By Jaqi Clayton Church
The infant Yum Yum, lovingly reared in its Church Street nursery,
grew into an attractive, engaging child, and recently has blossomed
into a sophisticated teenager brimming with confidence and style.
Even if you haven’t yet visited YumYum’s spacious new
abode in the High Street, the chances are that you’ll know
someone who has, and the probability is that they will tell you
they’ve never been anywhere quite like it. Two years in the
making, this is now Europe’s largest Thai restaurant, seating
over 250 guests, with an absolute corker of a bar that’s almost
as intoxicating as the drinks that flow from it.
One Saturday evening, we stepped out of the grime of the High Street
into the calm oasis of Yum Yum’s exotic courtyard with its
fountain and Thai statuary, and mounted the sweeping steps to the
lofty front door. Inside, having first observed the modern décor
and buzzing atmosphere, we were shown to seats in the impressive
bar area for apéritifs. Mine was a Bangkok Breakfast, one
of several cocktails specially invented for Yum Yum. Comprising
gin, clementine marmalade, orange and lemon, this was a glorious,
zinging, citrussy taste sensation; and the Bloody Mary ordered by
my vegetarian companion was adapted for him without demur by the
substitution of anchovy-infused Worcester sauce for aged balsamic
vinegar – a thoughtful touch that went down appreciatively.
The restaurant is furnished on contemporary lines, and is organised
into three distinct sections. There’s even a choice of seating:
at tables and chairs, or oriental-style at sunken tables, which
means leaving your shoes behind and sitting on cushions at floor-level.
This looked like great fun, and no-one needs to get creaky sitting
cross-legged as there’s a well beneath each table to accommodate
your lower extremities.
The extensive menu, listing around 100 dishes, made mouth-watering
reading and final decisions were tricky, but eventually we settled
on starters of tempuras with plum dipping sauce. The vegetable tempura
included deep-fried aubergine, cauliflower and red pepper, and the
seafood variation featured prawns, squid and mussels. Both were
quickly served and perfectly done with just the right amount of
crispness on the outside and softness inside. Then came our main
courses of Ped Ma Kam (crispy roast duck with tamarind), Kang Mussaman
To-Fu, (Tofu, mushrooms and potato in peanut butter curry), accompanied
by egg fried rice, Thai fried noodles with beansprouts and crushed
peanuts and, to my mind, one of Yum Yum’s most enduringly
delectable dishes, Pad Pak Kom (quick fried spinach with garlic
and yellow beans). I confess I found the duck’s tamarind sauce
unexpectedly sweet and sought refuge in the juicy, salty spinach
to bring my palate back into harmony, but the duck itself was a
perfect combination of tender meat and near-crunchy skin. Our second
main dish was a vegetarian take on Yum Yum’s award-winning
Kang Mussaman - lamb peanut butter curry - and if the deliciousness
of this sauce is repeated in the carnivorous version, that’s
what I shall order next time along with another bottle of organic
Valpolicella Falasco.
I’m told the most popular dessert is hot chocolate fondant
but, if not replete by this stage, I’d have chosen something
sharper such as mango and passionfruit mousse. Instead, a couple
of digestifs followed back at the bar. This brings me to the subject
of the drinks list, which is nothing short of staggering. Whether
it’s a bottle of Roederer Cristal champagne or a dessert wine
to rival Château d’Yquem, an 18-year-old malt, or an
espresso Martini cocktail, you can obtain it at Yum Yum, as well
as some fifty other wines, forty other spirits and various extra
delights, right down to an after-dinner cigar with your Hine cigar
cognac. We opted for our favourites of Grand Marnier and cognac
with soda, but could easily have been seduced by one of the tempting
dessert cocktails.
Because we had lingered long being rather greedy and boozy, our
bill was an unsurprising £40 a head, but there’s plenty
of scope to be less – or more – extravagant.
When the time came to leave, we took away a few things we hadn’t
brought with us. Firstly, a sense of awe at the epic scale of the
operation; secondly, no little admiration for the combination of
skills that make it all function; and lastly, the curious impression
that we hadn’t merely been out for dinner. Somehow we had
also been part of a large and merry crowd joining together for a
great big celebration. Do go and see if you agree.
Yum Yum Thai Restaurant
183-187 Stoke Newington High Street, N16
020 7254 6751
www.yumyum.co.uk
Open Mon-Fri 12 noon-3pm and 6pm-11.30pm
Saturday and Sunday 12 noon – 11.30pm |
