Gai & Joel Global Flavors

Perhaps, it was the street-level entrance or the big windows that allowed me to peer inside that made me feel this was going to be an ordinary sort of place, but believe me, it's not. Gai & Joel has some of the finest food I've found in Bangkok; the prices for what is served are extremely reasonable; and the presentations are in a class of their own.

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The restaurant consists of three floors. Most people dine in the light and airy ground level dining room that also has a small bar area. The second floor is a little more secluded and includes a view of the open kitchen where diners can watch Gai, Joel and their team in action. On the third floor there are two attractive rooms; one seating 4-6 and the other 8-10. Both come with flat screen TV's, making them ideal for business meetings requiring video conferencing. There is also an outdoor deck for those who want to dine in the great outdoors. There is no charge for the use of the private rooms, but reservations are a must.

I dined at the restaurant at lunchtime when it is popular with business people and shoppers. Gai & Joel offer three set lunch options of three or four courses ranging in price from 290 to 490 baht. I had the 'Signature Set' at 490 baht. When I sat down the server brought me a small bowl with a pill in it. He then poured water over it and the pill suddenly grew into a refreshing towel – an intriguing start to what turned into a memorable meal.

Before my food arrived, the server brought a selection of delicious homemade breads that arrived in spiral wire contraption that highlighted the textures and shapes of the bread. I was impressed because bread is often simply dumped on the table in a bowl or basket. The first course was Farmed potato leek soup with purple basil pistou, a hearty beginning to the meal.

The next course was a salad of Soft-shell crab botanical fresh greens, micro-herbs and ponzu ginger dressing – my favorite dish of the afternoon. I really love crisply fried soft shell crab, but am often turned off by it being mixed with salad dressing so that it loses its crispness. In this presentation, the crab was placed adjacent to the salad so that I could eat some salad and then pop some of the crisp crab into my mouth. The salad included a slice of fried seaweed that not only added a dramatic touch to the presentation, but also provided a crunchy touch of the sea to the soft and delicate greens.

The main course was Pan-seared Atlantic salmon tossed potatoes, crisp greens with olive tapenade. Although excellent to eat, it was the presentation that really raised this dish to new levels. Chef Joel had removed the skin from the salmon and then fried it so that it was crisp and then incorporated it as part of the presentation. The 'greens' ended up being tiny little green beans from Chiang Mai that were briefly cooked so that they remained crisp and delicious.

The wine list here is compact, but includes a good selection of reasonably priced wines. My Merlot from Chile was excellent. For dessert I had a Chocolate fondue with dipping sauce. It was served with chunks of fruit that I could dip into the fondue. A fitting conclusion to a great meal.

This marvelous little restaurant is open Monday-Saturday from 11.00-22.00. There is secure parking available and Wifi access on all three levels. Try it for an inexpensive set lunch or for a more elaborate and elegant meal in the evening. I'm sure you will be as impressed as I was.

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