I love proverbs and one of many I try to live by is: “Love thy neighbour!” I moved away from home and from my parents at fifteen and a half to go to school in a bigger city. Ever since then I understood the importance of a good neighbour. More so, if they bring good food! Joking aside, while looking for inspiration for this week´s column, it suddenly occurred to me that I have not yet written about Thai Pan – a street food style Thai place practically next to my apartment.
Kevin, a former DJ, has lived and worked in Magalluf for over 25 years. He has always loved Thai food, often visited the country, and his partner is Thai. This passion turned into a decision to open their own restaurant - with him taking a role of a charming, friendly front of the house, while his partner would turn his hand to cooking. The place became an instant success, popular with holidaymakers and locals alike. Several of my friends who lived in Thailand described Thai Pan’s food as most authentic and as close to the original flavours as possible in Europe. Yet, if someone did not tell you about this little gem - hidden at the age of party central that is Magalluf, and on the way to some big 4 and 5 star hotels - you would not know it existed.
The chicken satay starter. photos: Stephanie Schulz
Willingly or not, Stephanie has somehow converted into a semi-official photographer and a deputy taster of all the food that I end up writing about. She was super excited about Thai Pan and meeting Kevin. We started with Chicken satay to share and were suitably impressed when he brought us four sticks to share instead of the usual three, which would have meant fighting over the odd piece. It is this kind of attention to detail that sets apart great places and great customer service from the good ones. The fact that the meat was perfectly cooked, crispy on the outside and tender on the inside, and that the sauce was crunchy, rich and sweet was an added bonus, of course!
Massaman curry.
When it came to our main dishes, both Steffi and I had complicated requests… She wanted Massaman curry, but could not decide between chicken and prawns, so Kevin suggested she had a “bit of both”. I wanted the lemongrass chicken, but with beef instead!? This too was met with a smile and was “no problem at all”. Both dishes were excellent, with plenty of crunchy vegetables, mouth-watering sauces and perfectly cooked white rice. The portions were huge, so each of us took about half of our respective meals away.
Mango sticky rice.
Still, when we were asked about the dessert, we smiled in unison and proclaimed we would share a plate of Mango sticky rice as if we have not just filled our stomachs with substantial main meals. If you have never been to our little peninsula called Torrenova, I promise you that this dessert is a reason enough to come out here! It does not look like much - a couple of yellow and white blobs on a plate -but it is sticky (yes, it’s in the name!), gooey, and absolutely delicious! The sweetness of the warm sauce is offset by the tanginess of a cold mango, resulting in an explosion of flavours, textures and temperatures more likely to be found in elaborate desserts in high end restaurants.
In terms of drinks at Thai Pan, amongst all the usuals, they offer a couple of Thai beers as well. Kevin suggested we try Singha, a pale lager with almost a hundred years old history. It went brilliantly with all the food we ordered, and cooled us down a bit on a humid night.
With just about ten tables scattered around the interior, front and back terrace, this place is quite small, so do call ahead to reserve a spot. Enjoy the sea view and a cool breeze even on the muggiest of days, and let me know what you thought!
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