Anantara Golden Triangle Sala Mae Nam Dining Review and Menu

This Anantara Golden Triangle Sala Mae Nam Restaurant Review and Menu post is part of a trip report including Asiana First Class and luxury resorts and dining in northern Thailand and Cambodia. For the previous posts, please see:

Please note: Future posts will cover Anantara Golden Triangle's Elephant Mahout Experience and Dining by Design dinner.

The Anantara Golden Triangle Elephant Camp and Resort is a Virtuoso hotel, so TravelSort Clients receive these benefits when booking a qualifying rate:

Upgrade at time of booking, subject to availability (During peak holiday period Dec. 16 – Jan. 6, Upgrade at time of arrival, subject to availability applies)
$100 USD Resort or Hotel credit, to be utilized during stay (not combinable, not valid on room rate, no cash value if not redeemed in full)
Daily Buffet breakfast, for up to two in room guests (included in all-inclusive rates)
Early check-in/late check-out, subject to availability

Sala Mae Nam

Sala Mae Nam is the Anantara Golden Triangle's all day dining restaurant, serving a breakfast buffet with a la carte options in the morning, Thai and Western cuisine for lunch, and Thai cuisine for dinner. In the morning, it's often a bit misty, but it can still be nice to sit outside on the patio, since that's where an elephant visits daily during breakfast, usually around 8:30am.

Breakfast at Sala Mae Nam

Breakfast is included in Anantara's all-inclusive rates; if for any reason it's not, it's included as a Virtuoso benefit when you book with TravelSort or other Virtuoso advisor. There's the option to select an a la carte option, but we never did this since we were satisfied with the breakfast buffet. Since the Anantara Golden Triangle is small and nowhere near as large as most Thai resorts, its breakfast buffet isn't huge, but quality was high.

These were our favorite items:

1. Fresh Danish Pastry with Passionfruit Jelly

While hardly a Thai specialty, the fresh baked danish pastry was well prepared and especially delicious with the homemade passion fruit jelly:

2. Made to Order Omelet

Omelets and waffles are made to order, and our favorite combination included bacon, cheese, and Thai birds eye chilis for a spicy kick:

3. Made to Order Smoothie and Freshly Squeezed Juices

I'm always thrilled to see fresh squeezed juices that go beyond orange juice, and was happy that Anantara provided fresh squeezed guava and passionfruit juices.

I also liked that you could request a made to order smoothie–I chose a delicious passionfruit pineapple orange blend:

4. Homemade Yogurt

Yogurt is a must for me at breakfast, so I was glad to see chilled housemade yogurt with a choice of fruit. There was also dry muesli available to top it with.

5. Cappuccino

You're asked if you'd like coffee or tea, but you can also order a cappuccino. These were so good I never used the in-room espresso maker.

Of course, the highlight for us and many guests at breakfast time was having an elephant visit during breakfast, which we were allowed to feed fruits to. This was clearly a treat for the elephant too–one of them even gave me a kiss on the cheek with her trunk, after feeding!

Lunch and Dinner at Sala Mae Nam

Since the Anantara's Italian restaurant, Baan Dhalia, is only open for dinner, lunch at Sala Mae Nam offers both Thai and Western and Italian options, while dinner features only Thai cuisine and has a few additional options not on the lunch menu. The view from the balcony is lovely during the day:

Here are examples of the Thai lunch menu options:

And Western / Italian lunch menu:

Kids aren't forgotten either, with a combination Kids' Menu and activity sheet:

We figured northern Thai / Issan specialties would be good, given the Anantara Golden Triangle's location, but were also very impressed by the Thai dishes native to other parts of Thailand, as well as the Italian pasta and pizza we tried. These were our favorites:

1. Miang Kham Appetizer with Anchovies, Coconut and Shrimp Chili Dip

Our first dinner at Sala Mae Nam included this complimentary appetizer called Miang Kham, which we'd never had before and was utterly unique and tasty. It included bowls of dried coconut, dried anchovy, fresh chili, fresh ginger and fresh lime, which you wrapped in Betel leaves then dipped in a fragrant roasted chili dip–amazing contrast of flavors and textures.

2. Panang Pet Yang (Red Coconut Curry with Duck Leg and Kaffir Lime Leaves)

My husband and I agreed our favorite main course for lunch and dinner was the red coconut curry with duck leg and kaffir lime leaves, even though this is a Central Thai dish. There's something about the combination of an expertly made spicy red coconut curry and duck that is addictive, at least for us, and I just wish our local Thai places were as good as the Anantara's version when it comes to this dish.

3. Geang Kathi Poo Bai Cha Poo (Red Coconut Curry with Soft Shell Crab)

Similarly sauced, the red coconut curry with soft shell crab was our other favorite. This is only on the dinner menu, not the lunch menu, but fortunately the kitchen was able to make this for me at our last lunch, when I requested it.

4. Tom Kha Gai

My husband orders Tom Kha Gai whenever he sees it on a menu, and the version he received at the Anantara was the best he'd ever tasted, according to him. While I probably haven't eaten as many Tom Kha Gai's in my life as he has, I tasted some and agree that it had the most fresh and vibrant flavors I've had to date in a Tom Kha Gai.

5. Passionfruit Ice Cream

Our son just had kids' spaghetti with meat sauce for dinner, so unlike us, he managed to save room for dessert. He chose passionfruit ice cream, and I managed a little taste–highly recommended as the perfect not too rich ending to a meal at Sala Mae Nam.

6. Quattro Formaggi (4 Cheese) Pizza

Since our son's favorite food (no surprise) is pizza, the minute he spied pizza on the lunch menu, he decided to order it. Anantara's Quattro Formaggi pizza includes gorgonzola, mascarpone, parmesan, and buffalo milk mozzarella. You can order it thin or thick crust, and it came with the crust nicely blistered and very flavorful cheeses, especially the buffalo milk mozzarella.

If you've dined at the Anantara Golden Triangle's Sala Mae Nam Restaurant, what were your favorite dishes?

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Disclosure: I paid for one night of our stay at the Anantara Golden Triangle all-inclusive of meals using a travel professional rate, and received one night all-inclusive of meals complimentary; however the views expressed in this post are my own.

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