Bangkok Cafe

Unless you live in the neighbourhood of Sants you’ll probably never stumble upon the small and unassuming Bangkok Cafe perched at the end of a charismatic passageway of two storey houses, which are indeed a rare thing to see in this city of piled high apartment buildings. 
On a warmer evening or a weekend afternoon it’s great to arrive a little earlier than planned to enjoy a cold Singha beer on their simple, plant scattered terrace.Recently renovated and giving the impression that there were a few finishing touches to be made, the Bangkok Cafe is inviting in its unstuffiness. Try to make a reservation as there’s only seating for around 30.From a narrow, cramped kitchen fewer than a handful of cooks sent out one of the best meals I’ve eaten in a while and was as consistently good as on previous visits. As our beers came we were brought a taste bud awakener of vermicelli rice noodles topped with a coconut paste and diced peppers and onions. Simple yet very fresh and staved off the hunger a while longer.
The downside to blogging is it’s easy to lose friends as you hold them back from tucking in to their meals as you aim to snap away, so here’s only a glimpse of what we ate. It took barely a glance at the menu for one of our group to choose her usual prawn Tom Kha Gai which she adores for the perfectly balanced aromatic flavours and prawns she claims are  the best you’ll find in Barcelona.

Tom Kha Gai

 My starter of Satay Gai were juicy, moist, sweet, sticky skewers of chicken with a bowl of rich dipping peanut sauce that was just begging for a finger to scrape up the remainder once the chicken was slid off its truss. 

The Kaeng Dang Kung red curry was a triumph of fresh ingredients, aromatic flavours and sweet, dewy fruit of grapes and lychees, along with the necessary Thai kick of heat.

Kaeng Dang Kung

Sadly, my main was slightly let down by my being perched on a stool at the end of our table and watching my companions finish all theirs and go out for cigarettes whilst I could only start on mine and soak it up with the remainder of the jasmine rice. It just wasn’t the same eating it as a postscript and the hit and miss service was the only real complaint. Unfortunately it’s something you start to get used to here on many occasions and in all honesty the food was so delicious I’m prepared to overlook it and make a point of stressing that we’d all like to eat together next time I order. If you can overlook it too then stay that extra stop or two on the metro and head over and indulge in satisfying eastern flavours and fantasties about moving into one of those houses.

Bangkok Cafe, Carrer d’Evarist Arnús, 65 Sants/Les Corts

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