I am sure most of the readers will remember Victor Kiam as the spokesperson for the Remington shaver. Kiam’s famous catchphrase, “I liked the shaver so much, I bought the company”, made him famous and did wonders for Remington sales.
I was reminded of this when speaking with Yupin Marsh and her husband who enjoyed the food so much at Oley’s restaurant in the Jomtien complex that they bought the restaurant! Now just called Yupins after its owner, it is in the first soi in the Complex and very easy to find.
The restaurant is in a single shophouse, and the dining area is divided in two. Air-conditioned inside and open air (but covered) outside. We chose the inner area which sports striking décor complete with purple, high backed chairs.
I was taken by the restaurant, before even looking at the menu or sampling the food when the waiter brought sea salt and pepper grinders to the table. Sea salt is just so much better than the refined product.
The wine list is mainly New World with all of the wines under B. 1,000. We chose the Bushman’s Gully Chardonnay and it was excellent drinking.
The menu is comprehensive and not expensive and begins with a set dishes offer of three courses for B. 350. Each course has five choices including items such as grilled red snapper with saffron sauce served with grilled vegetables and pesto.
The a la carte menu has small thumbnail photographs as well as explanations, and is something that too many restaurants choose to ignore. Not every potential customer can read English! Well done Yupin!
Amongst the starters is a curried pumpkin soup with fresh cream and chopped coriander (B. 120) and a smoked salmon salad with balsamic vinaigrette (B. 140).
There are 16 main courses with favorites such as a T-bone steak with fried potatoes (B. 290) and medallions of pork fillet with green apple sauce with vegetables or french-fries (B. 250).
Having taken over an existing restaurant, Yupin very wisely has not slashed the menu, but is gradually introducing weekly ‘specials’, some of which will be added to the main menu later. Examples of these, on our week was an avocado salad with raspberry jus and balsamic dressing (B. 150) and sizzling prawns in garlic butter with lots of French bread (B. 180).
In addition there were three desserts with the crème brulee con amore (amaretto) and flambéed with Sambuca (B. 180) looking very attractive.
With so many dishes sounding so interesting, Madame and I decided to share and so ordered two of the special starters and these were the garlic prawns and the avocado salad. The prawns really were sizzling and presented on a hot plate with clay covers over the prawns. These were so good, we ordered a second plate, and happily sat there mopping up the garlic butter and licking our fingers. Don’t miss this dish!
The avocado salad was also very ‘moreish’ with the sweet raspberry jus competing with the balsamic. A great combination of textures and tastes.
Another special was a duck liver pate, done in traditional French style which came with spoons for four and plenty of French bread. We cleaned that bowl up as well!
With Madame being Thai we also tried two from the menu of Thai items with the chicken massaman (B. 160) very flavorsome and a genuine Thai taste. The second was a stir fried shrimp with asparagus (B. 160). The spiciness of the Thai items is shown, so farang taste buds do not get a spicy surprise.
Our finale was sharing a bowl of the crème brulee flambéed with Sambucca, being a wonderfully sweet ending to what had been a remarkable dinner.
The restaurant has a very convivial atmosphere and I suggest you grab another couple and dine together and just sit back and enjoy the food and the ambience. Highly recommended.
Yupins, 413/42 Jomtien Complex, Thappraya Road, (opposite the Two Faces Bar, and next door to the Rainbow Properties office). For those who travel with GPS, the coordinates are 12.901719, 100.869066 (not that you really need them to find Thappraya Road). Open seven days 5 p.m. until 10.30. www.yupins.com, telephone 038 303155.
