moving on 2008 Lewes district primary schools annual ... - Viva Lewes

Photographs Emma Chaplin
PAILIN THAI RESTAURANT
The only place in town with a mention in the Good Food Guide
I have to confess to having held a prejudice against
Pailin. The problem was tempura. As a devotee of
Japanese food, I love pieces of fresh vegetable or fish
briskly fried inside ethereally light batter. I was unimpressed,
therefore, at being served tempura in Pailin
with a thick coat of batter more akin to that found in
a fish and chip shop. Not horrible, but not right for
‘tempura’. This was years ago, and I never went back.
This despite foodie friends assuring me that they had
eaten well there. I raised a dubious eyebrow at the list
of awards for ‘good hygiene’, saying I’d rather go somewhere
recommended for its food. Well, now I’ve had to
eat my words and some very nice food at Pailin, because
they are the only restaurant in the Lewes area to
be given a mention in the new Good Food Guide. I’ve
noticed, walking past, that it can be busy in the evening,
but I visit on a quiet, weekday lunchtime with a colleague.
We sit next to the window. Although located on
car-clogged Station Street, the restaurant feels airy and
calm. Pailin is the Thai word for blue sapphire, and the
decorative scheme is pale yellow picked out with bright
blue. Thai music plays quietly in the background, and
on the walls are a number of wood-carvings. We are
handed a number of menus. Perhaps, it must be said,
too many. The list of lunch specials is most straightforward,
with each dish, priced around £6-8, coming as
a complete meal (for example, a large bowl of soup, or
meat served with rice). I order a large bottle of Hildon
sparkling water at £2.75, my colleague chooses Singha
Thai beer at £2.50, and decisively orders two lunch
specials; rice noodle soup with red pork £5.90, followed
by roast duck and rice at £7.50. Our charming wait-
er looks a little perturbed by this and tries to explain
that both are meal-sized portions. ‘No problem,’ my
colleague assures him, ‘I’m very hungry.’ I love Thai
soup, so I choose tom yam gung from the main menu
at £6.20, which is prawn in coconut milk. I dither about
a main course. I’d heard the herb marinated chicken is
delicious, but I decide to try crispy salmon at £11.50,
and ask the waiter which sauce he recommends. He
suggests chilli, so I choose that, and order sticky rice,
which I haven’t had in years (£2.90). The food takes
a little while to arrive, but is worth waiting for. Mine
comes in a normal-sized bowl, my colleague’s is vast, so
I feel like Goldilocks. Lovely fresh flavours, with lemon
grass, slices of galangal root and zesty lime leaves. The
‘red’ pork is served in slices on top of a clear broth, and
is equally delicious. Whilst waiting for the next course,
I take a look at the little rooms out the back, noticing
healthy-looking pot plants and what at first sight seems
to be a Thai dolls’ house. The waiter comes over and
points out the little ceramic models of an older man
and woman: ‘In honour of our ancestors,’ he explains.
I return to the table as my salmon arrives, which is indeed
crispy, generously covered in a zesty, tasty chilli
and fresh pepper sauce. The sticky rice is as delightful
as I remember. My colleague eats his way through his
second meal with little difficulty. The duck, flavoured
with garlic and ginger, is declared ‘lovely and juicy’. I
enjoy my meal very much and will return one evening
soon. Not the place to go if you’re in a hurry, but that’s
no bad thing. V
Emma Chaplin
19, Station Street, 473906
Closed Mondays
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