Mes Amis
102/3 Sukhumvit 53, (Thonglor Soi 5)
Bangkok 10110
Tel: 02 260 6445

This restaurant is in an attractive house about one hundred-plus yards into Thonglor Soi 5 from Sukhumvit 53. There is a good sized sign on the main road. It looks like a top-end restaurant being in a house with a proper drive, usually full of expensive cars. The disappointment was inside however as it was nearly empty. It was a Sunday night and despite the elegant room, I found a distinct lack of atmosphere. The staff were competent enough but lacked sparkle, and the music machine remained silent until the pudding stage. I think the tape just ran out.
The wine list was well thought out with some good Chilean wine as the house wine, and strangely enough, a couple of well-priced Alsacian wines - a Riesling and a Gewurztraminer. Well I am a sucker for the wines of Alsace so that made the decision easy and I had a very pleasant bottle of Riesling before the excellent house red.

So to the menu, which had many standard dishes as well as a few interesting ideas. I opted for crab cakes which came with extra crab. It looked good and the extra crab, on top, had a nice hint of horseradish in it. It was a good sized portion with four crab cakes, and while they may have looked small, they were in fact thick and substantial.
For main I went for the veal loin with tongue - certainly a new idea to me. I had been tempted by the beef dish of tongue, ox-tail and chunk (I suspect cheek), but thought I had better conserve my appetite before taking that on. My veal was very attractively presented on a bed of shaved courgettes and carrots, with pieces of tongue in a rich sauce around it.
For pud they managed to catch me with the oldest trick in the world. I was dithering and undecided as to what to eat until I saw a mixed dessert offering for two. The other half was suffering from a surfeit of frogs’ legs and then pork, but was roped into the pudding course and denied her ration of ice cream. It was, in line with all the other food, first rate if not a little chocolate-centric.
What I missed in this restaurant was the sense of caring that comes from a proper maitre'd or with the chef cruising for plaudits. Sunday night it may have been, we were unknown and the staff generally did their job, but for me, it lacked that little bit of je ne sais quoi!