Art Kitchen, The

This restaurant, situated in the heart of the historic town of Warwick, is one which breaks all the normal rules, by presenting Thai food in a most unusual way, all within an Art Gallery setting. Having opened in the spring of 2004, it has gained an excellent reputation for Thai cuisine, in the view of some matched only by places mainly in London.

The Art Kitchen specialises in contemporary Thai food, using a large choice of freshly made appetisers. This allows diners to sample a variety of tastes and eat as little or as much as they like. Coffee, croissants and pastries are also served in the morning.

A Thai Tapas Bar ambience has been created in the bar area to provide a different angle from local pubs. The Art Kitchen benefits from a full on-licence and an extension supper licence. Alcoholic beverages are sold on weekdays from 11.00am until 12.00 midnight, also giving an opportunity to try the new cocktail menu that gains its inspiration from the heady flavours of Thailand.

Ingredients are invariably of the highest quality and the freshest available. The beef is Aberdeen Angus and the fish arrives daily from the Birmingham fish market. Eggs come from a Stoneleigh small-holding specialising in rare French hens that have the run of the fields.

The menu is an accommodating one and musters the tapas into a bite, or 'bytes', according to stature and status. Amongst the one byte brigade are the traditional vegetable spring roll, a trio of chicken, prawn and crab cake, and sweet peppers stuffed with minced chicken and deep fried.

Two bytes include chicory leaves filled with chopped chicken, prawn or duck and dressed with lime juice, chillis and shallots or strips of tender beef fillet served with coriander, fresh mint, onion and lime juice. Bigger bytes offer from amongst twelve or so choices a traditional stir-fry, with aromatic basil leaves and fresh chilli. There's a wide range of options amongst the vegetables, rice and noodles while vegetarians have it good with delicious dishes such as stir fried broccoli in oyster sauce.  For dessert expect to find a pandan and coconut pancake served with vanilla ice cream.

A monthly specials menu brings forward new and exciting dishes that are constantly being invented by the kitchen, where you might be able to find wok smoked pork ribs or slow cooked yellow curry of lamb shank with onions, squash and potatoes. Furthermore, there's a 1-2-3 lunchtime menu, which offers great value for money and quick service with options for one, two or three courses.

Nowadays customers attach increased importance to the provision of reliable table water. Art Kitchen has met this need by installing a sophisticated filtration tank system which offers virtually unlimited supplies of fresh purified water, a move that has proved popular with an ever more health-concerned public. A global wine list offers numerous choices including a renowned Taittinger Brut Reserve, an excellent champagne should you be in a celebratory mood.

A community of local artists create contemporary artwork that is displayed around the restaurant and offered for sale. The Art Kitchen also offers the possibility of bespoke artwork and photograph canvases.

The relationship between good eating and visual art is historic, one which goes back through the rich canvasses that adorn the walls of many a stately home dining room to the caves of our ancestors who just used the walls, canvas not being available. Dining at the Art Kitchen carries this process forwards and undoubtedly offers an interesting and different experience, combining as it does the pleasures of both good Thai food and accessible art.

More information is available on their attractively presented Website.