{chiang mai} rustic & blue

a restaurant located in the hip street of nimmanhaemin was recommended by a talented artist friend of mine who is currently residing in bangkok. its decor was as how i'd imagine the restaurant to be from its name - rustic, cozy and reminiscent of sharing a meal at the dining table of a friendly farm house.

a matching game of wooden furniture coupled with hanging greens occupied the dining space. at one side  of the room were shelves that held collections of tea leaves and few stacked cookbooks (i spied momofuku!).




smacked right in the middle of the dining space was a big rustic table where diners can pick to eitherwatch the staff prepping drinks at the back of the tiled counter or people-watch through the full length sliding door at the back of the restaurant of diners mingling and basking under the sun in the the restaurant's wide garden furnished for al-fresco dining.

akin to its decor inside, the garden was filled with comfy looking couches and benches with stringed lighting of bulbs hung over through the tree that created a cozy ambiance. if only the weather was cooler, that would have probably been our choice of seats. 

the decor was just the beginning. the theme persisted even in their approach food styles - inclination towards new american but with an organic farm-to-table concept, its menu gave an impression that most of there ingredients were made in-house. that was the kind of restaurants i've always liked.

warm & hearty :: duck prosciutto crostini | house-cured duck breast prosciutto, warm fresh mozzarella cheese, mango black tea jam, rocket, rustic rosemary bread (thb 185)

served on a wooden serving board, three pieces of crostini displayed itself proudly with its finishing drizzle of a balsamic reduction. the idea of combining the flavors of gamey-savory saltiness from the duck prosciutto countered by the fruity sweetness of the jam, creaminess of the cheese, pepper notes from the arugula and the occasional tartness of the balsamic reduction was interesting. there were some play on textures which was nice. 

there were some room for improvement: it was hard to chew a piece off the unsure duck "bacon" in the most elegant manner and it was too hard with a fork and knife. the gaminess may have a bit too pronounced. the bread itself had subtle hints of rosemary which was easily overshadowed by the other ingredients of the dish. my favorite part has got to be the reduced mango black tea jam against the melted mozzarella cheese. 

warm & hearty :: bbq pulled pork sliders | brioche mini burger bun, bbq sauce, rocket, pickled beetroot, homemade gorgonzola cheese (thb 185)

served with a side of sweet potato fries, it was a pretty huge serving despite its bun was "mini". the side of fries were greasy but i loved the splash of colors and flavors from the different sweet potatoes and the rare crunch of the salt against the natural sweetness, with the deep fried garlic chips. 

the pulled pork was mostly great but some bites were of borderline dry pulled meat doused in a generous amount of the sweet-vinegary (i thought i tasted notes of apple cider vinegar) bbq sauce. the strips of beets were visible but was mild on the taste. however, my mom thought the sandwich was pretty good. 

what i loved about rustic & blue is the farm-to-table concept coupled with most of the items are made #fromscratch and in-house and i am a sucker for those. the creativity in combining classic flavors and occasionally splashing in unexpected combinations while still making the flavors work beautifully together is something i always look forward to at a restaurant on top of friendly service. there are still some room for improvement in the execution but i like what is serving from this kitchen.