At any fine Chinese restaurant, Peking duck, suckling pig and shark-fin soup are the dishes not to be missed. Only at the Oriental Hotel's newly refurbished China House can wrap up such a feast with a dessert that can't be found anywhere else in Thailand.

Aficionados of Chinese delicacies are fully apprised that the China House has reopened after four long months of renovation.

Of course, having a meal at any of the Oriental's restaurants is always special, but the first trip back to the China House after such a hungry wait has to be an exciting one.

The new look is inspired by Shanghainese decor of the 1930s. Even the washrooms are a wonder.

The new menu has celebrity chef Jereme Leung as creative consultant, his every direction carried out flawlessly by trusted associates.

"I'm one of his colleagues," says Kong Khai Meng, the resident chef. "We've been working together for more than 15 years now. We were both born in Hong Kong and both now live in Singapore."

Kong has extensive experience in Chinese cuisine in Hong Kong, Singapore, Dubai and Shanghai - he knows all four cornerstones, from dim sum preparation to barbecuing and roasting to wok handling to cutting and carving.

The restaurant's signature item - if you can manage to ignore the dim sum and live seafood in the tanks - is the Peking duck, which costs Bt1,100.

The 2.8-kilogram ducks come from Poland and are roasted in an oven made in Australia. Advance orders are, of course, necessary because of the long preparation time.

Although everything about the restaurant's appearance is new, don't expect any revolutionary tastes.

Chef Kong confirms that the menu remains traditionally Chinese. "The change is in the presentation only, not in the flavour or the cooking style."

So you'll see spring rolls presented in chrysanthemum shapes (Bt100), hot and sour soup with fresh lobster (Bt950) served in white ceramic bowls with black graphic prints.

The deep-fried prawn with mild wasabi dressing (Bt850) is served along with ripened mango.

Something to look for beyond the usual fare: The pan-seared beef tenderloin with pistachio nuts (Bt450) is extraordinary.

And don't forget to try the durian pancakes. The China House is the only restaurant in the country that serves this dessert. You'd have to go to Malaysia to find the only other source.

This durian pancake was created by Leung and Kong two years ago when they were working at the Mandarin Hotel in Kuala Lumpur.

They'd been stalking supper on a downtown street at durian harvest time when the idea struck them.

They placed the flesh of a mon thong durian and whipped creme on a pan-fried wrapper made of egg and crepe flour, wrapped it up and put it in the fridge.

"The dish, once finished, needs to be served right away, while everything is chilled," Kong says. "Otherwise the creme will melt."

Even though I'm not a fan of durian, I found this treat outstanding, and a formidable rival to the usual durian in coconut milk with sweetened sticky rice, which amounts to a love-it-or-hate-it food.

The China House is, needless to say, worth a try, especially for deep-pocketed diners keen to start the New Year with a thrill.

Juthamas Cholthavornpong

The Nation