Arriving back in town late on a Sunday night you worry if there is going to be a restaurant with the kitchen still open at 9pm – no worries at Rama Thai, however.
The Dock Street place had long been on the to-do list since we first enjoyed the unique decor and good food on offer four years ago.
With not so many options on the road back from a family outing in Stirling, it was finally time to walk back in through the fantastic wooden structures on show at Rama.
It really is an interesting place to eat.
I love the look of the place with all the carved wall panels, attractive chairs and intricate patterns on each table – there’s no place like it in the city.
The front of house looks to the Waterfront and gives a great view across Slessor Gardens, especially as the sun sets across the Tay.
Any concerns that we’d be met with “sorry, the kitchen is closed” disappeared as soon as we saw the big, welcoming grin from the waitress behind the bar.
The staff were so friendly and we immediately felt at home as we made our way to our seats. It was fairly quiet in there but that late on a Sunday, it was to be expected, and the atmosphere was just fine in my book.
We got stuck into ordering our drinks. A bottle of Tiger for me (£3.60) – any restaurant serving Tiger will get a thumbs up from me – with my wife going for white wine (£4.85) and my mum on the hard stuff with tap water.
You need a bit of time to look at the menu because the options are tricky to choose between.
I fancied some steak, after a lengthy drive, a beer and a steak sounded just peachy. I took a very poor stab at pronouncing Sua Rong Hai but thankfully the waitress was patient enough to take the correct order.
On the menu that’s “marinated chargrilled sirloin steak accompanied with Som Tum (Thai style salad), sticky/coconut rice and a hot and spicy chilli dip” (£19.95).
The presentation on the plate was fantastic with the steak sliced and ready to dip in the chilli sauce, salad in an intricate gathering on the other side with what looked like an igloo of rice in the middle.
It looked great, however, the taste didn’t match up to it – the steak was well-cooked (medium-rare) but lukewarm when it arrived and I wasn’t a fan of the salad once I had wrecked the pretty set-up.
Thankfully the other meals lived up to the quality of service from staff – my wife ordered trout Chu Chi, cooked in a traditional red curry slightly flavoured with lime leaves (£15.95).
It was cooked just right, with the right amount of sweetness and spiciness and got the desired thumbs-up response.
My mum ordered Ped Yang Rhat-Manow/Som – roast duck with thai lemon or orange sauce (£15.95). She went for the lemon option.
If there was a competition for best dish of our three this would win it.
A whole lot of lovely duck meat in a lemon sauce, I was pretty disappointed I hadn’t gone for that. Didn’t stop me stealing some across the table – what are mothers for?
Overall, we enjoyed our time at Rama thanks to the cheery staff. Being honest, I did expect a little more from the food, but turning up at 9pm on a Sunday, we were just happy they fed us.
