All show and substance

Over my 22-year career as a food writer, I've met many chefs who have brilliant palates.

It's a quintessence of a great cook; they were indeed blessed by being born with it. So I believe.

At the same time, I have come across many, perhaps too many, chefs who tout their kitchen creativity. Uncommon ingredients and newfangled cooking methods are mixed with age-old culinary traditions to create exciting narratives and marketing virtue.

A number of them prevail right upon emerging into the scene, as today diners seem to look more for the novelty and frills than ever before.

Don't get me wrong. I am not opposed to these nice touches as long as they are based on good taste.

Unfortunately, most of the meals with avant-garde creativity that I'd had over the years proved to have hardly any profound palate-pleasing qualities.

The amuse-bouche trios.

Yet, this week's subject of review turned out against all odds. And it was truly incredible.

Quietly launched a month ago at Sindhorn Kempinski's Flourish restaurant is a brand new chef's table experience.

Flourish is by nature an all-day dining restaurant serving up international dishes. However, since the 130-seater first opened in 2020, Thai cuisine has been especially highlighted, with its own separate menu to pay tribute to the much-acclaimed heritage of local cookery.

Recently appointed as the restaurant's new head chef is Chatsorn Pratoomma.

Having worked at prestigious dining establishments in Asia and Europe, Chatsorn, an earnest master of Thai cooking, brings to Flourish not just her well-honed experience but also fresh new ideas and directions.

The chef's table affair showcases her passion for Thai cuisine through a wisely-curated six-course dinner prepared and presented by Chatsorn herself.

Australian Angus rib-eye rubbed with khua kling spice accompanied by khao yum salad.

The meal, with the availability limited to 10 guests per night, is served in a genteel manner of fine dining. It starts with a house-made welcome drink and snack followed by a theatrically presented trio of amuse-bouches.

A showy meal often prompts my scepticism, and this one was no exception.

Yet, such leeriness completely faded away after full-flavour perfection was found, on a flamed plate, from khao tang nam phrik khai pu, a zesty bite of crab roe relish with bilimbi fruit and young garcinia leaves on rice cracker; khao tang nam phrik goong, a rich and spicy prawn tomalley and chopped tiger prawn on basil-infused rice cracker; and miang kham, a nutty and fruity nibble of pomelo pulps, toasted coconut flakes, ginger, pomegranate and coconut-shrimp paste caramel on a betel leaf.

Judging from these scrumptious amuse-bouches, I kind of knew what to expect from the starter, which was next to arrive.

And the sour and spicy Hokkaido scallop with caviar, lemongrass, smoked shallots and chilli-passion fruit dressing proved as praiseworthy. It was a well-rounded dish of which the taste and texture of each ingredient wonderfully complemented one another.

Chatsorn said she crafted the menu from dishes she likes to eat.

Hokkaido scallop with lemongrass and chilli-passion fruit dressing.

The simmered dish of soybean paste-seethed coconut milk topped with a deep-fried minced salmon and ikura roe, our third course, is her take on a classic tom tao-jiew.

What was served before us tasted between tom kha (galangal-coconut milk soup) and tao-jiew lhon (soybean paste relish), a perfect balance of creaminess and pungency. The brittly fluffy golden billow of salmon lent a nice crunch to the milky soup.

The palate-cleansing granita was an unusual yet ingenious marriage of melon and candied kaffir lime, the two fruits that almost never interblend. The chef made it an impressive intermission treat that added a frosty contrast to the meal while preparing our taste buds for the upcoming main course.

After learning from the menu that the main course of the night would be khua kling (a southern Thai style wok-fried curry, which comes with a choice of beef or chicken) and khao yum (a southern Thai salad of rice and herbs), I said to my dining companion: "Do you think the dinner is a bit small for the price?"

Well, shame on my prejudiced theorisation.

The banana fritter dessert with coconut sherbet and honeyed vanilla sauce.

The beef khua kling that I had came in a style of steak. It's a 200g Australian Wagyu rib-eye that's been rubbed with housemade curry paste and grilled to a perfect pinkish-red medium rare.

The steak was flavourful and tender, so tender it can be literally cut with a spoon. The rubbing curry, a mixture of turmeric, black pepper and chillies, gave to the dish a faultless enhancement that didn't overpower the supreme beef taste.

Then there were marvellous pickles. In super generous portion, the addictively sweet, sour and crunchy ribbons of house-cured cucumber, carrot and daikon turnip provided a brisk contrast to the peppery steak.

Helping to add yet another layer and raise the main course to sublimity is the khao yum, a unification of brown rice, minced dry shrimp and a dozen of fresh vegetables and herbs including winged beans, red ginger blossoms, kaffir lime leaves, lemongrass, pomelo pulps, grated coconut, chillies and lime.

Traditionally, the salad is dressed with the intense bu-du sauce, a southern-style fermented fish emulsion. But here, in order to go with the salad in a fine dining menu, the muddy brown and salty sweet mixture has been clarified until translucent and less overwhelming in flavours.

Crispy salmon in soybean paste-seethed coconut milk soup.

The khao yum, thanks to its nutty healthy texture, fittingly acted as a delicious and stomach-filling two-in-one side dish to the steak: the salad and the carb.

A dessert course of fried banana may sound humble. But it's not ordinary. It's a collection of banana fritters, coconut sherbet, coconut espuma, toasted almond and Chiang Mai vanilla honey sauce.

The chef's table dinner menu is available nightly. Reservations are a must. Guests are seated at their own table, or in private dining room for a group of eight to 10 diners. Prices are 3,600 baht per person and 6,000 baht per person with wine pairing.