Kyra Wang affectionately calls her newest venue her “secret garden”. Although its Victoria Square location couldn’t be any more central, the intimate 40 seater does feel like a secluded hideaway – perfect for a date night or a long lunch.
Thai Room is the fourth opening by Wang and her team, who also operate city diners Von Thai and Golden Rooster, and high tea and mocktail bar Mirra. Wang characterises the new venture as “semi-fine dining”, an intimate (but opulent) venue that runs at a slower, more indulgent pace than her other restaurants. With forest green tones, low lighting and crisp black and white napery, Thai Room certainly feels luxurious.
Trading continuously from 11.30am until 9pm, it allows diners to make the most of the long lunch format. The menu takes cues from Thai street food, elevating simple dishes with a few twists. “We have created a lot of small, tapas style dishes that work well in a long lunch,” Wang says.
Think flower-shaped Thai dumplings filled with scallops, prawns, fish and squid, served in a delicate red curry sauce and topped with caviar, and a massaman curry dip served with sweet potato chips.
Larger dishes are either wok- or slow-cooked – from a dry curry of crisp barramundi with shrimp paste and makrut lime, to a melt-in-your-mouth, six-hour braised massaman lamb shank with mashed potatoes and roasted peanuts.
Wang’s passion for wine is evident in the venue’s extensive list, designed to complement Thai flavours and highlight South Australian producers. There’s a focus on riesling and pinot gris to match the menu, but shiraz is a personal preference – “so there’s a lot on the list”, Wang says. Alongside the wine, the Serious Whisky and Classic Gin menus should entice the Mad Men crowd from their nearby office towers and law courts.
Thai Room
193 Victoria Square/ Tarntanyangga, Adelaide
(08) 8198 8045
Hours:
Mon to Sat 11.30am–9pm
