Amidst the hustle and bustle of Bangkok, we found some amazing places to visit; great places to shop; awesome tours; a wonderful spa; fabulous hotels; and brilliant shopping.

But even with all that, everyone needs time to stop and eat.

And not just a quick bite, we decided we wanted to experience some of the finest traditional Thai food in Bangkok.

We had heard about the Culinary Journey of Royal Thai Cuisine.  Being on a world journey ourselves, this seemed fitting, and we were both eager to savor the exquisite flavors that so many of their famous dishes boasted.

So even though we were not staying at the Amari Watergate Bangkok, we flagged down one of Bangkok’s famous Tuk-tuk’s and headed there for dinner.  My ‘inner G.P.S.’ was not working too well, and I failed to realize until we were about 10 minutes into our journey that our Tuk-tuk driver was indeed ‘taking us for a ride’.

Our hotel was in the next street!!!!  We could have walked.

When entered the lobby of Amari Watergate Bangkok we were greeted with the relaxing sounds of two lovely Thai ladies playing softly the Khim or Kim (Thai which translates to “cimbalom” in English) as guests enjoyed their luxurious surroundings.

Explorason raced around with his camera taking some interesting photographs, whilst I enquired where the elevators were located.

We then headed upstairs to meet our new friend Laura at Thai On 4 Restaurant.

We were quite early – 6:30 p.m., so although the restaurant wasn’t busy, my hungry ten-year-old was ready to eat.

We were really pleased to meet Laura, as she speaks fluent Thai and English.  Laura knew just which dishes to suggest we tried and could recommend specialties she thought Explorason might enjoy too.

So we left the ordering to her, and sat back and relaxed and chatted over a lovely glass of wine.

And here is what she chose for us.

Firstly Laura selected a dish she felt Explorason would like.

Gai Phad Med Mamuang Himmaphan – Stir-fried chicken with cashew nuts and dried chili.

Turns out he loved it. So much so he now declares it to be his favorite Chicken dish.

Next was Phad Phak Tang Chanid – Stir-fried assorted vegetables with soya sauce. I loved the rice selection (brown rice; jasmine rice – white; saffron rice – yellow; and pandan leaf rice – green) that was also colorfully accompanying our dinner.

My favorite though was Tom Yam Goong Mae Nam – Spicy river prawn soup flavored with lemongrass, lime juice, and chili.

Being Australian she selected an ‘Aussie’ Steak Thai style for us.

Nua San Australian Yang Jimjaew Prom Khao Niew – Grilled marinated Australian sirloin steak with a cucumber and celery salad, served with dip (jimjaew) and sticky rice.

It certainly didn’t taste like your average Australian Steak, and again, Explorason found this to be delicious!

As the evening drew to a close, we couldn’t leave without dessert.

For me, it was their traditional dessert.

Mango Sticky Rice.

It looks plain, but there was nothing plain about it.  Neither did it taste like rice.  It was creamy and delicious.

Explorason ended his dinner with a favorite of any child.

Chocolate Ice-cream.

He was happy!

We really were so pleased we came to dine here.  I’d recommend making a reservation, as often Thai On 4 Restaurant can be booked out.

The word is spreading about their award-winning Culinary Journey of Royal Thai Cuisine!

Amari Watergate Bangkok

Address: 847 Petchburi Road  Bangkok 10400  Thailand

Phone: +66 (0) 2653 9000

Website: www.amari.com

• Open Hours: Daily, Lunch: 11:30 to 14:30, Dinner: 18:00 to 22:30
• Dress Code: Smart Casual