Disclaimer: I was invited to lunch at Riva del Fiume, Four Seasons Bangkok at Chao Phraya, in exchange for this review.
It was a nice change of scenery to take in a meal at Riva del Fiume, the signature Italian restaurant at Four Seasons Bangkok at Chao Phraya River. I’m not usually in the riverside part of town, so I was curious to see how much it has developed in comparison to fiercely urban Sukhumvit.
Operating Hours
Breakfast, 06:30 – 10:30
Lunch, 12:00 – 14:30 (L.O. 14:00)
Dinner, 18:00 – 22:30 (L.O. 22:00)
Ambience
Diners at Riva del Fiume can choose from terrace seating overlooking the Chao Phraya River, or the open-kitchen, high-ceiling atmosphere of the dining room. Given the Bangkok humidity this time of year, I opted for the dining room.
I was seated at a window-side table, with good views of both the open kitchen, and the bar. I should emphasize that all restaurant staff were very nice and professional.
I was asked beforehand about food allergies, and was served the restaurant’s prix fixe lunch set, what they call Un Viaggio (“a trip”). It includes a welcome drink, amuse-bouche, a seafood starter, an appetizer, a main dish, and dessert. In charge of the menu is Italian-born executive chef Andrea Accordi, who has been with the hotel since 2019.
Welcome Drink
Soon after having been seated, a welcome drink was offered. It used French peaches, tangerines, sparkling water, and Thai gin. As a big fan of peach, this cocktail started off the dégustation on a high note.
Bread Basket
Uh oh, one of my main weaknesses: bread and olive oil.
The grissini (breadsticks) had the right proper amount of crunch, and the focaccia was billowy, and excellent for sopping up the sauces of each dish. The third type of bread, which looks more like a neatly-folded napkin, turned out to be a parmesan cracker. The texture and flavor reminded me of Mexico’s chicharrón de queso, basically a (Gouda) cheese crackling. Mmm…all three hit the spot.
Amuse-bouche
From left to right–
Tartelletta Pomodoro e Capperi: Tomato and eggplant tart, fennel, caper leaf
The texture was excellent, but the overall flavor was too sweet.
Toast di Sardine: Marinated sardines, Tropea onion, Senise pepper crisp
Also quite sweet, but good mouth feel.
Paté di Fegatelli e Ciliegie: Duck foie gras and chicken liver parfait, cherry, Noto almond cookie
My favorite of the three, albeit slightly sweet. You might have noticed by now that I really only like sweet flavors around dessert time (err, after the rest of the meal), or occasionally as cocktails.
Cocktail #1
Case-in-point. I asked one of the bartenders to make whatever he wanted. The way I see it– if I don’t like a food/drink, it was just one time. If I do, I’ll write it down.
For cocktail #1, he used lime juice, Amaro Montenegro (a digestif made with orange peels, eucalyptus, and vanilla, among other botanicals), Aperol, and Monkey Shoulder the Original scotch whiskey.
It was a good follow-up to the peach welcome drink, and delighted me since I had never heard of Amaro Montenegro. The cocktail was sweet, but the scotch whiskey held back much of the saccharine and medicinal potential of the two Italian liquors.
Seafood Starter
Unfortunately, I accidentally deleted the after photo, that is, the one with the tonnato sauce poured to make look like the “fish” was swimming again. Nevertheless, this was a good…catch, as the saltiness of the Kristal Caviar balanced the smoothness of the raw tuna. Definitely a hit with the focaccia, although toast would’ve been next level.
Appetizer
Perhaps I should’ve tried moonlighting as a chef, as I tend to mix flavors with all of the spices I’ve accumulated while traveling. For now, I better leave that up to the folks with the toques.
The tortelli and brown crab broth made for a very nice pairing, with only a scant taste of a brine. I’m not sure that the lettuce sauce added anything, but let’s just say that the focaccia once again stepped up to the plate. (terrible pun)
Main Dish
For those unfamiliar with the red gurnard (myself included), it is commonly found in the eastern Atlantic, Mediterranean, and Black Sea, and croaks like a frog would. With that said, grab the fork.
My charcoal-grilled red gurnard was both seared and raw, but I’m not sure that it was supposed to be raw on the inside. Regardless, I was really enjoying combining bites of it with the fried potato accompaniment.
As mentioned earlier, I’m not such a fan of sweetness in non-desserts, so the caponata threw me off. But the black garlic and caper sabayon were good times.
Cocktail #2
Dessert time, so let’s up the sugar game.
I was telling the same bartender about one of my favorite cocktails, the White Russian (milk, vodka, Kahlúa), so I asked him to make some “tropical” riff on it.
Darn good! Frangelico (a hazelnut liquor), coconut foam, vanilla liqueur, vodka, and straight out of one of my favorite countries, PATRÓN XO Cafe.
Good job, mate! The coconut foam hit differently, and the hazelnut flavor was the cherry on top.
Table-side Lemon Sorbet “Digestif”
A new one for me: lemon sorbet as a palate cleanser. But it was really good.
The fellow who prepares the lemon sorbet adds a touch of grappa, house-made limoncello, champagne, and a few shavings of Sardinian lemon. He then turned into a work of art:
An absolutely delicious work of art.
Dessert
I must (and will) say, that the dessert was my favorite of the viaggio. Cherries, pistachio, more cherries, more pistachio. Every texture and bite felt like a new eating experience. Plus, I feel like there was a hint of orange in the “raviolo” shell. Mmm.
Unexpected Dessert
I finished off the very good lunch with a glass of milk, a chocolate pecan praline, and a strawberry lemon tart. That works!
It would be great to have service like that at Riva del Fiume wherever I eat. Since that’s not likely, I will just have to return to try their pizza, more lemon sorbet, and more cherry pistachio desserts.
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