This little place is a good surprise. Tucked away behind community mall La Villa Ari, most people will never notice it, despite the colorful cartoons painted on the building and the little garden in the front. The inside is a bit more polished, with lots of vintage features such as black and white checkerboard tiles and leather chairs, Thai-style wooden furniture and even chada, the crowns worn in traditional performances. At first, it feels like too much is going on under this small roof, but everything somehow comes together. The fusion menu, too, comes together nicely—another surprise given the neighborhood’s mostly underwhelming options in that department. The chicken liver pate seasoned with green peppercorn and topped with dried chili (B145) shows the chef’s willingness to embrace new ideas and his ability to pull it off. It’s cleverly served with khao tung (crispy rice) and khao greab (sun-dried crispy rice)—a nice touch. Another fun dish is their pla hoy shell (seared scallop with spicy Thai dressing, B210). We love its zestful ingredients (star fruit, pomelo and mango), offering fruity notes and a perfect balance of sweet and sour to go with the fried calamari. We are less impressed by the insipid gang ped ped ron (duck confit with red curry sauce served with roti, B310), though. The curry is also a bit too sweet, although the duck itself is tender. We can’t say as much for the overly tough grilled sirloin beef served with pan-fried black sticky rice (B350), even if it did come with a mouth-watering jaew sauce and sticky rice. On the bright side, eating here is affordable and fun, thanks to the wide choice of interesting combinations the chef rolls out. We also like the menu’s brevity, the food’s artful presentation and the attentive service. Finally, their B249 buffet available for both lunch and dinner is hard to beat with its selection of over 40 comforting dishes. Definitely a worthy, affordable and chill addition to the neighborhood.