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Published on January 27, 2008

With its understated elegance hearkening back to ancient Siam, Bussaracum continues to offer Thai cuisine that both Thai and non-Thai diners agree is very fine.

One of the first restaurants to offer royal Thai cuisine nearly 26 years ago, Bussaracum has "travelled" around the Silom area, starting out in Soi Pipat, then a brief sojourn in the Dusit Thani and now in Pan Road, where it has been ensconced in the Sethiwan Building for almost 10 years now.

The Sethiwan location offers all sorts of pluses: a short 10-minute walk from the BTS Surasak station, lots of parking if you come by car, and a spacious relaxed ambience that allows for "creative seating", depending on the size of your party.

The interior decoration, while light and airy, remains staunchly traditional. No displays of back-lit vegetables here, nor modernistic minimalist designs. What you see is what you get.

And what you get is the range of dishes that the staff have learned to prepare from a lady who once prepared dishes in the royal palaces. She ruled the Bussaracum kitchen for years, finally agreeing to retire when she was in her 80s.

Her knowledge lives on. The appetisers on the a la carte menu, for instance, can tingle anyone's taste buds - cho muang (steamed flower-shaped dumplings filled with minced chicken), toong ngern yuang (minced pork and shrimp wrapped in bean curd), goong sorn glin (marinated shrimp seasoned with lime juice and ginger and wrapped in lettuce leaves) and look tao (turtle-shaped mushrooms with seasoned minced shrimp stuffing.

The look tao is a real winner, with its burst of lime flavour in the stuffing.

The appetisers can be ordered as separate dishes, or, if you wish, as an assortment (Bt175-Bt190).

Don't get too caught up in the appetisers, though. Bussaracum offers some very tasty main dishes. Saengwa (Bt370), which is called "old-fashioned" grilled prawn salad, is not too spicy and, with a twist on pla dook foo, comes with a serving of a deep-fried Thai catfish that serves as a condiment.

Plenty of curries and noodle dishes are also available, as well as a welcome twist on that well-loved Thai soup, tom yam. You can order it with the usual shrimp, if you wish (Bt135), but you can also go for crab (Bt150).

Bussaracum offers other choices as well. Set menus are available based on the number of people in your party. There's even a number of set menus designed for the solitary diner.

Wine goes for Bt150 to Bt170 per glass and Bt430 to Bt490 per carafe.

On the second floor, Bussaracum offers cooking classes. These are very flexible.

All you have to do is phone manager Suwaphak "Bee" Samritchaikun and discuss with her what you would like.

Laurie Rosenthal

The Nation