BKK

BKK in a word? Underwhelming. Although, in fairness to BKK, their less than rave review stemmed mainly from their family name -  as a member of the Hanoi Hannah/Tokyo Tina group, it was always going to be tricky for them to meet the incredibly high expectations I had for this place when walking through its doors.

Situated in Saigon Sally’s old hood, the downstairs of the venue itself is, well, quite sterile - consisting of vast white walls with not a plant, painting or other decorative feature in sight.

Offering Thai inspired cuisine, the menu offers up many of the usual Thai culprits, but also offers a few surprises, including the Fried Green Papaya Nest with sweet pork, cherry tomatoes, peanuts and som tum, and the Broken Mussel Pancake with bean shoots and home made siracha.  As a lover of green papaya salad (and if I'm going to be honest, of most things fried!), I certainly couldn't go past the Fired Green Papaya Nest. Whilst mildly apprehensive about my papaya being fried, it actually added a delightful texture to the dish, which overall was bright, fresh and well balanced in flavour. The shredded chicken salad with green mango, prawns, peanuts, herbs and chilli was also a highlight of the night.

The Thai Green Curry and the Rice Noodles with Prawns, Chilli, Basil and Snake Bean were "good", however they were no better than a $10 dish you could grab from your local take away joint such as Thailander.

The service was by far the highlight of the evening - friendly, attentive and completely across the menu, they were an absolute delight. However, whilst the service was impressive, with its hit and miss menu, I definitely won't be running back through BKK's doors.

Food: 3/5
Service: 4.5/5
Venue: 2.5:5
Total: 10/15
Verdict: Verging on don't bother - there's so many other amazing Thai places in Melbourne.