Rak Chang Thai Restaurant review, Leigh on Sea

Rak Chang main meal

This new contemporary Thai restaurant opened early 2010, so we tried it out. It has stiff competition with the longstanding Manolys restaurant up the road (which has had a refurbishment this year), but it has brought a fresh approach and it has worked.

The interior is smart, yet cosy and the chairs are really comfortable. It has a laid back feel, with plenty of space between the tables, and friendly, efficient staff. The extensive menu made it hard to choose our dishes, as there were some dishes that are not seen in other restaurants, which is great news. I spent 7 months in Thailand when I was younger, and have been waiting for a restaurant to serve some of the more unusual things like the Northern Jungle curry and the minced pork salad, which I will be back to try!

To start, we shared a beef salad and asked for it a little less hot than usual (as this is a very hot dish) and it came out just right – plenty of red chillis if you choose to eat them, but medium hot throughout. We always ask for “no MSG” as we do not get on with Monosodium Glutamate, and yet everything still had plenty of flavour and really fresh ingredients. The beef was good quality and the portion very generous.

We had seabass in chilli and lime, which is one of my favourite dishes. The fish and juices were delicious, but I did find that the steamed seabass was overcooked, which does spoil such a delicate fish. To go with the fish, we tried their king prawns in sweet and sour and, again, the sauce was fresh tasting and had just the right amount of sweet and sour without being too thick and sticky like some. The large juicy prawns were cooked perfectly.

We also had stir fried vegetables in oyster sauce – again very fresh and a lovely mix of crunchy vegetables.

With plenty of Singha beers, the bill came to £56 with service, which we thought was very reasonable. We will, without doubt, be back!

Restaurant name

Rak Chang Thai Restaurant

Date of visit

16th March 2010

Restaurant telephone

01702 711180

Restaurant address

93, The Broadway, Leigh-On-Sea, Essex SS9 1PG

Service Charge included?

Yes

Average price per person for 3 course meal, excluding drinks

moderate (£20-£30)

How many dined?

2

Value for money rating?

8/10

Atmosphere Quality rating?

8/10

Service Quality rating?

8/10

Food Quality rating

7/10