FineDining at Fifty Six

As a writer it's not very often that I am lost for words, but our latest restaurant review, in the heart of Bophut's Fisherman's Village left me speechless. When it comes to fine dining this truly is as good as it gets and I have a new favourite restaurant here on Koh Samui, The name of the restaurant? Fifty Six!

Fifty Six is owned and run by Volker and Henry, both from Germany and the boys are creating a storm in the romantic Fisherman's village. I had heard on the local grapevine that the newly renovated restaurant was something special but I had no idea that every aspect of our evening would far surpassed my expectations, the quality of the food here is nothing less than astounding and the service and presentation is second to none.

On arrival we were greeted by Volker who welcomed us and then seated us in the small but very chic restaurant. The décor is superb and complimented by a stunning central water feature. The restaurant is fringed with bamboo plants has a truly exotic Asian ambience.

We perused the Asian / European fusion cuisine menu over a glass of house white, Bushman's Gully. The menu is bursting with delicious dishes; try these for starters…..'water chestnut shrimp cakes with Chinese plum dipping and dill mayonnaise', 'pork satay with Indonesian peanut sauce' and 'smoked salmon sushi with cucumber relish and pickled ginger'! We decided on the 'Vietnamese fresh spring rolls with shrimps and lime chili' and were not disappointed. This dish is light, fresh and delivers a taste sensation with every mouthful. Beautifully presented on fried noodles the combination of flavours blends perfectly and all compliment each other in perfect harmony. Absolutely delicious!

The salad menu is equally exciting includes, 'red nicoise salad tuna, boiled egg slices, black and green olives, anchovy, caper, rocket with aged beetroot balsamic dressing' and 'szechuan duck breasts slices with Asian herbs, cos and crisp rocket with tangy black bean dressing'. The soup menu includes Thailand's famous spicy and sour 'Tom Yam Gung', lemon grass soup with prawns as well as 'Italian vegetable soup with grated Parmesan cheese'.

Choosing from the main course menu is no mean feat either! With choices such as 'pan fried Indian spiced tuna with Mediterranean chickpea, cherry tomato, sweet corn and mango salad' and 'spicy Cajun chicken with roasted bell peppers and cashew nuts baked potato with sour cream' the choice was never going to easy! After much deliberation I chose 'grilled New Zealand lamb cutlets with peppercorn and wild basil sauce, served with mashed orange potato' and my partner chose 'beef tenderloin steak with red wine pepper sauce served with spiced potato chips'. The quality of the meat here is astonishing, neither my partner or I have ever eaten meat this tender, its often put in restaurant reviews that the beef cut like butter, well here is more like soft margarine, and literally melts in your mouth. I don't know that the chef's secret is here at Fifty Six but I am sure it's in hot demand as this really is the very best steak I have ever tasted and the lamb is just as sumptuous and delicious. These dishes really do have to be tasted to be believed and this is where it's impossible to turn what we experienced into words, you really will just have to take my word for it try it yourself!

Side dishes to the stunning main courses include, steamed jasmine rice, sautéed mixed vegetables and spiced potato chips. After much discussion over our main courses we moved onto the dessert menu and pondered over 'chocolate mousse topped with rich cream, crunchy cashew nuts and mint leaves' 'banana slices in coconut sauce and Italian passion fruit ice cream, topped with dark chocolate sauce' and 'mixed tropical fruits with home made passion fruit ice cream'. In the end we elected for the queen of all deserts, Fifty Six's famous 'chocolate lava cake with cashew nuts and Italian mascarpone ice cream' believe me this dish is indescribably good! The combination of warm lava cake with cold ice cream and warm chocolate sauce is heaven itself and left us speechless; 'hmmmmm' is all we could murmur!

We ended our evening at the elegant bar with a glass of brandy while being entertained by our hosts. This had been a truly unique and memorable dining experience and one that I know I am going to be repeating at every opportunity. I would to take this opportunity to personally like to congratulate Henry and Volker of creating a restaurant that is thoroughly exceptional in every aspect and one not to be missed during your stay here on Koh Samui.

Fifty Six is open from 6 pm until 11 pm every day apart from Mondays. For reservation call 08 7893 9161 or 08 1085 5302.