Suzie Wong Overview
Situated alongside gay bars and coffee shops isn’t where you would expect to find one of the best Thai restaurants in London. Suzie Wong – formerly known as Sri Thai Soho until a refurbishment last year – is located towards the Charing Cross Road end of Old Compton Street. From the outside it looks like a small bar, but upon entering you discover beyond the bar is a wide two floor eatery with a 150 capacity, including booths for those who want a more intimate dining experience.
After being greeted by two attentive waiting staff, we were shown to a booth with plush cushions. The cosy and warm décor was very appealing and I hoped the menu would match the luxurious surroundings… without the luxurious price. The waitresses were all dressed in stunning self-described ‘Suzie Wong style dresses’, inspired by the glamorous prostitute from the 1960s Hollywood movie. The clientele was a mix of 20 and 30 somethings, enjoying after-work dinners or pre-drinking meals. The larger booths, which seat about 10, seem to cater for celebrations.
Suzie Wong describes itself as offering ‘tantalising Oriental tapes’ and its dishes include ingredients flown all the way from Thailand. Upon looking at the reasonable prices of the tapas dishes – which vary from £3.00 to £8.00 – you’ll be surprised to hear celebrity chef Ken Hom is a menu consultant to the restaurant. After choosing a bottle of Chilean Sauvignon Blanc for the wide wine list, we noticed there wasn’t a starters menu, so we were recommended to choose just one tapas as a starter. We opted for Homemade Spicy Sausage and Siam Fishcakes. The Spicy Sausage was perfectly bumpy as a homemade sausage should be and the mild spice blended well with the tomato chutney accompaniment. The Siam Fishcakes are thankfully not the scary shade of orange I have seen in so many other Thai restaurants before and, as a self-confessed wimp when it comes to strong spicy food, the spicy level is thankfully mild. The dish – like the tapas which followed – had lovely presentation and came with corkscrew cucumber slices and pickled green papaya to dunk the cakes in. Yummy.
For our main course, we shared Roast Black Cod, Crispy Aromatic Duck with Pancakes, Pad Thai and Sticky Fried Rice. When initially the duck arrived, my friend expressed disappointment with the tapas size of the portion. However, when the Pad Thai – which included prawns – followed, it was evident there would be more than enough food to fill our stomachs. The duck was just at the right side of crispy – not too crunchy, not too dry and tasted scrumptious with the pancakes. While the cod may look small, it’s incredibly filling and I was surprised at how well the pesto mixed with it. Having been to Thailand, I was amazed at how authentic the Pad Thai tasted. The quality of the noodles, vegetables and accompanying peanut topping were delicious. The Sticky Fried Rice was also good.
To finish, we were so stuffed we ended up sharing Banana Fritters with Caramel Sauce, which came with a scoop of vanilla ice cream. The fritters were quite nice, but a bit on the oily side. The service was very good for most of the night, the staff was very smiley and offered helpful recommendations. My only complaint was when the restaurant became busier at the end of the night, we waited a bit too long for our bill.
All in all, I was very impressed by the restaurant and its food and will definitely be returning to Suzie Wong. I’d give the food 10/10 because it was so delicious. The décor, the food and the service make you feel like you’re in an upmarket expensive restaurant, only do realise you’re not when you receive the reasonable bill.
Emily Sheridan
Named after the famous 1960 Hollywood classic, ‘The World of Suzie Wong’, the bar and restaurant perfectly capture the film’s classic romantic ambience with their sleek, stylish, vintage and glamorous surroundings all split over two floors. (Updated 12/08/2007)
Additional Info: Food, Non-Smoking Area, Hire Available
Nearby Venues:
- Amato, Cafe (0.01km)
- Stockpot (Old Compton Street), British (0.01km)
- Pollo, Italian (0.01km)
- Zebrano at the Establishment, Eclectic (0.02km)
- Nadine, Moroccan (0.02km)
- Maison Touaregue, North African (0.02km)
- Ramen Taro - 2, [Other/Unclassified] (0.02km)
- Piccolo Diavolo, Italian (0.03km)
- Ed's Easy Diner (Soho), American (0.03km)
- Melanie Italian Restaurant, Italian (0.04km)
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