Spice Temple - South Bank Melbourne

In a world of maybe just too many restaurants it is refreshing to find one that is truly different. Not only in the way it looks and "feels" but in the type and quality of the food served. Somewhere you go and you just have to tell your dining buddies about it. A place where description almost fails to define the experience. Where visuals flash before your eyes. An experience that lives on in your head long after the bill has been paid. A rare culinary experience that just want leave you.

Of all the restaurants on South Bank Melbourne Spice Temple is different. It is very dark and mysterious. It gives little away as you enter. Sweet Thai smells of lime and coriander tantalise your senses the minute you are seated. Your hart quickens and you look around as you anticipate your evening ahead. The surroundings are simple if not a little understated. You have your own little seating area with a small dim lamp above. Holding the menu to the lamp you attempt to read the lists of dishes. Service is efficient and friendly, the music modern and appropriate.

I would describe the food as "gorgeous". Rich spice without the burn but just enough heat to herald its arrival. Complex flavours which enhance and intertwine with one another. No one spice competing with the other. A marriage of flavours and textures all happening in your mouth. You yearn for more and each dish brings its own signature and leaves its mark on the total experience.

I selected the whole baby snapper and my wife prawns. We never share our meals but this time we had to try what the other had selected. Both dishes were a perfect "10". The quantity was ample, the presentation excellent. As the food descended the experience ascended to bookmark the moment. Wine selection was good and prices reasonable. Once more the bill said "South Bank" but the experience was heavenly. Spice served with food to celebrate its own existence, to flag its part of the meal and to never let you forget: "you were there".

Spice Temple is a shrine to flavoursome food, rare dining experience and the celebration of good eating. It is alive with the desire to impress and impart good times, joy and life. live there.