When you think of liquid nitrogen and flaming meat theatrics, Thai food is probably not the first cuisine that comes to mind. At Thai Rani they have the Thai classics and traditional flavours but they do things a little differently and add a bit of creative flair to some of their dishes. Thai food but not as you know it.
We started with some entrees. The curry puffs were crisp and the meat and potato filling was packed with flavour.
The dumplings had a thin skin and a chunky sweet and spicy peanut sauce over the top. Good appetisers to whet the palette.
'Treasure hunt at Mt. Buller' looked like a mountain of shaved ice with a combination of sweet fruits like pineapple and lychee and some savoury veg like tomato, cucumber and capsicum. The waiter poured the liquid nitrogen into the bottom of the bowl and the snowy mist slowly creept out under the ice creating a spectacular event on our table. Underneath the ice is a savoury dish of sweet and sour pork which is crisp and tender and is complimented with the bits and pieces on top. It resembles the flavours of sweet and sour pork but intrigues you with the creative concept.
Next we had the beef massaman curry with coconut rice. The aromas coming out of that curry were amazing. It was rich, warming and delicious. The meat broke apart with a spoon and had a touch of coconut cream on top for extra richness. It paired perfectly with the coconut rice.
The oink-enstein was another theatrical one. The sweet sticky pork was wrapped in foil and lit on fire in front of us. This warms up the meat and creates those fried sticky bits on the corners of the meat. This dish was amazing I loved it. There were bitesize strips of thick fatty pork in a sweet soy based sauce. This with a bit of coconut rice made me so happy.
Lemon chicken is a classic Western dish which I happen to love. The batter was light and super crispy and the sweet lemony sauce was just perfect.
The prawn vermicelli noodles were super flavoursome with lots of garlic and ginger and lemongrass and soy. Those glassy noodles are always delish and there were big flame grilled prawns sitting on top, crispy heads and all.
We ended with a sweet dessert called the campfire. It was a glass filled with smoked chocolate icecream and a toasted marshmallow with a lid on it. When you take the lid off, the smoke creeps out and you get a waft of woody campfire. It came with a side of crisp charcoal waffle pieces which added crunch and a decadent 70% dark chocolate sauce to pour over the top. The smoky flavour with the chocolate was divine.
I heart Thai Rani!
Olives x
Thai Rani
Address: 177 Bluff Rd, Black Rock VIC 3193
Website: https://www.thefork.com.au/restaurant/thai-rani
Phone: (03) 9598 9325
Trading Hours: Tue-Thu: 5.30pm-10pm, Fri-Sat: 5.30pm-11pm, Sun, 5.30pm-10pm, Mon: closed
