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Pa Tong

A tropical-tinged space for unbridled southern Thai cooking.

Yellow curry with sweet picked crab meat.
1 / 7Yellow curry with sweet picked crab meat.Eddie Jim
Pa Tong is a casual split-level Thai restaurant in the Melbourne CBD.
2 / 7Pa Tong is a casual split-level Thai restaurant in the Melbourne CBD.Eddie Jim
Hokkien noodles stir-fried with prawns, mussels and sliced pork.
3 / 7Hokkien noodles stir-fried with prawns, mussels and sliced pork.Eddie Jim
Tiny clay pots hide hor mok at Pa Tong.
4 / 7Tiny clay pots hide hor mok at Pa Tong.Eddie Jim.
Grilled chicken thigh in red curry sauce.
5 / 7Grilled chicken thigh in red curry sauce.Eddie Jim
Inside the split-level regional Thai restaurant.
6 / 7Inside the split-level regional Thai restaurant.Eddie Jim
Yellow curry with betel leaves and black freshwater snails.
7 / 7Yellow curry with betel leaves and black freshwater snails.Eddie Jim.

Pa Tong

Thai$

A kaleidoscope of Thai food is coming into focus in Melbourne. Pa Tong adds the bold spices and pungent flavours of the country’s south in a screeching-blue room where macramé lampshades are bright tokens from the beach. A gallery wall does the rest of the job of spiriting diners to Patong, a resort in Phuket, but it’s the food that’s truly transporting.

Adventure – snail curry, anyone? – and seafood dishes are key to this coastal cuisine. Grilled mackerel adds body to a beguiling coconut curry with acacia stems and green almonds. Crab omelette is outstandingly fluffy.

Springy hor mok hides under clay lids; lift them to reveal steamed curried fish mousse. Leaves from the melinjo tree, indigenous to Asia, lend sweet nuttiness to rich grilled pork neck and fried egg. This is a great spot for solo diners and lunch deals are keen.

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