Yul Brenner holds court

Rama, Thai cuisine
327 Fourth Avenue
San Diego CA 92101
(619) 501-8424 (THAI)


   His Majesty, Royal Highness King Bhumibol Adulyadej Rama XI, the current sovereign heir to the throne of Thailand, was born in Cambridge Massachusetts, in the United States of America, in the year 1927. His is the longest current reigning monarchy in the WORLD. Rama signifies Lordship and Godhood status, both. In succession, it is customary for Thai Nobility at its highest chain to bear this dual title.

   The namesake has acquired a broader definition, locally. It stands for a regal dressed dining palace in the Gaslamp Quarter, of pedigree. Alex Thao and family own Rama, their latest. They also own arguably the most decorated of fine dining Thai restaurants in town, Celadon in Hillcrest. There was sizable buildup heading into the critique, tonight. Among the emails sent to us via yummydiego@cox.net, Kathy from Little Italy wrote of Rama, Naming a restaurant after an exalted leader, with an almost supernatural reverence accorded to him, ruffles more than a few feathers, but I would like you nevertheless to consider giving Rama a look, unless you are superstitious and might worry about being struck by lightning if you give them a bad rap. Fear factor notwithstanding, guest Ellen and I went forward with the potentially risky assignment!

   We brought wine to sample. It was an American 2002 vintage blend considered one of the best values around. Red Truck is a ten buck (or less), four-grape Meritage table red that received an 88 score from Wine Spectator http://www.winespectator.com/Wine/Daily/Wine/0,1142,1646,00.html--click the link provided. It had the lacquer of fresh baked cranberry pie filling, featuring Mouvedre, Syrah, Merlot and Pinot Noir. Corkage fees at Rama run fifteen dollars apiece, for BYOB.

   As we stepped into the parlor, we noticed that a portrait of one of the former God/King incarnations adorns the wall. Several deity figurines are spread throughout, looking down upon the proceedings rather ominously. Would we suffer wrath from the Heavens if we chose not to water down our commentary I am a very well protected soul. The skinny: food quality as a whole was at about the same level as its older sibling/local favorite Siamese sanctuary, only with swankier surroundings, so precautions werent even necessary!

   Rama has a compartmentalized (separated by a hallway) front dining room and a spacious, separate banquet hall in the rear, impressively decorated. A cabaret license was recently acquired. We plan to have live music every night, said Alex. The front room will have jazz. The back room will be piano, classy. The entire restaurant can be booked for private functions, fitting as many as 350 guests all together. They can handle convention business, for certain. All along the back wall of the larger dining room is a museum-piece waterfall, complete with a wishing fountain siren statuette that presides over coins offered into her pool, in exchange for a possible granting of petitions. I tossed in a dime for good karma.

   Having an expert in Asian cooking along for the critique helped, too. Ellen has cooked me some ferocious Chinese on many occasions. A siren in her own right, she selected our first bite of the night. Summer rolls, lesser known than spring rolls by diners at-large, are tofu-stuffed rice paper wraps at Rama. Celebrated Celedon Chief Surgeon, Chef Sonsi, trained the kitchen staff at these new digs. They decided to forego a much thinner customary rice wrap for these rolls. Where wafer paper is more commonly used, these had the consistency of Chow Fun noodles, received heartily. Packaging included pickled cabbage and bean sprouts, with fried garlic and cilantro. The sauce was a departure from the norm, according to Ellen. A lot of restaurants make an anchovy fish-base sauce for these, she observed, where here theyve served a soy-sauce base. This is not common at a lot of Thai restaurants, but very interesting.

   Peek Gai peaked our interest. Stuffed chicken wings, crispy without being oil-soaked, were a Thai jade sparkler. The medallions of hen featured juicy ground chicken as part of the stuffing itself, minced with garlic, salt, scallions and onions. The breading had the texture of coconut tempura. Best of all, they served a dynamite spicy red sauce that casually ascended in spice, of garlic-chili. TWO FORKS UP.

   FIRE WARNING: indicate to your Server, right upon placing your order, how youd like your food to be cooked, because it can vary dramatically anywhere from wimpy mild all the way to spicy insanity. If you do NOT say anything, Rama will prepare recipes in the Medium heat setting. We made this mistake! On a couple of bites, my eyes began to water, in a good way albeit, and my hairs stood on end. Ellen informed me that the American mid-range spice temperature, from a low of one to a high of ten, is more like a three for those accustomed to the cuisine. Our Server should have pointed this option out to us. The menu mentions this, but in microscopic fine print at the very bottom.

   Crispy duck salad was one of those platters that starts off on the low-flame end of the chili meter, but soon became a meteor entering the Earths atmosphere. The ensemble was a 10. The protein rests on a bed of fresh tomato sections, chopped romaine lettuce, and onion slices. It kept its flavor of roast duck, stated Ellen. I expected to taste more fried. Added Alex, They clean it, then roast it in our special herbs for about five hours. They gently put it in a batter we make, then briefly flash fry it.

   Wonderful Tom Kha chicken soup proved a welcome non-fiery intermission, between flames. This item we especially ordered because John, my Brother, said it is his favorite Thai food of all. I wanted to tell him how Ramas version fared. Lemongrass and coconut are the principal ingredients in the creamy broth. Lemongrass is one of the most widely used flavorings in Vietnamese and Thai cooking. They are greenish, gray herbal leaves. Like lemon peel, these leaves have oils called Citral that gives them a distinct citrus sour pucker. We were served the soup from a pot brought tableside, simmering with boiled tomatoes and mushrooms. Ellen was fully won over by the crme. John wouldve thoroughly approved.

   Ellen disapproved of the cooking methods for rice at Rama. She noticed disproportionate ratios of water to uncooked rice, an overage of liquid making the rice soggy. I think they use Jasmine rice, she observed.

   High marks for the presentation of the pineapple shrimp fried rice. The look made our mouths water in anticipation! A glaring deduction: the tail-on shrimps were stale. There were pieces of egg and green onions to savor, common within Asian rice bowls. Rama included cashews as well, for that deft touch.

   From deft to bereft. Why is bread not served Countries in Malaysia share common recipes with India, including Naan bread (see article from Yummys archives, the critique of Monsoon). But the Naan is Indian national bread. Is there a loaf that originated in Thailand I was prepared to give up the ghost on the quest for toast, when I came across a string of good luck, surfing. A primer for tourists about actually eating IN Thailand can be found at the following site: http://www.floatinglotus.com/thaifood.html; their conclusion was that recipe preparations locally and abroad can differ vastly. This led me down a research road as to regional distinctions within the countryside of Thailand. One featured a local bread, http://www.thaifoodandtravel.com/recipes/roti.html a website that proved helpful in detailing how to make an authentic Thai loaf. Southern Thai cuisine serves bread called Roti. This is pan-fried flour bread, sweetened with sugar, mild curry, eggs, and sweetened condensed milk. Ellen and I missed not having some form of a grain choice.

   ALL of the entres come with an available choice of protein. You must select from squid, chicken, scallops, beef, shrimp, pork, tofu, duck, mixed veggies, or combinations of these for the cooks to custom prepare your dinner. We picked the spinach in sweet-spicy fish sauce, garlic-chili, and thin-sliced pork tenderloin cutlet. Ellen thought it was rather plain.

   The curry dish did not make for a good photo by itself, so Ellen poured some of our Panang style coco-curry onto a bed of sticky white rice to make it more photogenic. Panang is an island just off the Malaysian coast, to the south of Thailand. One excellent website that shows people enjoying themselves and taking in all the Thai sights is http://www.traveljournals.net/pictures/11731.html, where youll find a spectacular photo of a sunset on Panang. We asked for scallops on this plate. In all, the meal couldve used a flavor injection. This was the weakest helping.

   Crying Tiger was the mightiest helping on our journey, a stir-fried spicy beef with marinade, the BEST DISH REVIEWED. Chef Sonsis recipe called for the use of roaring good New York steak strips, the key to it all. Dressing for the entre was served to one side, made of lime, fish sauce, and chili extract. Companions aboard the tiger express included tomato wedges and cucumber slices. I really like this recipe. Im going to try it at home, Ellen mentioned.

   Pad Ped Talay happened to be an entre that Ellen had tried before. This is a seafood combo with bell peppers, carrots julienne, bamboo shoots, and basil leaves. Ive had this same dish, but with better taste. The shrimp is not very fresh. Look at the color of the tails, she said. When you buy prawns at the store, this is what you look for. This mirrored the same shortcoming that the pineapple platter faced. Calamari and all other seafood on the plate fared well. This entre was scorching spicy. Maria, our Server, would be wise to issue an advisory to guests before placing orders.

   We solicited Marias input for desserts. Ellen sampled pineapple coconut ice cream, approvingly. I asked for sticky mango rice, one of the more unique sweets offered. The centerpiece had a crunch, perhaps from rice purposefully undercooked. Yellow bean curd was mixed into the sweetened starch. It had the flavor of tapioca.

   Bravo, Bangkok! You dive fearlessly into the spice rack, coming up with gems, mostly. Guests will delight in her exotica. Rama did not use the name of the Lord, their God, in vain. The Kings subjects can breathe a sigh of relief. 

www.ramarestaurant.com
www.celadonrestaurant.com
Lunch Monday through Saturday, 1130am-230pm
Dinner Sunday through Thursday, 5pm-10pm
Dinner Friday through Saturday, 5pm-11pm