Dinner At The Giggling Squid Thai Restaurant In Maidstone
Published On Saturday 22 Feb 2025 by Sticky Beak
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I can’t believe (given that, as of November 2024 there were 51 sites!) that I’ve never heard of the Giggling Squid Thai restaurants; seriously, talk about missing the bus – doh! All I can say, having visited the Maidstone venue, is that I’m very happy to not be a squid virgin anymore.
Literally less than a mile from the Village Hotel Club, this was the perfect choice for a midweek meal out. There’s a massive, multi storey car park a few yards away from Giggling Squid, so that’s where we left the jalopy and walked back the short distance up Earl Street to the venue. From the pavement, there’s no denying the massive kerb appeal of the restaurant; spread over two houses (#31 and #33 Earl Street), a wrought iron fence and garden terrace form the entrance: if you’re bothered, it’s #31’s door you actually go through.
The entrance/reception area is airy and spacious, and we were greeted warmly and then shown through to our window table – perfect for my favourite hobby: people watching. Giggling Squid founders, Pranee and her husband Andy, wanted to steer away from traditional Thai restaurant decor, and they’ve certainly done that with their Maidstone site! Pastel shades of Green and Cream created a tranquil atmosphere more akin to a country house than restaurant, and panels on the wall housed prints of flowers such as Honeysuckle and Jasmine. Another wall had larger panels in-filled with the most gorgeous Magnolia bloom wallpaper and, behind the pastel green banquette seat that took up one whole side of the space, were pots of Orchids and trailing foliage.
Completing the relaxing charm were distressed, chalk-painted mid-back free-standing chairs, and their hessian bottoms, and a beautiful wooden floor laid to a herringbone pattern. The mixes of round- and square- wooden tables were simply set with woven placemats, gleaming glassware and fuchsia pink napkins. Discreet ceiling lights were angled to the rooms’ periphery, and a pair of twinkling glass chandeliers illuminated the centre. Personally, I loved the fact that the sash windows had been kept, and their beauty was allowed to take the spotlight by the addition of plain, Pistachio hued roller blinds rather than fussy drapes.
Our lovely server got us sorted with some sparkling water and a diet Coke, then left us for a few minutes to look through the menu. And what a fabulous menu! There was so much choice, we kept flip-flopping between dishes before we eventually made our minds up: Caramelised Pork Belly Bites (£8.99) and Classic Papaya Salad (£8.75) for starters - his and my choices respectively – followed by Marinated Steak and Crispy, Slow-Cooked Beef (£23.50), Honey-Crisp Seafood (£18.50), and a sharing side of Garlic Pepper Steamed Noodles (£5.25).
We weren’t waiting long before our starters were being served, and we tucked eagerly in. My Papaya Salad was crunchy, colourful and wonderfully fiery! Julienned Green Papaya, Carrots and Green Beans were gorgeously bright on the palate and pleasingly crisp, and Halved Cherry Tomatoes provided a lovely sweetness. Thai Red Chillies certainly made their presence known: tingle factor was there clearly on my tongue and lips; this dish is not for the faint-hearted, even as a starter! Tiny dried Shrimp were concentrated in their fragrant flavour, complimented by earthy roasted Peanuts. A lot of Thai restaurants don’t offer this classic salad in a starter portion (or at least the ones near us don’t), and it’s a shame because I think more folks would try it if they did.
His Nibs was equally enthralled with his Caramelised Pork Belly bites; these sticky morsels were marvellously sweet yet sour, with the Pork’s creamy mildness smoothing things down in the mouth. Pink pickled Ginger soon had The Man scrunching his face up at its sharpness, and his eyes widened when the spices’ heat revealed itself! Adding texture to this delightful dish was a salad of Jicama (a sweet root with a taste similar to apple), Peppers and Spring Onion. Both starters had been delicious, and our server took back two squeaky clean plates to the kitchen.
For our mains, we’d both gone for Giggling Squid’s signature dishes, and His Nibs’ choice was a fusion of Thai Red Curry sauce, thinly sliced Beef Sirloin and cubes of slow-cooked ‘burnt edge’ Beef that were brimming with treacly flavour.
The Sirloin strips were juicy and ridiculously tender, their softness in complete contrast to the accompanying stir-fry of crunchy Peppers, Onions and Green Beans. The steamed Noodles were perfect with this dish, extending the chew time of each mouthful; rice is all-too-easy to wolf down.
I’m going to have a [not so humble] brag and say that, outright, no contest, my Honey-Crisp Seafood main won the prize for prettiest dish! Plump, in-shell Mussels were arranged in a precise fan shape at the front of my bowl/plate hybrid (which were very nifty, by the way, for scooping up each bit of food), with the lightly battered medley of Squid, Sea Bass and King Prawns placed carefully behind. I loved how the sweetness of the Honey sauce, Fish and Seafood were polar opposites: my palate was dizzy with excitement and appreciation at Chefs’ skill. Green Peppercorn clusters were still on their stems, and their lively tone was sublime in this dish. As with His Nibs’ main, the Garlic Noodles enhanced my dish brilliantly; another humble brag from me, as it was my idea to order them.
Before we’d left the hotel we’d said that we weren’t going to have dessert as, normally, you get a sticky rice pudding or banana fritter or some-such offering. Giggling Squid, however, do things rather differently and there were some proper corkers in the dessert section! I ordered the Black Sesame Ice Cream (£5.25) and His Nibs had the Melting Heart Chocolate Dessert (£7.99).
Like the pair of previous courses, the sweet treats were beautifully presented and served with a mix of fresh fruits. My Ice Cream was an intriguing blue/grey colour and its menu description “subtle but exquisite” was bang on. The Ice Cream’s natural creaminess was zhuzhed by the Sesame’s presence, producing a curious flavour that wasn’t dissimilar to Nutella, believe it or not. Each scoop, of which there were two, was housed in a separate dinky bowl and served on a rectangular platter with slices of Orange, Kiwi and halved Strawberries between. I would certainly have this again, in a heartbeat!
My chocoholic Hubby had chosen the Melting Heart Chocolate Fondant and, wowsers, did this deliver! A sumptuously decadent, dark Chocolate was used and his brains’ pleasure centre went off like a rocket as its cocoa-heavy taste hit his palate. At the centre of the light sponge was a molten lake of gorgeousness that even had me grinning gleefully. Luxurious Vanilla Ice Cream lifted the flavour profile of this dessert, and the same fruits as I’d savoured provided a glorious fresh note here. Top notch.
Throughout our time in the Maidstone branch of Giggling Squid, our servers had provided us with everything we could want, intent on giving us a memorable experience. So good had they been, and the food, that we actually searched on Google to see if there was a restaurant near to where we were next venturing for The Mans’ day job! Happily, there is, so we’ll be looking to book a table at them in the next couple of weeks. Hot Wings very happily awarded to this fab Thai venue.
Visit www.gigglingsquid.com to find a venue near you and hit the ‘book’ button to reserve a table or order food online. Giggling Squid Maidstone is open Mon-Thurs Noon-10pm, Fri and Sat Noon-10.30pm and Sun Noon-9.30pm; online order and takeaway times are slightly different, running Noon-10.30pm 7-days-a-week.
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