Rockfish Restaurant Rocks at Kamala Bay

When we alighted from the tuk tuk at the Rockfish Restaurant at the southern end of Kamala Beach in Phuket, I was not sure how the interior will look like. I was pleasantly greeted by warm teak wood floor and pillars with splashes of bright colours and contemporary art. The restaurant comprised of two floors – an upstairs area that had the bar, a nice lounge and an open terrace that had stunning views of the Andaman Sea and the surrounding mountains. The lower floor where we had our dinner had a casual funky ambience and overlooks the Kamala Bay. Rockfish certainly offers an unsurpassed dining experience with spectacular sea view from where we sat. Somehow, the wooden floor and white wooden canopied roof gave that wonderful feeling of rest and relax while I looked out at the horizon laced with lights and listen to the lapping of the water.

Our warm host was Richard Anthony, a Welsh married to a Thai lady. He owns and manages this popular restaurant that offers a wonderful menu featuring the finest seafood and meat cooked Thai style or modern fusion style. The Thai lady head chef, Pui Lamun Taptong has been working there for many years.
As soon as I saw Tom Yam Goong in the menu, I knew I had to try it. Try it I did and the verdict was “this is the best Tom Yam Goong I ever had in all my life”. The soup is characterized by its distinct hot and sour flavors, with fragrant herbs like sliced lemon grass and galangal, a few torn pieces of kaffir lime leaves and whole dried chillies and the lime juice and not forgetting the succulent prawns, mushrooms, tomatoes and sprinkling of freshly chopped coriander leaves. It was so spicy, piping hot with the right balance of lime juice and fish sauce that I would recommend it to anyone looking for an instant relief for a blocked nose due to flu. This soup had no coconut milk and neither was there any commercially prepared tom yam paste.

We tried two different starters. The Herb Crumbed Goat’s Cheese Fritter and Red Onion Marmalade on Toasted mini Ciabatta was an instant hit with me. The crispy outside of the fritter just burst into oozing cheese that paired very well with the slow cooked red onion marmalade and the lightly toasted ciabatta. I am sure this tangy and sweet onion marmalade will also be great with sliced cold meats and other cheeses. The dish came with a wonderful crisp salad of rocket leaves and sweet basil leaves – it was a nice change. The Spiced White Prawns with Chilli, Spring Onion & Sesame Seeds on Crisp Wonton with Chunky Guacamole was a pretty starter. Flat wanton skins had been fried till crisp and topped guacamole and then topped with the sauted prawns, a spicy chilli condiment and sprinkled with the spring onion and sesame seeds giving it a nice balance of different textures and flavors. I found it a little messy to eat but it was certainly worth the mess.

Rockfish has Australian ribeye beef Massaman curry, a southern Thai dish that is Muslim in origin on its menu. However, we opted for the Fish Massaman curry that was served with toasted cashew nuts and potatoes and a small helping of fragrant Thai jasmine rice. Similar to Malaysian curries and with some similarities to Indian curry, the Thai Massaman curry had an abundance of warm spices such as cinnamon, cloves, nutmeg, lemongrass, fish sauce and other classic Thai ingredients added and this curry paste was brimming with all the flavor and richness of Thai cooking – a bit overpowering with coconut cream. The fish was fresh and blended well in that sauce. Perhaps if eggplants were added instead of potatoes it would have been even better – maybe it is the Indian in me that always matches meat with potatoes and fish with eggplants.

We also tried the Crispy White Snapper Fillet, Cauliflower Risotto, Asparagus & Yellow Curry Sauce. The fresh fish fillet had a nice golden crisp outside and was moist and flaky inside. I would have preferred it to be drizzled with the Yellow Curry Sauce instead of having it served on the side of the plate. The Cauliflower Rissotto has my thumbs up – cooked to perfection that you would think it was an Italian who cooked it that night. Richard informed me that he used organic vegetables that are grown in Thailand.

Good decadent desserts are always a blissful ending to good food. Two desserts were not enough for me and therefore I tried three fantastic desserts. My favourite was the Warm Crispy Banana Bread with Caramelized Bananas and Greek Yoghurt - everyday bananas were transformed into a heavenly delight by the way it was caramelized and served atop toasted banana bread with a helping of thick Greek yoghurt!! I also tried the Mango & Pineapple Salad with Coconut Ice Cream and Vanilla Syrup, and the classic Thai Mango and Sticky Rice with Sweet Coconut Cream.

Residents from all over Phuket and visitors from all over the world dine at Rockfish every day. One can find unsurpassed food, atmosphere and great hospitality with personal touch - even the cold towels offered at the end of the meal were rolled up to look like little white birds! Their wine list is extensive. Rockfish also has an all day brunch and a wide choice of artisan burgers, salads and pastas. Rockfish is also an ideal place for a leisurely lunch.

Rock Fish Restaurant
33/6 Kamala Beach Road,
Kamala 83120
Phuket
Thailand

Tel: 076 279 732

www.rockfishrestaurant.com