For musical food?
Symphony Restaurant used to be called Symphony Brasserie,
but that has changed. It is now much more of a restaurant than a brasserie,
and there has been a slow evolution, rather than revolution, in the 18
months of its existence. It has found its place in the line-up of Pattaya
dining with owner Hugh Millar saying, “We offer fine food for fine people.”
It had been over 12 months since our last review, so we were interested to
see what had been happening with Symphony. Externally the restaurant seems
much the same, fitting an amazing number of tables into the single
shop-house premises, plus a kitchen and a bar in the far corner! The
restaurant has understated quality in furnishings, napery and glasses, and
the ambience is inviting.
The
menu is comprehensive, without being extensive, and begins with 12 hot and
cold appetizers ranging in price between B. 190 (crepe stuffed with roasted
vegetables and cream cheese) to B. 290 (traditional smoked salmon). These
are followed by five soups (B. 160-180) and includes a country beef and
vegetable, which has Scottish forebears (as does Hugh Millar).
Salads and pastas are followed by a page of grills, with all meats imported
Australian or New Zealand. 250 gm portions are around B. 600-700 with a 500
gm Australian T-bone or prime rib steak at B. 950.
These are followed by five seafood dishes (B. 310-590) and an interesting
lamb fillet with port and red currant reduction (B. 550), or the traditional
slow cooked lamb shank at B. 360. There is also another page with poultry
and pork. The chicken breast Symphony served with crabmeat and white wine
and prawn sauce (B. 360) is apparently very popular, according to Hugh.
As most better restaurants these days, Symphony also offers a Thai menu
selection, with most choices under B. 200.
There is in addition a B. 690 special set menu, and this is a rotating
feature. On our evening it encompassed four courses including a sliced
fillet steak with caramelized shallots and red wine sauce.
The wine list covers both New and Old worlds, with most in the B. 1,000 to
B. 2,500 region. There are also two house wines emanating from Argentina and
Australia. Both of these can be purchased by the glass, or carafe or by the
bottle. We sampled both and chose the Australian chardonnay.
We began with the seared scallops on a lemongrass skewer for me, which was
excellent, with the hint of sesame from the oil making this an interesting
dish. Madame went for the medley of mushroom soup, and this was very good.
Not the usual bland “cream of” mushroom, but several styles of mushroom
producing a soup that was granular in texture and very tasty.
For mains, Madame chose the steamed red snapper, while I also went for
seafood with the pan-fried snow fish. The snapper comes with an aromatic
herb and white wine sauce. The fish had been steamed correctly and retained
its moistness and flavor, and was very enjoyable, and at B. 310 quite
inexpensive.
The snow fish came with mashed potatoes (my choice from the four styles
available) and sat on a mustard-dill sauce, which complemented the juicy
snow fish, without overpowering it. At B. 590 a very reasonable price for a
dish which came in a very large portion.
We left Symphony feeling well fed on “fine food” and indeed felt like “fine
people” as we had been well looked after by the omnipresent Hugh Millar and
his attentive staff. It is not “fine dining” in the grand manner, but very
pleasant dining from a well thought out menu. The addition of the Special
Set Menu is a good idea, and at B. 690 is inexpensive. It is worth the
perils of parking to dine at Symphony, and you don’t need to bring your own
music! Recommended. (And try the superb snow fish!)
Symphony Restaurant, Second Road between Soi 8 and Soi 7. Open evenings only
(5 p.m. until 11 p.m.) and booking recommended. Telephone 038 420 939.
On-street parking, so grab the first available space as you approach Soi 9,
or continue on and park in Tops supermarket.
