Review: Rosa’s Thai Special Menu

Rosa’s Thai get it so right, and their festive menu feast hits all the right notes. Until 1st February, you can enjoy two courses for £25 or three courses for £28 from their festive menu.

You kick things off with their banging, irresistible prawn crackers, a generous bowl per person. You then choose a sharing platter, and we went for the Classic. This included crispy pad cha aubergine, veggie spring rolls, chicken satay and Thai calamari. It’s presented beautifully on a round platter and everything was delicious.

The aubergine was a real hit, sweet and perfect dipped into the tamarind sauce. The veggie spring rolls were piping hot and wonderfully crisp.

The chicken satay, not usually one of my favourites, was an absolute delight. The chicken was incredibly tender and beautifully marinated, with a very subtle peanut flavour. The Thai calamari had a lovely coating too. I always brace myself for chewy calamari, but this was anything but.

For mains, we chose the chicken red curry with jasmine rice, and the cashew stir-fry with jasmine rice and king prawns. The red curry was rich in flavour, while the cashew stir-fry was delicious and more mellow in spice. The mushrooms were particularly good! We also ordered a side of Thai cabbage for £5.50, which was a really tasty addition.

To finish, you can choose a mini dessert.

We both went for the crispy banoffee roti with vanilla ice cream. It arrives as a triangular roti filled with warm, fried banana and is a lovely way to end the meal.

All set menus come with a shot of home-brewed Thai Moonshine, with the choice of alcoholic or non-alcoholic. Despite opting for the non-alcoholic version, it tasted like it could strip wallpaper. I can imagine it being great fun for a larger group, but my mum and I chose to wrap things up in a more civilised way with a ginger and peppermint herbal tea, served in a teapot with a small ramekin drinking cup.

The service was excellent throughout, knowledgeable, enthusiastic, warm and relaxed. So much so that we stayed for quite a few hours.

We can also recommend the Thai-inspired cocktails. The mango boba colada (£11) was a real treat and a great way to enjoy bubble tea in cocktail form if you’re a fan. I went for non-alcoholic lychee with mango bubbles (£5.90), which was light and refreshing.

Overall, the experience was faultless. Delicious food, lovely ambience, great service and very good value, particularly for the quality and quantity of food. We had plenty left over and happily opted for takeaway boxes.