Fabulous fowl take flight at Scalini
Pigeon, quail, duck vie with whole stuffed chicken to tempt diners
SCALINI AT the Hilton Sukhumvit Bangkok has poultry on the menu all this month – but certainly not the usual familiar dishes.
Cooked in the “modern Italian” style for which the restaurant is duly celebrated, the dishes form an “I Believe I Can Fly” menu. Quail, pigeon and duck are offered in a flutter of tantalising new ways, but there’s also a whole stuffed chicken that can’t be ignored.
Chef Sopoj Suwanwong has done amazing things with our feathered friends. His appetite-whetting Come Fly With Me (Bt750) is a tempura of quail raised organically in the Pyrenees mountains along the French-Spanish border.
Pyrenees quail invites diners to Come Fly With Me.
Served with baby-spinach salad and grain-mustard dressing, the quail meat is lean, tender and succulent. Supoj deep-fries the lightly battered slices to just enough crunchiness and presents them with peppery and slightly fruity sauce that perfectly complements the bird’s gamey aroma.
Rougie foie gras is the base for Wish I Could Fly.
For something a little heavier, Wish I Could Fly (Bt850) is a risotto of Rougie foie gras and Parmesan cheese that’s aged 36 months. The rich and creamy base goes wonderfully with the pleasantly fatty duck liver, and they’re married in a puddle of Borolo wine reduction sauce that alleviates the greasiness while boosting the flavour.
Fly Me to the Moon is a confit of duck Magret.
The only pasta dish on the menu, Fly Me to the Moon (Bt750), is a sizeable bowl of homemade pappardelle with confit duck.
The “magret” – the breast of French moulard duck – is meatier and fattier than other types, making it ideal for slow cooking. The rich, tasty confit is tossed with the slightly chewy pasta, topped with crisp green asparagus and fava beans.
In the Air Tonight features Bresse pigeon.
Recommended for the main course is In the Air Tonight (Bt1,200), a large breast of organic pigeon from Bresse in France, roasted golden brown and served family-style with various sauteed greens and creamy polenta scented with white truffle oil.
A sauce of sweet and savoury Porto wine goes well with the bird’s caramelised skin and renders the polenta even more delightful.
I Believe I Can Fly entails a whole grainfed chicken.
Another great option, especially for group dining, is I Believe I Can Fly (Bt1,995). You get a whole roasted organic-grain-fed chicken stuffed with black truffles and potatoes.
The skin is golden and crisp and the meat is juicy and tender. The chicken is carved at tableside to be enjoyed with roasted fillings, baby vegetables and finger-licking red-wine jus.
Scalini boasts an extensive |wine list. Ask the sommelier about food-pairing options.
BEST OF THE BIRDS
The “I Believe I Can Fly” menu is served all through May.
Scalini is on Level 2 of the Hilton Sukhumvit Bangkok on Sukhumvit Soi 24.
It’s open daily for buffet lunch and for dinner from 6 to 11pm.
Make reservations at (02) 620 6666.
