Perched on the north side of Hyde Park, just by Lancaster Gate tube station, Nipa Thai is the perfect place for a spot of private dining in northwest London. This elegant Thai restaurant, housed in the similarly elegant Royal Lancaster London Hotel, can host up to 55 guests when hired exclusively, as well as smaller groups without exclusive hire. Here, head chef Sanguan Parr leads the all-female kitchen, having worked at the restaurant for close to 20 years. The restaurant itself is a rather ornate, refined space, with large windows to let natural light in and teak furnishings from Thailand.
To drink during your private meal, there is a varied, global wine list with both options by the glass and bottle. Elsewhere, there are Thai-inspired cocktails, like the takrai Champagne, mix of lemongrass-infused vodka, green tea syrup and Champagne, or the Thai-piroska (vodka, sweet and sour mix, basil, ginger ale). Spirits are also available straight-up, such as Tanqueray gin, Grey Goose vodka, Mount Gay Eclipse rum and Jose Cuervo Silver. Beers and soft drinks are available too.
For private dining here, there are regional set menus themed around various cities in Thailand. The Bangkok selection, for example, starts off with a selection of starters, before moving on to chargrilled marinated chicken skewers, traditional Thai fish cakes with sweet chilli sauce and crisp fried prawn dumplings. After that, you and your guests can enjoy dishes like grilled sirloin with chilli, crispy softshell crab with spicy mango salad and toasted cashews, and fried seabass with oyster sauce, light soy sauce, garlic, broccoli and pak choi. The meal would then end with coconut ice cream followed by coffee or tea. Other menus include Chiang Mai, and there is a fully vegetarian set menu too. Wine pairings are also available, featuring bottles from Thailand to accompany the food.