full page of “eryngii” mushroom dishes (King Trumpets), the ones we had on a recent visit, served with Chinese broccoli stir-fried in oyster sauce were unforgivably inconsistent: some mushrooms were fresh, some a sour mistake, some of the Chinese broccoli sprouts were perfectly crispy, others were like plywood. It’s a testament to the chef’s integrity that they serve authentic Thai food to a crowd of budget travelers but we see a lot of room for improvement. Thai desserts (no pastries on our last visit, the fridge was broken) were either suffering from the oxidized taste of something that’s been left in the freezer too long or downright salty. Despite a completely clueless waitress, the diligent captain—although not particularly erudite when it came to her menu—was friendly and attentive. But really, if you want an alternative dining experience, do you want Westlife playing in the background, a TV tuned to a soap in one corner and an abandoned counter and Coca-Cola fridge in another? Stick to visiting Reflections’ delightfully kitschy shop and, if you must stick around, order from the barman’s 50-item long cocktail list. No corkage.