Characterful and inexpensive Japanese/Thai restaurant
By Brian Baxter
Quite recently I went to this modest
neighbourhood restaurant after too long an absence. It
offers Japanese food of a slightly unusual style, with a
dash of Thai. The three farang friends and I enjoyed it so
much that I returned just a few days latter with a Thai, who
found it equally pleasant.
What makes it so special, apart from the
astonishingly low prices, is the range of food and the
absence of conventional dishes that the more conservative
normally associate with Japanese food – sashimi, tempura and
sushi for example. All fine and even wonderful but like –
say Pad Thai or Tom Yam Gai just the tip of a national
iceberg.
Nine Lives offers some 40 dishes on a
clearly laid out menu. They also have a ‘sit up’ bar and
serve a wide range of drinks, which can be enjoyed without
eating. We ordered as we went along, starting with five
dishes and then adding to them or occasionally doubling up
if something seemed especially moreish, like the little
plate of tasty mushrooms which had a wonderfully nutty or
‘meaty’ flavour. Other initial dishes were salmon, an omelet
stuffed with pork and vegetables, pork Tyoza (dumplings) and
grilled sardines.
I
got to choose the next round, so along with the mushrooms
came a quite scrumptious serving of grilled eggplant – as
good as any of us had ever tasted (often at four times the
price) – more salmon (this timed steamed), some stir fried
slightly spicy morning glory and some breaded squid. A
couple of those were also repeated, along with more grilled
fish. Two of us had brought a bottle of wine each (there was
no corkage charge, but don’t bank on that as a general rule)
so when the bill came for this mini banquet we queried it as
being too low to be correct. An astonishing 600 baht for
four full meals.
The following week just two of us managed
to run up a smaller though similar bill but this included a
Singha beer(50 baht) for me, a glass of house red ( 80 baht)
for my friend and a small carafe of sake (120 baht). Once
again the individual dishes were all around 50 baht and on
this occasion included a steaming bowl of noodles with
boiled egg and naturally that eggplant and the grilled
sardines.
Now it must be said that Nine Lives is a
modest local eatery, not a fancy dining out experience. The
service is friendly, not rushed and the cooking is done to
order by the charming owner. The tables are sturdy and the
chairs solid wood. They can seat about 24 customers,
including the bar area and a couple on a small terrace – no
doubt for the smokers. The restaurant gets its name from the
cat motif, with lots of cute models on display of which my
favourite was a very aloof white china cat with a look of
cool disdain for all around him – rather like the actor
Clifton Webb, I thought. There was just one real four legged
friend, who lay on a high bookshelf and looked the picture
of contentment.
You can find Nine Lives in a little soi
on the left just past the large Jiffy/LPG petrol station
opposite the moat on Manee Nopparat Road. If you get to the
end of Huay Kaew Road and head towards Chang Puak you will
find the soi on the left just after the garage. It is about
20 metres down the little road. This is one way so take the
next on the left, and park at the bottom of the soi if you
go by your own transport. Get off at the end of the soi on
the main road if you taken. 242/14 is easily found but in
case of a problem you can phone on either 086 672 0225 or
053 404 455 and ask for Oi. They open in the evenings only.
