There are not too many restaurants that can trace their
heritage back 111 years - but The Gallery, along the Ping Riverbank can do just
that. The street front building was built in 1892 by the grandfather of the
current owner and MD Surachai Leosawasthipong, where it was the family store,
selling cotton, silk and household items. In 1989 the store was rebuilt, to
house an art gallery (hence the name The Gallery) and the northern style
restaurant building was done in teak. Since then, the buildings have received
awards from architectural associations, while the restaurant itself has won
recognition from world media. It was definitely time for the Dining Out Team to
visit.
You
enter the art gallery and walk through the assorted objets d’art and then into
the restaurant building itself. You can select a table there, or continue
through towards the river and sit outside, but under cover, and listen to the
water flowing past. You get the impression of being in a tropical rain forest,
with the lush vegetation alongside.
We were met by the delightful GM, Pornsawan (Som-O) and
seated close to the river at the long tables which are covered with purple
tablecloths, complete with locally woven place mats. To complete the Thai feel,
the service staff are also wearing Thai outfits with Lanna shirts.
The
menu is huge (164 items), so be prepared to have a drink while absorbing the
totality of it all! For example, there are 22 appetizers, ranging in price
between B. 50 and B. 200, with lobsters at the top end. The individual items are
given in their Thai names, with an English explanation underneath. Thai
favourites follow and are generally around B. 80 and are noodle based items.
The next sections cover fried rice (B. 50) and the kao tom
rice soups (B. 50-120) and then stir-fried vegetable items, generally around B.
70. Keep reading, we are only one quarter of the way through! Chicken and duck
items are next (B. 80-180) and then pork and beef (B. 80-150). Prawn and squid
dishes are B. 150, cooked in various ways and curries, and then there are 10
fish choices (B. 110-350) covering catfish, snakehead, ruby fish, snapper, red
and white.
10 soups follow (B. 70-200 for individual serves), with most
of the tom yum (spicy) family and then 10 Thai spicy salads (B. 80-250)
including banana flower, mango and dried beef and crunchy catfish.
The next, very large, section is just called Northern
delights with most items around B. 120. This naturally covers Chiang Mai sausage
and nam prik ong to be eaten with sticky rice. Another section is for dedicated
vegetarian items mainly around B. 70.
Finally (gasp!) there are two pages of international
favourites, covering examples of French, German, Indian and Italian cuisines and
then beef, pork, chicken, fish and lamb steaks, and even fondue items.
The final pages cover drinks, with juices and shakes,
cocktails and beers (local brews B. 50-60 small bottle) and all spirits.
We had several dishes which we all enjoyed, and stuck to the
Thai cuisine, with the Team being a mixture of westerners and Thais. For me, the
Thai duck in red curry with pineapple was the dish of the evening, while the
others were divided between the salted sea crab in coconut (for me, the usual
problem of too much work for too little return) and the ruby fish in plum sauce.
Dining at The Gallery is a very pleasant experience. The food
is excellent Thai cuisine, and there are also enough international choices for
those who are not adventurous. The presentation of the food was of a high
standard, and the ambience very relaxing. This is not one of the more noisy
venues - quite the reverse. It is a restaurant to which you can take any
overseas guests and know that they will come away impressed. We did. Very highly
recommended.
The Gallery, 25-29 Charernas Road, Chiang Mai, telephone 053
248 601, fax 053 248 602, email gallery@chmai.loxinfo .co.th, www.skynet/~asiasoft
/page4.html. Opens 12 noon and closes after midnight. Security parking close by
- look for the guard - who is looking for you.
