Ghosts of Xmas Buffets Past: 2021
Happy Holidays, reader—whatever holiday you celebrate. It’s the week between Christmas and New Year’s, 2022, and I’m midway through my list of holiday dinners/buffets this year. It’s a ritual I started out of desperation in the first year of the plandemic lockdowns, since there was literally nothing else good in life but food. And I’ll post a review of every pig-out after my final feast on the 1st. In the meantime, here’s a rehash of last year’s buffet array (the above photo is the turkey station at the Westin)…
Bardo (again)
As in 2020, I hit Bardo first. I really love this place but I can only afford to go once a year. It started with a welcome cocktail…..I can’t remember now what it was….sparkling wine and a fruit liqueur. It was tasty. Then course 1—zucchini rosti with smoked sour cream, dill, and olive. Course 2—foie gras terrine with gingerbread and apple gel. Course 3—wagyu short rib. Course 4—cheese (fomme de savoie, fourme d’ ambert, brie de meaux). Course 5—poached pear with pear schnapps. The photos do a better job of showing off the delectable dishes but in short, the meal was a perfect 10. On the suggestion of the manager, I paired the short rib with a glass of syrah-grenache that was out of this world awesome. The atmosphere, the service, the excellent food, and the clear care and love poured into Bardo from every member of staff makes dining there an exquisite pleasure.
Next I visited Le Bouchon (my last holiday visit before their permanent move to Sathorn). It wasn’t a full meal. I just popped in for the terrine foie gras and port wine roasted pidgeon. It’s a thing that the French likely find mundane but for this Los Angeles native, it was quite exotic. I can’t say it was my favorite dish, but I was proud of myself for being adventurous, and the experience was unique, with flavors theretofore never having had—both intoxicating and enigmatic. I think if I grew up in France, I’d be 900 lbs and have permanently greasy fingers. By the way, that’s not coffee in the above photo. In December 2021, we were trapped in the insane psychosis of Covid, and the moronic Thai govt mandated that no alcohol be served in restaurants, because booze somehow helped to spread the boogeyman. Fucking retarded.
As G’s German in Silom is one of my regular spots throughout the year, and since they were putting on a multi-course holiday extravaganza, I moseyed over and plopped down on their terrace—no reservation, but when you’re buds with the owner it don’t matter. Things began with a prosecco bellini (refreshing and effervescent—refreffervescent for short). Then on to the chicken saffron soup with pink peppercorns (positively exploding with flavor), feta spring rolls (delicate, subtle, divine), and smoked duck breast with raspberry vinaigrette (carnal, seductive, sinful). The main course was venison ragout in port wine, and it was another moment in my life where I felt I was eating above my station. I imagine global elites eat like this daily, but for this common barfly, a meal of this caliber felt like I won the lottery. The heavenly hour ended with baked apple with marzipan and a glass of hot amaretto. Their 2022 menu is exactly the same, and I’ll be sneaking over there in the next couple days to re-indulge in this fantastical culinary liaison once more.
To round out last year, I did the NYE buffet at Old Faithful—the Westin Grande Sukhumvit. This magnificent buffet is more-or-less the same every year. They’ve a charcuterie and cheese table, salads, pizza, pasta, Asian faves, turkey/stuffing/ham/traditional sides, grilled sirloin and lamb, oysters/mussels/prawn…and then the menu gets interesting depending on availability at that time. For 2021, there were some standouts, eg Alaskan King Crab, Dungeness crab, rock lobster, and Maine lobster, grilled foie gras and prime rib. And per usual, the dessert spread defied logic.
In the last two years that I’ve been shamelessly pigging out to ring out the old year, both sessions have had high points, and I couldn’t pick one out from the rest as being the best. They were all wondrous in their own right. I’ve two more to get to for 2022, and will finish on New Year’s Day. As soon as I’ve recovered from the food hangover, I’ll post the highs and higher’s here on Substack. I realize it’s info offered too late, but maybe you can use the reviews to plan your next-year food odyssey—I know I will.
For more time-killing reading, swing by bangkokseven.com all this week, and here’s hoping your holiday fest is fantastic. Peace.