Thai Balcony, Saw Close, Bath

My inbox is drowning under press releases, I’m negotiating my way by past new kids on the block every time I walk through town and I’m spending way too many midweek mornings recovering from the excesses of a lavish launch party the night before; after way too long languishing in the file marked “nothing much ever changes in Bath”, the restaurant/bar scene has, it seems, come back to life…and cheers to that indeed!

But as exciting as the city may suddenly be, I craved a Bath institution experience: somewhere long-standing and familiar; somewhere with history; somewhere where the patrons expect you to know what to expect.

And so it came to pass that we ended up Friday feasting in Thai Balcony, Bath’s long-established grand old dame of the city’s Thai restaurant scene which opened its doors way back in 1990 long before Saw Close was the vibrant merrymaking zone that it is today, featuring a retro-refined, retro-glamorous first floor dining room where both staff and surroundings are decorated with shimmering Far East Asian bling.

As pretty as the softly-carpeted dining room is (and it is — very), I’ve always wanted to take to a table on Thai Balcony’s actual balcony: a neat little alfresco veranda with just about space for a small collection of tables for two perched over the Sainsbury’s Local on the corner of Saw Close/Kingsmead Square. The trouble is, you can’t book one of those tables; they’re allocated on an “if you’re lucky” basis when you rock up. But luck, it seems, was on our side on the evening we visited; before we’d even had a chance to order our pre-dinner drinks, a balcony couple upped and left so we shimmied across the room and magpied into their vacated space. Hoorah! It might have taken us 35 years to get there, but at last, we’d made it. 

Okay, the view across Kingsmead Square on a busy Friday night might not be anything even close to, say, Bangkok’s Blue Sky Restaurant and Bar. But there was a soft, warm breeze rustling the branches of the big trees and the shambolic to-ings, fro-ings and skirmishes outside the pizza restaurant opposite provided a little light entertainment, UK city style… as did Thai Balcony’s extensive a la carte menu, which waltzes from the familiar (hot and sour soups; red, green and Penang curries) to specialities (Drunken Duck, anybody?) and lots and lots of seafood options. 

I’ve eaten at Thai Balcony enough to know that the blindfold/pin method of selection wouldn’t let you down here; portions may or may not be generous, but it’s mostly all about as authentic and tasty as British Thai food gets. If, however, you’re befuddled by indecision, the Set Menus are the way to go, and it’s the direction we often choose to take. This time around, we opted for Set Menu C: a heady mix of mixed starters, Tamarind Duck, Sweet and Sour Pork, King Prawn with Basil and Chicken Red Curry, which we deemed to be pretty good value for £36 per person (including unlimited rice.) 

As beautifully-presented as our starter sharing platter was, there were too many crispy brown things (the spring rolls, the Toong Tong, the prawn/pork toasts) to distinguish the selection from supermarket party freezer food territory and not enough of the moist, soft, charcoal-infused Chicken Sateh (complete with a delectable sauce) to uplift the erstwhile lacklustre array. But hey, we had one of those tables, that warm, soft breeze was rustling the trees…and our main course feast picked up any dropped beats on the food front.

Of the whole array, both the Sweet and Sour Pork (less gloopy than its Chinese counterpart, and definitely more complex in countenance) and the classic, perfectly-balanced Chicken Red Curry stood out for particular acclaim. Elsewhere, the prawns were as fresh and basil-y as one would expect from the dish descriptor and the Tamarind Duck — the tender game acting as the perfect foil for that uniquely sweet/fruity/sour tamarind tang — put a distinctly grown-up foodie spin on the whole selection. Heck, even the rice was lovely; what on earth does the Thai Balcony kitchen do to steamed jasmine rice to make it so good it deserves a ‘lovely’?

And overall, Thai Balcony itself is indeed rather lovely: a Bath institution, long-standing and familiar, with history… and offering tables for two above the Sainsbury’s Local, if you’re lucky.