We miss Thai food having moved here from London, where it used to feature in our diet at least once per week. We heard there was a Thai restaurant in posh / chavvy Vilamoura (delete according to your personal view.)
We set off to find it and were surprised it was not in the central marina area. For the first time ever, one of the numerous tourists reps who line the streets of Vilamoura achieved a purpose other than getting in my way, and pointed us in the right direction.
I am going to stop being snarky about Vilamoura now and get on with the review.
We were disappointed on arriving as the restaurant didn’t appear to have outside space and one look at the menu told us we were in for an expensive night….and I do MEAN expensive. If we hadn’t driven for an hour to get here we probably would have changed our minds.
We were delighted then, when we went in to find everyone eating on a huge outdoor terrace. Everything here is very upscale. Great big, expensive outdoor furniture, and huge gaps
Thai restaurant in Vilamoura
between the tables giving an opulent feel.
The service was impeccable. It would be fair to say so it should be at the price, but credit is due here – it was slick and flawless.
The food was also absolutely top notch. Friends who have done “the travelling thing” rave about authentic Thai food – I have no frame of reference having never visited Thailand, but this was a cut above the best Thai I have had in London, which boasts some seriously good options.
Satay chicken, which can so often be dry and distinctly ordinary was a treat, succulent and with a sauce which we ended up spooning from the dish. Pad Thai was citrusy, crunchy and hot all at the same time, just as it should be, and we were delighted that our red curry was served authentic-hot rather than tourist hot, as you tend to find in the local Indian restaurants.
It was all extremely good…seriously stand-out good. Unfortunately the pricing puts it firmly into the special treats category, meaning we won’t be visiting very often. We are talking twice as much as an upmarket Thai restaurant in London. Sticking to beers instead of pricey wine, along with a couple of soft drinks and no desserts, we were still looking at 50 euros each – which in a country where a 10 euro three course meal with wine is a genuine reality is a LOT of money.
So, wonderful though it is, other than for very special occasions we will have to leave the simply named “Thai,” for the moneyed tourists….and there are plenty of them in Vilamoura.
There is no good reason why Thai food should be any more expensive than Chinese…and it is easy to prepare & quickly served. The priciness may well have to do with the ‘opulence’ you describe, the costs which they are trying to recoup ASAP.
Fortunately, I do not know Vilamoura but your description could have been that of any Spanish Costa complete with dodgy expat community.
No Thai eatery up here…but none of the other crap either.
Just read your review, and am really glad you enjoyed the food as I think I was the one who orginally recommended it to you when you were missing Thai food from London. I had forgotten it was pricey, but thats Villamoura for you !
We have two local Thais in our neighbourhood in East London and one is expensive with a never changing limited menu and the other is about half the price, with a much better menu, higher quality of food and they will cook the food to exactly the way you want it.
Speaking of opuluent surroundings, did you ever go to the Blue elephant in Fulham? Imagine how pricey Villamoura would be if they employed a thai lady just to sit out in the middle of an indoor lake carving fruit!
Saz
Hi Saz,
Thank you for the recommendation. We did really enjoy it but with our frequent trips to London we are more likely to indulge our Thai craving whilst there and for less money in the future. I have been experimenting a bit with cooking Thai food lately with good results.
I’ve not been to the Blue Elephant but I can be spotted in Thai Square in Putney on occasion! My very favourite Thai in London was a tiny little dingy place between Victoria and Pimlico with a solitary Thai lady both serving and cooking, sadly not there any more
Best wishes, B
[...] 2. Lime leaves and lemon grass (once again we can enjoy Thai food without needing a mortgage to eat at the wonderful, but expensive Thai restaurant in Vilamoura). [...]