Koh - Second time around.. a chance worth taking

Rest : Koh by Ian Kittachai
Meal : Dinner
Loc : Intercontinental at Marine Drive

My last visit to Koh (here) had left me convinced that Koh was a bad idea, it only furthered my belief that not only is Thai Pavilion the best Thai restaurant in the city but pretty much one of the best restaurants in the country.

I was pretty sure that everytime i go out for a Thai meal there really would be no contest until recently i caught fellow food blogger, bon vivant, BILLIONIARE  Nikhil Merchant raving about the food. I decided to set aside my prejudice and give them a shot. So here we go. 

Koh is fancy, the tables are laid out lengthwise with loads of tables. Like most restaurants in Bombay it channels North American glitz. Since the menu is actually non traditional, the decor, the music & the ambiance has its own twist too. While i could do with a little more privacy, it works nice, you would not be surprised to find a place like this in Singapore or Hong Kong.

We were greeted with Lemon glass coolers, usually i am wary  but this one was really good, Mrs Jain rarely ever raves about drinks, really enjoyed it. Good Stuff. 

they have a separate bar area which precedes the dining room. I started with a Bloody Mary which had a distinctly Asian flavour but was tremendously spicy. Although it was immensely enjoyable, it was not such a good idea before dinner.

The Sirocco, which is supposed to be a dry desert wind, was quite the opposite, could return just for this alone.

The White Tom Kha, was interesting, with bits of corn, it seemed different from the traditional tom kha, good stuff. . 

The corn cakes, i had this before as well, during my previous visit, wasn't impressed then, am not impressed now. 

The amuse-bouce was interesting, very asian yet, at its heart it tasted like a bhel. possibly an Indian twist?

The mushroom puff was another twisted little dish, both the appetizers were quite hot, a cold appetizer would have been a better idea.

A medley of mushrooms (shitake, straw, hon-shemeji) with bak choy. Not bad, did not in all honesty feel very Thai but it was good so no complaints.



The Green Curry, was on the money, i was going to go for the Red so i could compare it with Thai Pavilion but the Green was recommended and no complaints. Even the way its served in the white paper, kinda cool.



The Pad Thai was very good, the garlic rice was actually prepared at the table, so there was a little bit of a show, however, it was strictly okay. I ordered it erroneously anyway, forgetting i was getting curry, so i had to order a small portion of white rice too.

The Guava crumble was weird, it felt like a apple crumble only weirder.

The de-constructed cheesecake, a fun little way of ending the meal. No problems at all with this one.

Overall, I certainly do think that the new menu does make as difference, the restaurant is a far cry from the last time I dined. They prepare/finish of a few dishes/desserts on the table which means its a little about form but also that they go through a little more work. Interesting, does not happen a lot in Bombay yet.

They a much stronger offering now, Its not traditional Thai cooking but a  modern/eclectic Asian twist to a lot of dishes, bear that in mind and you will be okay. The appetizers are the weakest link, a little more tweaking here, some more flavours would really elevate the experience. The main's are on the money, no trouble there.

The cocktails were fantastic, good thing i went with the recommendations. Would love to come back and try them again except the fucking pricing is out of this world (1200+ taxes a cocktail) so they will need to come up with a Happy hour ! 

The service was prompt & friendly and spot on with recommendations.

i stand corrected, Koh is worth a go now but not for the faint walleted. 

Food : 7/10
Service : 8/10
Damage : 3000 pp w Cocktails.