The jewel in San Carlo's crown

SIGNOR SASSI, the celebrated London restaurant famed for its spaghetti lobster, has relocated from the top floor of Anantara Bangkok Sathorn to the ground floor of upscale mall Siam Paragon.

Open for two years, the old location was the ideal vehicle for a first-class gastronomic voyage thanks to the floor-to-ceiling windows offering a fantastic view of the city, but was sadly too far off the beaten path to attract diners. Now, with its location inside one of the busiest spots in central Bangkok and easy to reach by Skytrain, Signor Sassi’s fortunes are about to change.

The plush black-and-grey decor offset by mustard chairs has been ditched by a warm colour scheme for a more relaxing ambience. The carnival masks still decorate the walls but what attracts the eyes is the open kitchen in the middle of the restaurant.

Covering a total area of 255 square metres, the two-level eatery can accommodate about 100 guests and the mezzanine level is perfect for a small private party of up to 20 persons. Signor Sassi Bangkok is the third franchise location outside of the United Kingdom but the first in Asia. It’s owned by business tycoon Apichai Taechaubol of JC Kevin Development, a long-fan of the London establishment. Apichai also brought Signor Sassi’s sister restaurant Cicchetti to Bangkok earlier this year and it’s proving popular with patrons of CentralWorld’s Groove.

Signor Sassi in London’s hi-so Knightsbridge area boasts a clientele of film stars, famous footballers, politicians and musicians – among them Anthony Hopkins, Bon Jovi and Cristiano Ronaldo. Founded in 1984 by Carlo Di Stefano, the eatery is the top brand of the Italian family-owned San Carlo Restaurants Group, which opened its first overseas franchises in Kuwait and then Beirut. 

The menus are identical but prices are set to meet the lifestyle of new diners. A special menu with about 20 new dishes will be added next month. 

 A perfect start is the antipasto dish of Burrata Piccante Sassi (Bt450), spicy eggplant marinated with garlic and served with burrata cheese. It offers a rare chance to enjoy the milky and creamy mozzarella cheese from Italy’s southern region of Puglia, which goes well with the thin slices of grilled eggplant marinated in olive oil, garlic, chilli and basil. This dish has a mild flavour with the chilli adding no more than a small kick.

Signor Sassi’s celebrated signature Spaghetti Lobster is now available in two portions – half for Bt850 and whole for Bt1,650. The half portion easily feeds two while the whole is so large that it will satisfy three appetites. The Canadian lobster is fresh and juicy and a succulent partner to the al dente spaghetti in delectable tomato sauce.

The lobster is partly cooked in brandy, lobster bisque and fresh parsley before being finished in a tomato sauce made from peeled Italian tomatoes and cherry tomatoes, onions, garlic, sugar, salt and pepper. The way it sticks invitingly to the spaghetti is no doubt one of the reasons for popularity.

Another pleasing dish is Tagliolini con Granchio (Bt420) – special thin egg pasta with crabmeat and a touch of cream. The pasta is cooked with onion, sweet cherry tomato, garlic, chilli pepper, crabmeat and the creamy sauce and enhanced with saffron to tempt both the palate and the eyes. 

Equally tasty is Risotto Signor Sassi (Bt520) featuring the high-starch, short-grained Italian rice Arborio, which gets its name from the town of Arborio in the Po Valley where it is grown. It’s cooked with dried porcini mushrooms, chopped onion, white wine, creamy sauce, Parmesan cheese and pepper then wrapped in Parma ham. 

For those who don’t regard pasta as a main course, a good choice is the Beef Medallions (Bt1,150) – Australian medallions cooked in creamy sauce, truffle paste, gravy and chopped onions and wrapped in Parma ham. Also worth trying is Salmon in Peppercorn Cream and Dill Sauce (Bt550), which as the name suggests, features seared Norwegian salmon fillet in cream sauce with mild Italian pink peppercorns and canned tiny pink shrimps.

Do save room for dessert. Among the sweet temptations are Tiramisu Amaretto (Bt280) with mascarpone cheese and espresso coffee, Panna Cotta (Bt240) served with fresh fruits and strawberry coulis, and Creme Brulee (Bt260) with sour kalamansi lime and pistachio biscotti. 

 

 

SWEET AND SAVOURY

>>Signor Sassi on the ground floor of Siam Paragon is open daily from 10 to 10. Call (02) 610 9891.