One of the many lunch stopovers I have been to for years in my Bangkok shopping sprees is this quaint restaurant that has undergone several renovations as its surroundings in Siam Square have in the past years. I remember having gone in only because of the teeming local lunch crowd present all the time which to me is a characteristic sign that the food must speak for itself.

Past recommendations include a good version of its national noodle laced with a little tamarind called Pad Thai with prawns. Shrimp paste rice or Khao Kluk Kapi with shredded green mango and sweet caramelized pork was quite recommendable, including their Tom Yam of mixed seafood laced with the freshest herbs and aromatics such as freshly cut ginger, galangal, and lemongrass and of course, a crispy oyster pancake with bean sprouts.

Our last visit was a hefty pre-shopping lunch of Stewed Goose in Chinese Herbs. It had clean meaty flavors and was not musky or “ducky” at all. The chili vinegar dip cut the fatty side of this dish sauced with a shiny soya glaze.

Some northern dishes worth trying were minced chicken larb with roti, a bubbly and buttery crepe eaten with this finely chopped herbal chicken dish. I just missed the wood spices used in the north because this was more green and herbal. We also had eggplant in Thai Style Salad with charcoal grilled beef which was refreshingly tart and slightly tannic because of the raw baby eggplant that seemed to stimulate the appetite.

For soup, a rich Tom Kha Gai or chicken in coconut milk and banana heart soup with the signature fresh ginger, galangal, chili, lemon grass and kaffir mix provided fragrance and an explosion of flavor on the palate.

The dish of the day was deep fried soft shelled crab with spicy mayo salad that was a great display of texture. The crunchy battered exterior of the soft shelled crab and creamy, briny interior worked very well with the mango salad, sliced shallots, peanuts and chilis in a palm sugar, fish sauce and lime dressing. The dressing and mango salad also worked well with our Yam Pla Duk Foo or crispy catfish salad served crisp with spine, skin and all.

For fillers, which our party of three could not finish anymore was a prawn fried rice with lobster roe.

Through the years, this restaurant continues to maintain its honest cooking and friendly service.  Jutharos 1969 is located at 420/11-12 Siam Square, R. Ramal, Pathumuan, Bangkok, Thailand with tel. no. (022) 516801.