Spice I Am

Born from the much-loved street-food original (still a fave in Wentworth Avenue), this inner-city hotspot offers a similar wham, bam, slam of sweet, sour and spice, with well-rounded support from service and kitchen staff alike. There are three Spice I Ams scattered across the city - including this moody, dark-wooded dining room and bar - but founder/chef Sujet Saenkham's dishes remain the crowning glory. Strips of beef with bite are marinated then sun-dried and fried, Isaan-style, to dip into feisty jim-jaew sauce, while prawn fritters come ready to wrap on a betel leaf with cashews, coriander and chilli. Braised-on-the-bone duck dives into a mild massaman sauce so glorious you'd lap it up by the spoonful, but don't miss the textural treat of the extra-spicy house speciality - diced raw Thai pork sausage scattered through a salad of crisped rice, peanuts, mint and spring onion. Cool right back down with smoked coconut cream and pandan ice-cream on salty-sweet-sticky black rice.