The first floor of Voila is filled with the delectable delights of its chocolatier.
To reach the proper restaurant, you must walk up to the second floor of the establishment, at which point you might already be thinking about dessert before setting eyes on the appetizers.
Voila, however, does an effective job of switching this mindset upon entering the restaurant level.
Imagine the sort of setting a king might dine in during the Medieval Ages, with the added benefits of contemporary touches and modern comforts. The walls are made of an attractive sort of cobblestone; a glass goblet with air bubbles instilled on every table; lighting that is complimentary but not distracting; and plush chairs that you sink in to.
The menu is impressive, with a nice variety of choices, but not overwhelming. If it suffers any flaw, it seems to be a certain indecisiveness as to its identity. One wants to say that it is Thai, or at the very least some sort of Asian fusion — but even that does not really quite cover it. There are the easily identifiable items, such as the spicy beef salad, the soft-shell crab tempura, chicken satay, and the trio of Vietnamese rolls with Thai sauces. Then there are other more confusing orders, like the pumpkin coconut and lemongrass soup, tomato and basil soup, a duo of beef and lamb mini-burgers served with sweet potato fries, and the nation-less lobster burger.
The complimentary bread was tasty and close enough to fresh. The butter was infused with some sort of mystery herb, the waiters guessed mint or garlic, but neither was correct. Regardless, the butter was soft and it was difficult to stop eating at the appropriate moment.
The trio of Vietnamese rolls was quite delicious; two out of the three were fried but not overbearing or heavy. The third was rolled with some sort of thin, raw, and light dough with vegetables within. It was a refreshing treat and certainly stands out from the crowd of fried goods, the sort of dish that would be a pleasure to eat in an open garden on a nice spring day.
The chicken satay was mediocre, made out of thigh meat with the skin left on, gave it a bit of fatty texture and taste. The peanut sauce it was served with was better than the actual chicken, but seemed to be a bit lacking in actual peanut flavor. The soft-shell crab was exactly what one would expect, fried but not overly greasy and always tasty. The wasabi mayo sauce it was served with was also tasty, but did add a certain heaviness to a dish that is already quite pleasant straight up.
While we were already approaching full, the entrees arrived. The lobster burger was the first of its kind that I have ever tried. It was certainly good, but at the same time it seemed to be a waste of actual lobster and not that much better than a good fish burger. That being said, it is a dish worth trying once in your life. The duo of mini burgers, one made from lamb with a rosemary bun and the other of beef with an onion bun, were good, but nothing to dream about. Both meats were cooked to a nice measure of redness. I did, however, think that both meats could have been more tender. Finally there was the red chicken curry with coconut milk and lime, served with a side of white basmati rice. This dish was nice with a good kick to it, although it is possible that some could find it a bit on the salty side. The addition of aubergines was a nice touch.
As the time for dessert came around, we were too full and impatient to wait the requisite 25 minutes for any one of their three tempting soufflés, so we went with the ice cream. If you have a craving for ice cream, this would certainly hit the spot — but it was just normal ice cream really.
The service was hit and miss. We had two waiters, one named Deva who was very nice and friendly and truly seemed to care about our dining experience. The other waiter was a Filipino who seemed to resent us for inconveniencing him to do his job. The fruit smoothies we ordered were tasty and not overly sweet with added sugar. The sound of the blender, however, was blatantly present and disturbed the ambience. The music volume was low but audible and did not force us to yell in order to converse.
All in all, our experience with Voila was a positive one. The food was good with one or two treasures, of course that all depends on the palette of the taster. The real reason to give Voila a shot is the décor of the restaurant and the presentation of the food. It is elegant and beautiful without being too pretentious. In that regard, Voila is top notch and worth the visit. Give it a try for the experience, and if you find you also love the food, then become a regular.
