Surf & Turf, Restaurant in Phuket Town

With not even a year under their belts, Surf & Turf restaurant in Phuket Town has been impressing locals, expats and tourists alike with their creative, delicious and beautiful cuisine.

Located on Phang Nga Road near the Promthep Clock Tower, the intimate, fun eatery is a labor of love, with Chef Tom Koeffer cooking up a storm in the kitchen and architect Pang Onyen manning the décor and guests in the front. With nearly 12 years of experience, Tom has graced the kitchens of a number of famous French restaurants, including Haus Meer; Sasha’s Rotisserie and Bar; and even Ratatouille. He brings his love and passion for French cuisine to the island, carefully and successfully blending local flavors with traditional cooking techniques.

The aim of creating delicate fusion-style recipes was to help lure in a more diverse group of customers – ones who may be hesitant to try something different. But by using familiar Asian spices and ingredients, Pang and Tom have been successful in helping even the wariest of diners branch out with their taste buds with dishes such as black angus beef steak with green curry sauce and grilled eggplant, potato almond strudel and tomato concasse and the amazing homemade mussel ravioli.

To begin, let me take a moment to say that Tom is the master of sauces. Any type of emulsion, crème sauce, foam, pesto or anything in that family that he makes is just phenomenal! One such delicious creation that highlights this is the crispy sea bass with oyster beurre blanc foam, paprika chili sauce, and spring onion emulsion. Not only is this an amazing dish to look at, but everything is edible and adds different flavors and textures to the incredibly light and tender sea bass. This is definitely one to be on your must-try list!

Another excellent flavor combination is in the octopus salad with tender pieces of lovely baby octopus sitting atop a pile of mixed greens with a wonderful spread of homemade Thai basil pesto and hazelnut oil. The pesto gives everything a very clean and light flavor without overpowering the rest of the ingredients while the octopus gives it some weight and texture. This dish would make anyone happy as a starter or a main!

And as I always say, what is any meal without dessert?

Let it be known that Surf & Turf’s chocolate lava cake is to die for, but on this occasion we were lucky enough to try the chocolate mousse with raspberries. It was so rich, decadent and lovely that it makes you want to cry a little just knowing that that the meal is over! However there is always the possibility of taking a little Surf & Turf magic home with you with their made-to-order homemade German sausages, which are beyond amazing! All you need to do is try one of the curry wurst or bratwursts on the menu and you will be begging Tom to make you a dozen fresh ones to cook at home!

With creative, delicious dishes, amazing décor and a whole lot of love, Surf & Turf has made its mark on the hearts and stomachs of all who stop by and has quickly and deservingly become one of Phuket’s must-try restaurants!