Thai-mere, Ellesmere

Star Rating: *** Tucked away in one of Ellesmere's narrow streets, perched above an off-licence, is the market town's latest eatery, the Thai-mere restaurant.

It proved to be yet another good choice for diners looking for somewhere in which to enjoy an evening out in Ellesmere.

Although it has only been open a matter of months we secured the only table left in the small, cosy restaurant on a Saturday night.

There was a nice mix of people there - a family birthday celebration, a young couple enjoying a romantic meal out and another group enjoying a night 'on the town' among them.

And the only front-of-house waitress/bar manager and, in fact, owner, deftly handled all the tables with professionalism and a smile, ensuring we weren't left waiting.

Kwan Burton moved to Britain nine years ago and has been in Ellesmere for 15 months. Her husband, Ralph, runs the Hogarth's off-licence on the ground floor of the property and the couple have worked hard to ensure their business ventures are a success.

In fact Kwan is sometimes known to lend a hand in the kitchen and says she will be relieved when help arrives from Thailand very shortly.

When she brought us our drinks there was also a basket of prawn crackers, an oriental alternative to the mediterranean basket of bread or olives.

It was a nice touch and much appreciated after the walk to the restaurant. As well as attracting diners from in and around the town the restaurant is also getting customers from much further afield.

Mel chose a Thai beer, which he said had a good, hoppy after-taste to it, and we perused the extensive menu.

The restaurant serves two different banquet menus offering diners a chance to sample different Thai tastes, for £15.95 and £17.95 a head. It is always a good idea if, like me, you are not used to the style of food and are not sure what you will like.

However, I really did not think I could do justice to the banquet and so we stuck to the main menu which included starters, soups, salads and no less than 30 main courses.

Mel plumped for one of the four soups, Tom Yam Gung (£4.25) which, he said, was wonderful. Tiger prawns and mushrooms are two of his favourite ingredients and they were combined with Thai herbs, chilli and lemon grass to give what the menu said was "the ultimate Thai taste".

Sadly my choice was more ordinary. Lady in Love was described as marinated king prawns, wrapped in rice paper, served on a vegetable bed with sweet chilli sauce. I don't know why but I didn't expect it to be deep fried and on salad rather than a stir fry. Yes it was tasty but not what I had expected.

However, my main course more than made up for the slight disappointment.

After agonising for ages I decided to chose duck over the impressively extensive seafood menu. But I had no idea which dish and so asked for help.

Having said I liked creamy but hot dishes I was surprised when Kwan recommended Pad Pik Gang Duck (£7.95), spicy, stir-fried duck with red spices, chilli, onions and peppers. When it arrived it was wonderfully creamy and the duck cooked beautifully.

It really was one of the best ways I have found to eat duck, something that can be completely ruined by poor cooking.

My coconut rice was the perfect accompaniment, offsetting the spices of the dish yet with a rich taste of its own.

Mel went for a twist on his favourite steak and chips. Weeping Tiger (£7.45) was sirloin steak marinated in Thai herbs, served on a sizzling plate with a Thai sauce.

The sauce would not have been enough for me but he said the steak was cooked just how he liked it. His chips were lovely (well I had to do a taste test), double fried.

We needed a rest before a look at the desserts and I nipped down to the ladies', quirkily placed in the off-licence.

Quirky is I suppose the way to describe the restaurant.

Uneven floors, a mix of furnishing and decor and the narrow stairs to get too and from the restaurant would not please everyone.

Sadly the first floor means it is completely inaccessible to disabled people and those stairs would also make it a struggle for those with mobility problems.

On the plus side combining the restaurant with the off-licence meant I actually had a look round at the bargains downstairs, making a mental note to return!

We finally decided to have a dessert, although there was not a huge choice. We both went for a dish we had seen others eating - a brandy snap basket filled with ice cream and home-preserved ginger. The ginger was a nice touch to round off a good meal.

With 15 per cent discount on takeaway and lunchtime meals I think we will be trying the meals in one form or another again.

ADDRESS

Thai-mere Restaurant, 5 High Street, Ellesmere.

Tel: 01691 624670

MENU SAMPLE

Starters

Thai-style Spicy Fishcakes with chilli plum sauce (£3.95); Golden Platter (minimum two people) - spring roll, chicken satay, fishcake, prawns on toast, chicken ball and golden wanton (£5.55)

Main courses

Massam Gai (creamy yellow curry chicken with potatoes, onions and roasted nuts (£6.95); Neau Nam Mun Hoy (loin of beef in oyster sauce with mushrooms, onions and sweet peppers (£6.45); Yam Hed, wild mushroom salad with fresh vegetables in tangy sauce (£5)

Sides

Thai fragrant rice (£2.20); Stir-fried vegetables (£4.25)

ATMOSPHERE

A busy night so it was lively but the small rooms meant we did not feel overlooked

SERVICE

Very good. Only one waiter, rushed off her feet but she coped wonderfully

DISABLED FACILITIES

No access for disabled people

By Sue Austin