It was 11.30am on Friday when my phone rang. The caller, whom I'd prefer to call a food fairy, said he was about to pull into my driveway.
From a chauffeured van, the man, wearing a grey suit uniform, stepped out with two very large paper bags and a polite, rather apologetic smile, probably for his premature arrival. The scheduled time was noon.
He then continued to reach in the van again and gave me yet another bag. Then there were two more boxes and, lastly, a chilled bottle of Champagne from an ice bucket.
Although I'd had some idea of what would be in the package, I have to say the delivery content was greater than my expectations.
From a quick glance I knew immediately that this sumptuous lunchtime feast could very well compensate for the lack of "buffet brunching" that I had endured for all these months due to the government's ever-evolving restrictions.
After all, the smorgasbord before me was from one of the city's best buffet operators.
Dubbed "Seafood Champagne Brunch Party Package", my home-delivered meal was offered by Centara Grand at CentralWorld's Uno Mas restaurant with inspiration from its super popular "Domingo Fabuloso" Sunday brunch.
The Spanish-style all-you-can-eat festival, which was always fully booked prior to the pandemic, offered to dine-in epicures a bountiful line-up of prime-grade seafood and gourmet tapas. There were also a wide range of well-executed à la carte dishes, salad and cold-cuts, house-made pastries and desserts. The food was complemented by a selection of free-flow premium beverages, including G.H.Mumm Champagne.
For the to-go rendition of the famous brunch, the offerings, which are available daily and while not free-flowing, are designed to gratify both highbrow diners and ravenous gormandisers alike.
There are basically two price packages. A two-person package with a 0.75L bottle of G.H. Mumm Grand Cordon costs 7,999 baht net. While a four-person package with a 1.5L G.H. Mumm Cordon Rouge costs 15,555 baht net. Pricing can also be discussed for odd-number diners.
Each package comes with a repertoire of seafood on ice that includes one whole Canadian lobster per person; Alaskan king crab; black tiger prawns; slipper lobsters; New Zealand mussels; and smoked salmon, plus three kinds of dipping sauces.
There's a Mediterranean tapas selection featuring a few choices of cold cuts; a Spanish-style octopus salad; white anchovies "boquerones" in vinegar; royal-cut smoked salmon salad "cogollo de Tudela"; seafood nikkei ceviche; and spinach salad with raisins and manchego.
To complete the picnic style seafood party are mini bread sticks, stuffed olives, pickles, baguettes with French butter and assorted petits fours of the day.
My lunch for three comprised a total of six extra-large king crab legs, six slipper lobsters, a dozen black tiger prawns, 18 green-lip mussels and three sizable whole lobsters with super plump and meaty claws.
All the crustaceans and shellfish, fully cooked and arrived chilled on a sealed bag of crushed ice, exhibited topnotch quality through to their crisp radiant look, firm fresh texture and naturally flavoursome taste.
The tapas was presented in a five-compartment tray and proved almost flawless despite being on the road for at least 20 minutes prior.
The hand-cut Jamón ibérico and chorizo were just delicious. The subtly tasting "boquerones" also brought no complaints.
For the pulpo salad, thick slices of octopus came enriched by a dressing mixture of shallots, fresh coriander, oregano, lime juice, olive oil and vinegar. While the "cogollo de Tudela" featured succulent fillets of salmon on a bed of romaine lettuce hearts accompanied by thick Caesar dressing. I really loved Uno Mas' rendition of the Japanese-Peruvian seafood ceviche, which offered supple morsels lime-cured prawns, scallops and white fish with sweetcorn kernels, coriander, roasted avocado and baby corns.
However what I enjoyed the most of all was the very addictively tasty spinach salad with the heavenly Spanish PDO sheep cheese, or manchego.
Desserts were presented through an assortment of mini almond cakes, strawberry tarts, dark chocolate truffles and raspberry macarons. The lovely-looking sweet treats, however, didn't quite live up to the culinary grandeur of their savoury counterparts.
Uno Mas Seafood Champagne Brunch Party Package is available everyday, from noon to 7.30pm. Delivery orders should be placed before noon at least one day in advance. Delivery is free within a 10km distance and 20 baht for each additional kilometre.
Uno Mas Spanish restaurant is located on 54th floor Centara Grand at CentralWorld on Ratchadamri Road. The restaurant is also open for full-scale dine-in service 4-8pm daily. For more information or reservations, call 02-100-6255 or e-mail diningcgcw@chr.co.th.
To order, please call Dining Reservation 02-100-6255 or e-mail diningcgcw@chr.co.th. through the hotel's own delivery service already open for dining in service.
