Grand Siam, Thai Restaurant, Eastwood

Gai Ma Now (see below)

I've been meaning to tell you about Grand Siam for a couple of months now, but every time I tell someone else about it they want to visit, so I've been putting off telling you about it until "after the next visit". Also my photos are not great and I didn't want to do the food an injustice but the time has come!

You find out more by visiting their Facebook page where there are plenty of photos of their delicious food https://www.facebook.com/grandsiamrestaurant?fref=ts, or see their menu by visiting their website http://grandsiam.co.uk/page4.php or even by visiting their review page on Trip Advisor where they get 5 out of 5 (with 14 reviews) http://www.tripadvisor.co.uk/Restaurant_Review-g186356-d4084462-Reviews-Grand_Siam-Nottingham_Nottinghamshire_England.html.

I can't remember when the restaurant appeared on Nottingham Road in Eastwood but having always wanted to eat at a Thai Restaurant and somehow never making it, it was high on my list of places to go.

Whilst planning a night out with the girls at work it was suggested we try it out and we were very glad we did. The service is great, the waitresses dressed in Thai Style were very attentive and answered any of our questions about the food and the amazing vegetable carvings that accompany it.

The food came promptly, there were no mix ups with orders and it was all very delicious. The dishes are varied and interesting and range from fragrant and tasty to positively fiery and a range of textures, sticky rice, crispy noodles, succulent meat, silky sauces. It's a good place to go if you have a group with a variety of tastes as we do, there's the more Chinese style milder dishes for the "not sure", there's the unusual for the "adventurous" and there's a range of curries for the "heat seeker".

The surroundings are pleasant, the cutlery is styled like bamboo, the crockery all traditional style and the food comes in a variety of pots on burners and dishes, it's exciting when it all arrives with it's distinctive fragrances. As well as the sit down restaurant they offer a discounted take away service. They are licensed with a range of wines and beers, we were very grateful of a round of ice cold Tiger Beers in the recent heat.

I've been three times now, with family on my birthday and another night out with work, we are already planning the next one, give it a go I'm sure you will enjoy it, here some of the food we tried;

Starter: Poh Pia Ped £5.50

One of my favourite starters, super crispy and packed full of soft duck and crunchy vegetables

with a delicious hoi sin sauce.

These are described as prawn crackers but they are more like spicy Thai crackers made from cassava possibly, they are fiery and very crunchy and the perfect accompaniment to an ice cold glass of Tiger, in fact last time we went we had 2 plates and I think if we could have we would have spent all night drinking beer and eating crackers! £2.50

Starter: Tod Mon Pla £4.95

Thai style fish cakes, crispy on the outside, soft on the inside, perfumed with the lemon grass and served with sweet chili sauce.

Grand Siam Thai Platter - £6.50 per person (minimum 2 people)

A showcase of a selection of the Grand Siams starters - my in-laws had this and said it was very filling, but they really enjoyed it, the platter included spring rolls, satay skewers, wonton style parcels of prawn and chicken, king prawns in wrappers.

Starter - Talay Tord £5.50

Succulent pieces of squid, mussels and prawns all in a light crispy batter and served with a sweet chili sauce.

Starter - Poh Pian Goong - £5.50

Wrapped prawns, fried until crispy and served with sweet chili sauce.

Starter: Tod Mon Khaw Pod £4.50

Crispy cakes of sweetcorn deep fried and served with a sweet chili sauce.

Main - Pad Neau Loua Dang £7.50
Stir fried beef and vegetables with crunchy cashews to give a bit of texture all in a Thai style red wine sauce, rich but no chili punch, a good choice if you have someone with you who's not sure about trying something unknown.

Main - Pad Priew Waan £7.50

Chicken in a sweet and sour sauce, another dish for those in your party who are not sure about Thai flavours but enjoy Chinese food.

Gaeng Mussaman Neau Tun - £8.50

This is my new favourite curry. It's rich and saucy with tender chunks of beef and soft potatoes, crunchy cashews, the sauce has so much depth and is aromatic with Thai spices, a warmth that builds in your mouth but is tasty as well as spicy heat. A must try in my book!

Main - Chicken Pad Thai £7.50

The dish everyone associates with Thai, packed full of stir fried vegetables and noodles in a mild and tasty sauce. Great value too, a meal in itself no rice or extra noodles needed.

Main- Gai Ma Now - £8.95

Battered and fried tender strips of lemon chicken served in a sweet chili sauce on a bed of crispy fried noodles. A huge dish this one, possibly one to share if you don't have a big appetite, but a taste explosion of lemon and chili and plenty of texture, juicy chicken with a crunchy outer and crispy, saucy noodles.

Main - Ped Maa Kam - £9.50

Succulent duck in a rich tamarind sauce, tamarind is fruity and sweet but sour too but not an overpowering flavour. The dish was topped with crispy noodles. 

Main - Gaeng Kiew Waan, chicken £7.50

The classic Thai green curry, packed full of meat and vegetables and a fragrant, aromatic Thai sauce, rich with coconut milk and lemon grass and mild chili heat.

Main - Gaeng Pha £7.50

I don't have a photo of this one but thought I'd tell you about it anyway, it's quite unsuspecting, has a 2 chili rating on the menu, was packed full of vegetables including cauliflower and parsnip, broccoli and carrot and tender chunks of chicken in a broth like sauce, but wow did it pack a punch, I needed my full portion of rice to eat it, but it was packed with flavour too so while I would whole heartedly recommend it, but it's not for the light hearted...maybe someone pout there might order it and wonder what I'm talking about!