The revamped basement of Koyn, now Koyn Thai
So what is Koyn Thai exactly?
Koyn originally opened a couple of years ago as a modern Japanese restaurant across two, very different-looking floors. Now it's essentially divided into two. The upstairs restaurant remains a Japanese restaurant (now rechristened Koyn Japanese). You can see our Test Drive of the original Japanese offering here (and the current Japanese menu remains similar to this).
Meanwhile, the basement dining room has been transformed into Koyn Thai. Taking control of that half of the restaurant is a Bangkok-born chef who comes to Koyn via Paris, Rose Chalalai Singh. She's in charge of a menu that's both inspired by her own upbringing as well as the cooking and vibe of Parisian cafés.
Where is Koyn?
You'll find the restaurant on Grosvenor Street in the middle of Mayfair. As it has been since it opened, it's easy to spot by looking for the colourful mini parked outside (which has now been given a Thai makeover).
Look for this car and you've found Koyn.
Where should we go for a drink first?
The best bars nearby are both high-end hotel bars (which happen to be from the same hotel group). The Claridge's Bar and the Connaught Bar are both worth a look, and we'd definitely prioritise a visit at The Connaught for a martini.
That said, the small bar at Koyn is an excellent place for a drink pre or post-dinner. The cocktail list has now been tweaked a little to include new cocktails that are influenced by Thai cuisine as well as Japanese.
Up in the bar, these are the Sabai Sabai (Mekong, Thai basil, soda, £11) and the Midori Margarita (Tequila, orange, agave, wasabi, £13).
Where should we sit?
Anywhere is good, although there are counter seats where you can look into the kitchen, which remain from the previous incarnation. You'll be thankful for the glass/perspex in front of it because every so often they unleash an enormous fireball of flambeeing. It's extremely impressive. That happens on the right side of the counter, so bear that in mind before you take a seat there.
This is actually a screengrab of a video taken mid-flambeeing, so you can see what we're talking about.
Onto the food - how have things changed?
Koyn Thai has introduced a completely new menu, so even if you've dined in the Koyn basement before, this is for all intents and purposes a brand-new restaurant. The menu has a mix of very familiar dishes, like a pad Thai, tom yum soup and more as well as some more interesting twists on Thai dishes. The heat and spice ranges from mild-ish to the much more spicier end of things. The menu doesn't indicate when you veer towards the hotter dishes, so ask for advice if that's something you want to be aware of.
If the choice is too much for you, then aim for one of the tasting menus, ranging from £45 to £75 a head.
We roamed the menu, taking in a few of their signature dishes - here's what we had:
Chiang Mai Platter - roasted capsicum relish, crackling pork, northern spiced homemade pork sausage & sticky rice (£14) - that relish really packed a punch and the sausage makes for a great intro snack.
Black pepper crispy squid with lemongrass & garlic (£12.50) - a standard dish delivered with perfection.
Wild garlic ‘escargots’ with green chilli, Thai basil & roti (£13.50) - one of the dishes which clearly highlights the chef's Parisian influence. it's a unique twist on garlic snails and one you have to try if you like snails (which we understand aren't everyone's cup of tea).
Grilled jumbo tiger prawn ‘choo-chee’ with panang curry, kaffir lime leave (£39.50) - a truly enormous prawn in a fantastic sauce.
12-hour slow-cooked lamb shank massaman with cashew nuts and crispy shallots (£30)
Kra paow gai - minced chicken, hot basil, chilli & fried egg (£18) - good, but left us wishing we'd tried one of the noodle dishes.
Crab-fried rice with crispy shallots (£35) - probably the only dud note for us. With all the other rich flavours abounding in the dishes we'd ordered, the crab flavour found it hard to break through. You'd be better off going for standard jasmine rice as a side.
What about dessert?
We'd had quite a bit by this point but it's worth holding back a little for the dessert. We were strongly advised to go for the following signature dish and this proved to be a good suggestion...
Mango sticky rice - mango panna cotta, sticky rice, coconut sorbet (£12) - almost like a mix of pannacotta and a thai rice pudding. It all works surprisingly well together. If you're ordering one dessert to share - make it this.
Another good option is this passion fruit panna cotta with coconut sorbet and ginger crumble (£12)
What about drinks?
The bar menu downstairs does have more Thai-influenced cocktails, so even if you've been to the bar upstairs, these are worth a look. There is also a Singha Thai lager on offer down there and a wine list where glasses start at £8 and the entry-level wine is £47, about standard for high-end Mayfair these days. On the other end of the menu, bottles escalate towards the £000s with the top end currently being an Italian 1998 Masseto at £1750.
Overall thoughts
On a Thursday summer night when it was (still) raining outside, Koyn Thai was completely packed. Shifting the menu to this unique take on Thai cuisine has been a good bet by restaurateur Samyukta Nair, where the kitchen is delivering a parade of excellent dishes - and we barely scratched the surface of the menu. Whether you've already been to Koyn or not, this is well worth a visit.
More about Koyn
Where is it? 38 Grosvenor Street, London W1K 4QA
How to book: Book online or call 020 3820 5264
Find out more: Visit their website or follow them on Instagram @koynlondon.
Hot Dinners ate as guests of Koyn. Prices are correct at the time of writing.
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