Trialling the Thai Cookery School at Thaikhun

A couple of weeks' back I joined a small group of other bloggers and journalists for an evening of Thai cookery with the lovely team at Thaikhun, a restaurant I had the pleasure of sampling at the end of last year when it opened in Bath's Little Southgate Quarter. Having come away from that occasion feeling very impressed with the place, I was keen to make a return visit. However, this time it would be me doing the cooking. Hmmm...

Very competent at my small but perfectly formed repertoire of personal classics - I'm great at Bolognese, risotto and other Italian standards - I'm not so hot on more exotic cuisines. My curries are often disappointing and even Delia's fool-proof Thai curry recipe has turned out to be not to be so fool-proof in my less than capable hands. So it was with a slight sense of trepidation that I rose to the challenge of testing my skills at Thaikhun's newly established cooking school.

Just launched, the school runs at the Bath branch every fourth Sunday (other dates are available at Thaikhun's other locations), inviting Thai food aficionados to create their very own two-course feast. Led by an experienced chef - in our case a very lovely lady who had travelled down from the Manchester branch especially - the two-hour sessions are designed to give you a grounding in the basics of Thai cookery, impart some interesting know-how and give you the opportunity to socialise while you enjoy a starter and main course made by your own fair hands.

For our session, we started out by making vegetable spring rolls - so much easier than I'd expected, though there is a bit of a knack to rolling them like a pro. But with a Gin Cooler to hand, any worries I'd had about my cooking limitations started to fade away and I began to really enjoy the experience. 

It helped that our guide for the evening was very funny, keeping us engaged with her insider knowledge and personable teaching style. In fact, it felt nothing like a 'lesson' but more of an informal invitation into a friend's kitchen - I didn't feel intimidated or insecure about my abilities at any time during the evening.

After whipping up our spring rolls - a mix of vermicelli noodles, finely chopped carrot, mushroom and cabbage, as well as a spices, herbs, ginger and soy sauce - they were whisked off to be deep fried while we got on with the important task of choosing another cocktail from Thaikhun's menu (I highly recommend the coconut mojito.)

Then the moment of truth arrived as our first course was delivered and I'm happy to say mine and my guest's (it was a joint effort) were absolutely delicious and nothing like the greasy, anaemic looking spring rolls that often turn up in your takeaway.

Refreshed and ready to take on our main course, we returned to our cookery stations to be guided through the steps needed to create the perfect Thai Green Curry. Like the spring rolls, this task wasn't anywhere near as scary as I'd anticipated. Turns out some simple tricks of the trade and knowing how to create the perfect, proper curry paste is the key. 

We were introduced to some exotic ingredients such as Galangal and palm sugar, and instructed how to use the coconut milk to get a perfectly creamy consistency for our curries. Taking just a short time to master, we were directed back to our tables to enjoy our left over spring rolls, bowls of steaming rice and our curries - and I'm pleased to report that, for once, my curry was well above passable. 

I left Thaikhun feeling pretty confident about replicating these recipes in my own kitchen and inspired to venture beyond my cooking comfort zone every so often. And with a few exotic cocktails sloshing around in our tummies too, me and my guest went home glowing from an evening very well spent. 

For more information on Thaikhun's cooking school, visit the website here. You can also read my review of the restaurant here.

I enjoyed a complimentary visit to Thaikhun but all words and opinions are my own. 

Byron Comes to Bristol

With new eateries popping up all over the place at the moment, Bristolian foodies have a lot to be excited about. One such new arrival rocked up on the Queens Road at the tail end of last week, so - it being Friday and us being in a bit of a weary, end-of-the-week type mood - we decided there couldn't be a more apt time to trial its take on the classic American diner experience. 

A new addition to Queens Road

Byron Burger might be new to Bristol but it's been keeping Londoners stocked up with proper burgers since 2007 and now has branches across the capital as well as outposts in other cities across the UK. Back in '07, the vogue for gourmet burgers was in its infancy, and Byron was a pioneer in reclaiming the meat patty from the dingy recesses of the fast food industry. By combining quality ingredients with an artfully retro dining experience, Byron Burger helped to reposition the burger as THE cool thing to chow down on. Fast-forward to 2014 and gourmet burgers are now firmly featured on the food map and the Byron model isn't quite as revolutionary as it might have once seemed. But a good burger is still a joyous thing and with lots of imitators but few real masters, we were interested to see if Byron remains at the top of its game.

Slightly nicer decor than McDonalds

The food is very good and reasonably priced. A standard burger is £6.75, with accompanying fries at £2.95, and portions are just the right side of big. We ordered some extra courgette chips (perhaps a vain attempt at injecting something healthy into our carb 'n' protein fest) which were absolutely delicious; other sides include coleslaw and onion rings. The menu is, as you'd imagine, rooted in the classic American diner experience, though you'll find more contemporary alternatives if you fancy trying something a little more modish, from a bun-free 'skinny' option to a 'Chilli' burger(our choice) packed with green chilies and chipotle mayonnaise (not to be underestimated - while delicious I had to turn the heat down a little by removing a chilli or two.)

Burgers 'n' BIG gherkins

We ate with our two children and Byron makes the usual accommodations for younger diners (colouring sheets, kids menu, etc.) and they have booths! All kids (and most grown ups too, actually) love a booth. The kids menu comes in at 2 courses for £6.50. Particularly helpful (and not something I've seen at a restaurant before) is the indication of portion size. Kids menus vary greatly and it's sometimes hard to judge whether a child size portion will suffice for the age of your child. At Byron it's clearly stated that theirs are designed for 6 year olds and under so you know where you stand. I also liked the fact that you can buy your young 'uns smaller-than-standard cokes, helping to assuage any parental guilt you might feel about giving into requests for fizzy drinks. 

Byron Burger for kids

Kids burgers come well done and you can request the same for older kids having an adult burger or for yourself if well cooked is how you like it. Our burgers were plump and juicy, and accompanied by a proper bun and perfectly cooked skinny fries. Oh, and a proper full size gherkin on the side - the perfect final flourish for a gherkin aficionado like myself. Puddings keep with the American theme - think cheesecakes, brownies and old-school knickerbocker glories. 

American-style good service is clearly something that Byron feels strongly about too - obviously you'd expect super-friendly service in those first days post-opening, but I got the feeling that the company prides itself on a casual but efficient service and that staff are keenly aware that it's not enough to have a cool concept and a hip interior - friendly, slick service is what keeps customers coming back. 

If you really do love your burgers you can join the Byron Burger Club to receive exclusive invites to previews of hamburger specials and new openings, and to get priority access to one-off Burger Club events. 

Find Byron Burger at 62 Queens Road, BS8 1RE. For other branches and more info visit the Byron Burger website here.

Soukitchen - A Favourite Place to Eat in South Bristol

As a home-working freelancer I don't get out much during the working week, aside from ferrying the kids to school and to their various extra-curricular activities. So Fridays - when I work from my husband's office in Southville - provide a much-needed change of scenery and rare opportunity to eat lunch somewhere other than at home, huddled over the laptop. Having sampled most of the cafes and restaurants on Southville's bustling North Street, there's one place we return to again and again - Soukitchen. 

This bijou restaurant directly opposite The Tobacco Factory serves some of the best quality food I've eaten in Bristol, with a menu that straddles North Africa and the Middle East, taking in traditional standards such as falafel and kofta and less widely known dishes using locally sourced ingredients and piquant delicacies discovered and brought back from the owners' frequent trips abroad. 

My particular favourites from the lunchtime menu are the lunch mezze plate and lunch skewers. At £7.50 and £6.95 respectively, these filling dishes offer fantastic value for this quality of cooking. The food is beautiful and interesting to look at, too, with plates studded with saffron-hued rice, glossy olives and harissa, the deep red paste so resonant of the souk. Flavours are expertly balanced and ingredients cooked to perfection.

I've yet to sample the evening menu but the daily dishes chalked up on the back wall always sound mouthwatering, from slow-braised ox cheeks to Tangier-style sardines. With mains hovering around the £12 mark Soukitchen is offering stand-out, inspiring dining at considerably less than you might pay at other restaurants around the city.

If, like me, you have a sweet tooth you have to put dietary concerns aside and try Soukitchen's outstanding Baklava, a deliciously nutty and gooey confection, served with saffron ice-cream and orange blossom syrup. A dessert that can be a bit sickly when handled clumsily, Souk's take on this Middle Eastern delicacy has just the right amount of stickiness and sweetness. 

Soukitchen also provides a lunch-time take-out service and it runs regular events throughout the year where you can sample 5-course tasting menus inspired by vibrant cities such as Istanbul.

This is a great value place offering inventive cooking drawn from the less widely explored corners of the culinary map. Give it a go - you won't be disappointed.

For more information on SouKitchen visit the website here.
Soukitchen: 277 North Street, Bedminster, BS3 1JP, tel. 0117 966 6880