Speedboat Bar
It has a kind of weird name. If I was trying to come up with a name for a restaurant, the first to come to mind would not be Speedboat. Even if it was planning to be a sporting institution, names such as the Horse & Coaches, The Greyhound or other such names might be more suitable and acceptable in England.
These are I assume photos of the Thai royals. Something I have seen in other Thai restaurants.
From my time in the East, this looks very typical of Thai food, especially the specialized plastic cutlery holder. Together with the photos and the metal tables, they have the authentic ambience down pat. With such build up, it was time to assess the food.
Chicken Matches with Green Mango Kerabu. It had a touch of fire and to compliment the tang and flesh. Although the chicken wings were a bit sparse with meat, when you did manage to find the flesh, it was good.
Clams with Chilli Jam & Thai Basil. A deliciously spicy dish, the sweet and aromatic jam/curry and sweet succulent clams were delicious. Although the edible part of the clams were a bit too small for me.
Minced Beef with Holy Basil. Could have done with a bit more spice as seemed a bit too bland. At least it didn’t bring the fire that I had had at the other outpost, Plaza Khao Gaeng.
Tom Yam Mama Noodles, Squid, Porks & Prawn. Excellent combination, although I couldn’t shake the feeling that I was paying a very pretty penny for instant noodles. In any case, the prawns were large, fresh and moist, the pork meaty and crispy, the squid fulsome. Together it went down very well and almost justified the price.
Crispy Pork & Black Pepper curry. Bursting with ummai flavour, this was excellent. The pork was fatty and meaty, the sauce fulsome and rich, together they made something greater than the sum of their parts.
Boiled Rice. A bit boring. Although boring is what you need to drench with the various curries and sauces on offer.
Naem Fried Rice. Nicely tasteful, although a bit pricey for what it was. The chilli brought a tear to my eye.
Thinking back to times in Asia, perhaps the name Speedboat Bar is quite authentic. At times I have found that such eateries, with much more to think about than mere branding, would just settle for whatever random object that was nearby. Lots of floating objects in Thailand. In any case, with food like this, Speedboat Bar floats my boat.
A quiet eating 8.5/10.
Lunch (2 course equivalent) was GBP25 per person excluding drinks and service.
30 Rupert St,
London W1D 6DL