Thai Rani– The Overview…
Food: Curry Puff, Chilli Wonton, Treasure Hunt, Coconut Rice, Duck Panang Curry
Ratings:
Food: 4.5/5
Atmosphere: 4/5
Service: 5/5
Value: 4.5/5
The details…
Thai Rani is an almost quaint Thai restaurant located on Bluff Road, near to Sandringham hospital. Internal kitted out with dark wood, you’re eyes are instantly drawn to the beautiful Thai mural on the wall. The restaurant perfects that pleasant casual dining feel and it’s an ideal local spot to pop into for a catch up with friends.
We started out with the Chilli Wonton and Curry Puff , it was these little beauties – along with the more creative flair to the menu, that really pushed their food scores into those top marks. Both made in house they are beautifully light. The pastry on the curry puff was perfect with layers of flakiness that any pastry chef would have been proud of, while the wonton had a wonderful sweetness accompanying the spice that gave way to a tongue-tingling after taste.
We started our mains with Thai Rani’s creative (dare I say “signature”) Treasure hunt. This unusually presented sweet and sour pork dish is not just theatrics though – it enables the batter to remain crispy while still getting the soft tender meat inside. It’s a technique used traditionally in Thailand and we loved how this dish looked to combine the traditional and the new, and brought a little bit of a wow factor (but not just for the sake of it).
Next we sampled a more traditional Duck Panang Curry. We’d asked for our food to be fairly mild, so I was pleased the curry only had a soft spice, while still having a rich, multi-dimensional flavour through the sauce. I felt this really resonated with the quality of the dish when they aren’t reliant on the strong spice to create the flavour. The duck was cooked superbly and just melted in your mouth, while I enjoyed the generous serve of lychees in the dish.
Finally we got one of the most wow deserts I’ve ever tried from an Asian restaurant. It was so unexpected and so creative! While at first glance, and when you hear the ingredients (charcoal biscuit, 70% dark chocolate, smoked marshmallow and chocolate ice cream) you imagine this will be an incredibly rich dessert, it was actually surprisingly light. The charcoal biscuits stop the dish from being very sweet and the chocolate is of the more creamy variety than an overly cocoa one. The beautiful smokey flavour from the marshmallow combined with the slightly bitter charcoal was a completely new and incredibly enjoyable flavour combination for us!
Everything else…
Website: https://www.instagram.com/thai.rani/
Address: 177 Bluff Road, Black Rock
Opening Times:
Mon 6pm to 10pm
Tue 6pm to 10pm
Wed 6pm to 10pm
Thu 6pm to 10pm
Fri 6pm to 10pm
Sat 6pm to 10pm
Sun 6pm to 10pm
Parking: Despite it’s close proximity to the hospital, we found parking really easily on the side street opposite.
Getting here on PT: It’s a bit of a tricky one on PT, but your best choices are to get one of the buses running via Sandringham Hospital and it’s like a minute’s walk. For example the 825 or the 600. Both pick up at Frankston line stations (Moorabbin and Cheltenham respectively).
Disclaimer: We dined as guests of Thai Rani, Black Rock. Reviews are honest and based on our own personal experiences. We cannot guarantee things at a restaurant won’t change including, but not limited to, menu items and opening hours, so please confirm any details with the venue before visiting.