Via Vai
25 Sukhumvit Soi 8
Bangkok
Tel: 02 253 1200

A couple of people had told me about this new Italian restaurant near the top of Soi 8, but they had not told me the name. When I finally trundled along I looked at the sign only to exclaim “I know that name!” I thought at first it must be part of a restaurant chain, but then I was chatting to one of the bosses and it all came back. The other Via Vai is in Chaweng high street on Koh Samui, and I have been there.

The Bangkok version is a large restaurant in a purpose-built building with a good little garden area outside. It is by the roadside, but since Soi 8 is a dead-end, the soi gets very little traffic. There are some big overhead fans in the garden area, so it is useable even now in the hot season. I would think in the cool season it would be a good spot in the evening.

The menu is all about pizza and pasta. There are 44 pizza options listed and just to totally confuse us, there are 24 pasta sauces with various different types of pasta, including five fresh pastas as well as several dry versions. I have never been a great pasta person, but I was impressed with the depth and variety on offer. And I suppose a change to any of the pizzas would not be a problem as they are all clearly made to order. I suspect most of the pasta sauces are too. Of course, there are also a good range of starters, some interesting salads, fish and meat options.

To start I opted for the seafood soup. I have a fairly clear idea what I expected but got nothing like it! Not that I am complaining as it was a very pleasant surprise. The soup came in a large oval dish covered with pizza bread. The waitress insisted upon peeling back half the bread to reveal less of a soup and more of a seafood stew. Unlike seafood soup that tends to have a certain thickness to it, this was very light: a broth indeed. However that was more than made up for by the prawns, including one large tiger one, the mussels, the clams and the calamari. I suppose it could almost have been called gumbo. And it was very good and a vast starter.

For a main I had settled on one of those unknown (to me) sauces - Boscaiola - which was described as ham, mushrooms and peas in a creamy sauce. With fresh spinach fettucinni, it was a good mix, even if the portion size was more than adequate. The nice boss person came along to gloat as I was nearing the end. I think he really expected me to be defeated by the various mountains of food I had had. I finished off with a nice little dessert.

This is a friendly Italian diner with good basic food and none of the pretensions of some of their Sukhumvit brothers. And one point of interest is that it is open from midday to midnight, thus suitable for a light lunch or more!