Review

Nava sits within the Salil Riverside Hotel on the banks of the Chao Phraya River. A new arrival on the Bangkok dining landscape, it serves Thai classics highlighting ingredients from two of Thailand’s major rivers, the Mekong and the Chao Phraya. The à la carte menu boasts both home-comfort dishes and specialities. Begin with miang kham or a platter of varied appetizers, including mahor, mee kob, and krathong tong, perfect for sharing. Follow with juicy deep-fried pork belly with dried chilli dip or tasty grilled pork neck. For main course, try giant river prawn grilled on Nava’s custom-built charcoal grill. The extremities are slightly charred, the head meat exudes vibrant hues of yellow and orange, the flesh glistening, presented with a stellar tamarind sauce. Continue with a cut of tender, flavourful wagyu beef green curry, the sauce coating the meat and packing a significant punch. House fried rice, containing chunks of succulent jumbo crab meat and crab eggs, arrives with multiple condiments including pork scratchings, lime, prik nam pla, shallots, and Nava’s secret dipping sauce. Vegetable dishes include an exceptional eggplant and minced pork, piquant and satisfying. The dessert offering is traditional, including mango sticky rice, coconut dumplings, Thai red ruby, and an unforgettable deep-fried bananas with coconut ice cream. A global wine list offers sufficient choice.