Dusit

With winter just starting to bare its teeth, a trip to the cosy confines of a well-appointed Thistle Street restaurant was a very welcome Monday lunchtime treat. Taking a recommendation from the lovely Susan of Hula Juice Bar fame, a trip to Dusit, one of Edinburgh’s premier purveyor of Thai goodness, had been arranged. This was a veritable super-group quest, as joining Susan was Yelp’s Jenny, still in the clutches of Thai food mania, and the excellent Jemma of Jemma Eat World.

David Cameron undermined my promptness, today, but as I gently promenaded towards the venue, I bumped in to Jenny, and together we joined the already arrived Susan and Jemma, in Dusit’s cosy back room.

We perused the lunch menus, which offered two courses for £12.95. The choices on offer looked good to me, but Thailophile Jenny couldn’t resist asking for a quick peek at the full menu, which was swiftly provided.

From the menu, there was no way I wasn’t going to eat a dish called the Three Musketeers, no matter what it contained, so I ordered that to start. To follow, I opted some spicy beef fillet.

By this time, the room was packed to the rafters, so I was pleasantly surprised by the speed of the starters’ arrival. First came Susan duck roll, then the musketeers for Jemma and I, followed by some chicken for Jenny. All dishes came neatly presented with salad and flowers (presumably edible, although I didn’t end up verifying that).

My musketeers were good. King prawns served three ways: in filo, in tempura batter, and in panko bread flakes. This was very reminiscent of the dish Jemma had in Karen’s Unicorn, the other day, so she’ll be better placed to tell you how it matched up, but it certainly looked a lot prettier and it tasted pretty good.

Main courses were preceded by one of the waiters bringing us fresh warm plates, and spooning a big spoonful of fragrant white rice out for each of us. Where the mains arrived, they looked very stylish. They were served in boat-shaped dishes that neatly held the plentiful ingredients and rich sauces.

Jenny was very happy with hers, as it was “just the duck she’d been looking for.”

Susan and Jemma, tucking in to a fragrant chicken curry that perfectly echoed Jemma’s sunny outfit, were similarly contented.

My beef dish was, continuing the theme, rather like the main course I’d eaten at Karen’s Unicorn. The beef was crispy, the sauce sweet, and the chillis fierce. It had much more elegance than the dish at Karen’s, but I enjoyed the two about the same, I’d say.

Find out what Jemma thought about today’s quest at Jemma Eat World.

Overall, I was impressed with Dusit. I found it quite hard to compare with our other recent Thai quest, when we visited Siam Thani, as the two places are very different. I imagine this reflects both the diversity of Thai cuisine, and the differing approaches of the owners and chefs. I think both places merit a further visit, as I having a feeling that their evening menus are where they both shine more brightly. For sure, pay Dusit a visit, soon. You’ll be very pleased with what you’re served and how you’re served it.

Scores

Blythe scores Dusit:
4/5 for food
4/5 for presentation
3/5 for service
3/5 for setting
giving an overall 14/20

Today’s lunch questers were: Jemma, Susan, Jenny, Blythe

We ate: duck, prawn, and chicken starters, duck, chicken, and beef main courses

We drank: sparkly mineral water, still water

We wore: a symphony of yellow, orchestral brown boots, a rhapsodically cool coat, tympanic three-piece suit

Total bill: c.£60