Following hot on the heels of Bodega?s plans to bring something different to Patong, is Limburi; a new restaurant/hotel on Rat U Thit 200 Pee Road, opposite Christine Massage.

Managing Director Weerasak "Boyd" Limsuriyaporn?s family have owned the land on which Limburi stands for a long time, leasing it out as a guest house that Khun Boyd described in less than favourable terms.

?I got sick of seeing it when I came down to Phuket from Bangkok. Patong has a lot of the
same type of noisy, dirty places, I wanted to do something new.? Limburi has four floors, with the dining area on the ground floor. On the second floor is the bar area along with tables and chairs from which you can watch the people of Patong stumble by.

There are 15 hotel rooms spread out overt three floors and access to the first six of them can be reached from the restaurant area. There are three different classes of rooms and during the current high season cost 1,350 for a Standard, 1,650 for a Delux, and 1,850 for a Family suite. This pricing structure Boyd believes is in line with the concept of bringing quality dining and accommodation to Patong at a reasonable price.

Both the rooms and the food share in the responsibility of bringing something new, something different and something classier to Patong. However considering how ?central? the location is, the pressure to deliver may be just too much for either of them despite sharing responsibility.

Sat upstairs under a canopy and listening to a breezy assortment of dance music, I began to appreciate all of the hard work that has gone into K Boyd?s vision.

The d?cor of the restaurant and rooms are clean and elegant, witha creamy white theme that accentuates the feeling of cleanliness and of the building being reborn, ?I?ve always liked nice things and have always been into interior design,? Boyd explains.

The restaurant and dining area will be open every day until eleven, so that the guests at the hotel may sleep in peace.

I was lucky enough to sample a wonderful variety of the different types of dishes from the menu, including scrumptious finger food that was so delicious that it threatened to take up much of my eating capacity for the night.

K Boyd said, ?I am trying to make fusion food with Western style mixed with Eastern flavours.?

A dish that encapsulated his gastronomic ethos also happened to be my personal favourite for the night; fried shrimp with a creamy wasabi sour sauce (120 baht) that was tangy and tasty.

As it was the soft opening I was treated to the chef?s selection on the night. The starter was a lobster soup with crest and a roll of bread.(50 baht) This ?real soup?
was thick and creamy and very satisfying.

Next came the tuna salad, (120 baht) with a drizzle of balsamic vinegar and generous serving of tuna. Not being a huge fan of tuna, I left ample room for the next dish and was very glad that I did.

The main course was pork with a salsa sauce, slices of fried apples and boiled vegetables (120 baht). The apple was a perfect accompaniment to the tangy salsa dressing and the pork was cooked to a tender degree.

All that remained was dessert and I have to admit that when it was first brought before me, it was with a heart almost as heavy as my stomach that I welcomed it. It was mango and sweet sticky rice (65 baht). As it turned out, my hesitancy was completely unfounded. The dish comes with a small glass of warm coconut milk that begs to be lavishly poured over every grain of rice, rendering it sweet and stickily delicious.

Limburi is certainly something positively different for Patong and the elegant d?cor and splendid food are brazen declarations of its intentions. Yet the restaurant is also very welcoming, hence the name; Limburi Hometel, Lim is Boyd?s family name while buri means town in Thai. Hometel part of the name is, ?so that the customers know that this
is like a home for them, I want them to feel relaxed.?