Tawana Thai Restaurant - Review, Westbourne Grove

Cuisine: Thai
Style Points: 4/5
Price: ££
Overall: 4/5

It’s notoriously difficult to find a good, authentic Thai restaurant in London, but I’m pleased to say that my search is finally over.

I was inspired by a day of Thai feasting at Chang Sensory Trails, where I'll was at the VIP chef's Table and sampled eight amazing specially selected signature dishes from London's best Thai restaurants. The restaurants included Rosa's, Patara, Thai Tho and many more.

Tawana has been offering traditional Thai food in the North West London for over 20 years. This alone is testament to the quality and popularity of the restaurant, as it has built up a strong and steady following of regular customers for the food itself.

Food?

Tawana will be serving three of their best dishes at Chang Sensory Trails and I wanted to give these a try.

To start I tried the rice crisps with chicken and coconut. These were crunchy morsels of delight, as the tamarind and satay sauce in the chicken was smooth made a delicious combination with the crips. This is an authentic Thai dish which is very difficult to find in other Thai restaurants in London so I was pleased to have had the chance to sample it!

I also tried the vegetarian tofu noodles, which were moist and flavourful, with bite added to it from ample beansprouts. This dish is similar to Pad Thai but with stronger taste of tamarind.

Tawana’s signature dish at the Chang Sensory Trails is a recipe that they have perfected over time but kept it to its traditional roots. For Tawana this is their Moo Yang Jim Jael, which is pork loin grilled Thai Style and served with special tamarind sauce and roasted rice.

This dish is regularly made in Thai homes and is eaten in Thailand for breakfast, lunch and dinner! This was my favourite dish of them all and I will certainly be sampling some more at Chang Sensory Trails.

Price?

Despite serving authentic, traditional Thai food of a high quality, Tawana is still a local neighbourhood restaurant, meaning prices are very reasonable for the high standard and quantity of food.

Overall?

I don’t usually roam outside of zone 1 in London for my foodie fix, as there is so much central London has to offer. However, this is one of a small handful of restaurants that I would travel further out for without any hesitation.

I really enjoyed my meal at Tawana as the flavours in the dishes were some I am yet to sample in other Thai restaurants in London. The staff were also very friendly and knowledgeable, making this a restaurant I will certainly come back to.

The other dishes I sampled at the VIP Chef’s Table at the Chang Sensory Trails were also delicious and I can't wait to head to the restaurants and try their full menu. Chang Sensory Trails will also be touring the world so there will be plenty to time to check it out too!