Sri Thong

Sri Thong, slightly hidden down a narrow Medieval lane close to Liverpool Street station, is a simply-designed restaurant much favoured by locals and City workers. (Upmarket) cafe-style in appearance, it offers a pleasing range of traditional Thai dishes using fresh, vibrant, spicy ingredients. Portion sizes are moderate—allowing the greedier amongst us to try out a few starters and dishes—and there is a good choice of wine at under £20. A bit more expensive than the several Vietnamese restaurants further north in Shoreditch/Kingsland Road, but worth it for a quieter, but still friendly, buzz, good service and excellent food for the price in this area.

Introduced to this hidden away gem by City colleagues. It was buzzing on a Thursday evening – clearly an insider's secret in the Georgian streets off Spitalfields. We could have stayed with the starters – the tempura squid was tender, crisp and spicy, my colleague's chicken satay was a sizeable cut above others – with the lime leaf and lemon grass marinade prominent and ‘defining’. I had Plah Lard Prik as a main dish – whole seabream with crispy skin and succulent meat topped with a moorish chilli jam – very Thai. Others on the table went for the Sur Rong Hai – marinated rib eye steak – mouth watering fragrances across the restaurant as it came to the table, and a Pork Hock selected from the specials board – slow simmered in a rich mussaman curry with Indian spices (and Thai heat!). Wines are well priced and well complemented with the menu – we probably had one bottle too many of the 2011 Moko Black Pinot Noir at £27.75. Puddings are straightforward but there was no keeping me from the warmed Kastner & Ovens Belgian chocolate cake with a dollop of vanilla ice. Others had fresh honey mango, and an Affogato(?) – in fact an Italian dessert of vanilla ice cream in a tumbler with a hot espresso shot – actually divine and oozing coffee flavours. The interior is contemporary and ‘sharp’ – perhaps a little too minimal but the fresh Gerbera flowers on every table lighten and give colour focus. Basement is underused – why dont they have a secret bar or start a film club? Service is everything here – like Thai International Airways! – staff are warm, attentive and knowledgeable, and dishes are there when you want them. Certainly will be back perhaps for a more leisurely evening with mates on a Saturday evening – plenty of bars to go onto in nearby Brick Lane.