The Amari’s Mantra restaurant presented another of their tribute events last weekend, this time being a tribute to the Endless Summer. With Pattaya’s “Beach Boys” led by Barry Upton on lead guitar, the diners were entertained with over 40 numbers relating to the heyday of the beach genre of music.
Starting off slowly, the audience was delighted to hear “The Warmth of the Sun”, a piece that even Barry admitted was much more difficult to play than would be expected for such a “simple” number. Also in the first set was the “classic” beach number “Itsy Bitsy Teenie Weenie Yellow Polka Dot Bikini” complete with interjections of “What did she wear?”
The Amari’s Mantra restaurant a tribute to the Endless Summer, with Pattaya’s “Beach Boys” led by Barry Upton on lead guitar.
The menu which went with the evening’s musical theme was another of executive chef Leonard Faust’s tours de force. Starting with tuna carpaccio with king crab and avocado and black caviar the set menu went on to a foam veloute with a plump seared Alaskan scallop and then to a main course of either beef tenderloin or wok-fried snow fish. My partner had the beef and was highly complimentary, whilst I had the snow fish, which was superb.
The culinary treat continued, as the endless summer music rolled on with “Girl from Ipanema” (Beach Boys), and the “Summertime Blues” (Eddie Cochrane) and more, while we enjoyed a cheese assortment and then into a dessert of Chocolate and red wine torte with fresh berry yoghurt and pistachio brittle.
By this time the band had warmed up to “hot” and the diners likewise, with a great surfer medley with “Wipe Out” and “Pipeline” and more. There was even the classic Chuck Berry number “Rock ‘n’ Roll Music” which had even more on the dance floor.
After two encores, the final part of the evening was GM Brendan Daly and new RM Richard Gamlin congratulating the band and thanking the audience. A wonderful evening of food, fun and fab music. Let’s do it again, Mantra!
Barry Upton leads the group on lead guitar.
