2Gether Scandinavian Restaurant In Karon Beach, Phuket Thailand

2GETHER RESTAURANT

In 2005, The 2Gether Restaurant opened in Karon Beach, and at the time, I thought it was just another Swedish restaurant catering to the Scandinavian tourists that dominate the Kata-Karon area. When I had the chance to try their food, I realized that there is something separating them from all the other Swedish restaurants in town. Their pizza is perhaps the best on the Island of Phuket, and it is unique, unlike any other pizza that I have eaten in Thailand. I have never been to Sweden, but my Swedish friends all tell me that the pizza at 2-Gether is very authentic Swedish style pizza. Over the past 3 years, 2Gether has established a reputation for having the Islands best Scandinavian food. This is more than just a restaurant catering to tourists, this is where the local Swedish expats go to enjoy authentic Scandinavian food at reasonable prices!

LOCATION

The first of their 2 locations opened in Karon beach, at the entrance to Karon Plaza on Patak Road, near the Bangla intersection. This is also the location of their guesthouse, with rooms above the restaurant. It is just a 2 minute walk to the beach from the restaurant and guesthouse. Karon Beach is popular with couples and families, especially Swedish and Scandinavian Tourists. Karon is much cleaner and quieter than Patong Beach, with less touts and vendors that are constantly harrassing the tourists on the beach road in Patong.

THE OWNER

Christer Larsson has been cooking since he was a young boy, he worked as a sue chef until he was given the job of chef at the prestigious "Bakfickan at Hotel Diplomat Åregården" at Åre Ski Resort in Sweden. He opened his first restaurant (Kök 1) in Åregården, Sweden in 1997, and after selling his first restaurant in 2001, he opened a new restaurant in Stockholm, Sweden in 2002. With the birth of his daughter in July 2007, he was faced with a decision, he sold his restaurant in order to spend all his time with his family.

Christer had always dreamed of living in Australia, but on the flip of a coin, his fate was sealed. He was destined to move to Thailand where he met his wife in 2004. His restaurants in Phuket have established an excellent reputation, and he had enjoyed much success as a restaurateur. Christer is very passionate about the quality of his food, and that is obvious to anyone who had visited any of his restaurants. For Christer, food is more of a way of life, than a business.


THE FOOD

Pizza - 2Gether has 20 different kinds of pizza, the owners favourite is "Frutti De Mar" (scampi,mussels,tuna,onion & octopus). My Swedish friends always say that the best pizza is by far the "Kebab Pizza", with kebab meat, kebab sauce, onion & fepperoni. Apparently this is a very popular dish in Sweden, I have tried it and I did enjoy it, however I prefer their "Gamla Stan" (a pizza with marinated beef tenderloin, onion, tomato and Bearnaise sauce). I can honestly say that I believe the pizza at 2Gether is the best pizza in Phuket. My friends from Sweden tell me it tastes just like the pizza back home in Sweden. Nowhere else can you find these unique combinations and toppings on a pizza.

Steaks - Steaks at 2Gether are served in the traditional Swedish style, served on a wooden plank, surrounded by a wall of mashed potatoes. On the side is a generous helping of Bearnaise sauce (made from scratch). Christer always makes a point of using the finest quality ingredients, for that reason they only use imported Australian beef. Available cuts include Fillet Mignon, T-bone, Ribeye and Sirloin.

Swedish Meatballs (Köttbullar) - It wouldn't be a Swedish restaurant without Swedish Meatballs! This is a classic Swedish dish that anyone can appreciate when they have a craving for meat and potatoes. The meatballs are made from a variety of fresh ground meats, they are pan fried and served with mashed potatoes, brown sauce and lingonberry.

Swedish Hash (Pytt I Panna) - If you have never tried Swedish hash, I strongly recommend trying it at 2Gether. Swedish hash is supposed to be made of whatever is left over in the fridge. A little bit of meat, and some potato, fry it all in the pan and crack an egg or two over the top, and you have "Pytt I Panna".

Fish - Their most popular fish is the fillet of lemon sole with lobster sauce and potato puree, flavored with shrimps and dill. They have a wide variety of fresh seafood that is purchased daily from the nearby fishermen. One of the benefits of owning a restaurant in Phuket is that you have unlimited access to fresh caught fish, and seafood that is only available in coastal cities.

Set Menu - The set menus are very popular, they include a main dish, a starter and a desert. Prices range from 490THB for Set Menu 1 (which includes shrimp, mayo, sour cream and dill, Fillet of pork with Bearnaise sauce and french fries, ice cream for desert) and 890THB for Set Menu 3B (which includes shrimp cocktail with bacon wrapped asparagus, beef tenderloin served with a cognac pepper sauce with potato gratin, and irish coffee for desert).

Deserts - There are a wide variety of deserts on the menu at 2Gether, including deep fried bananas, vanilla panacota with passion fruit sauce as well as chocolate truffles. Christer's most prestrigous of all his deserts is the homemade chocolate cake served warm with ice cream.

THE GUESTHOUSE
Located just a 2 minute walk from Karon Beach, The 2Gether Guesthouse has an Ideal location for tourists that wish to stay near the beach. The rooms are recently renovated, and very clean and modern. Facilities include free WIFI, satellite television, DVD players in every room and access to a swimming pool. They have several rental motorcycles for guests available to rent by the day or long term. Rates are as low as 500THB per night in the low season, and 1000THB per night in the high season (Nov-Apr). They have family rooms, double rooms and apatments available at a slightly higher rate. The guesthouse has a total of 10 rooms, and for most of the high season they are fully booked, so you may want to call in advance or check their website.

SWEDISH CHRISTMAS DINNER (JULBORD)

The Swedish word for Christmas is "Jul", and the world "Julbord" directly translates to "Christmas table", and this describes the traditional Swedish Christmas dinner. Swedish people have a very different Christmas dinner than English or Americans, many of the traditional dishes are served cold, and turkey is not one of the main dishes. The main meat dishes are the Christmas hams, a special kind of sausage (prinskorv), meatballs (köttbullar) and ribs (revbensspjäll).

The cold dishes include a variety of pates, salmon, herring, fish, smoked salmon, and swedish cavier. To drink, they serve a Christmas drink called "Glögg", it is a sweet drink made from a variety of liquor and wine and special herbs, served with fruit and nuts. On Christmas, one must be very careful not to drink too much Glögg, especially if you are driving.

The Christmas buffet needs to be booked in advance, and there are only 100 seats available, and they sell out every year. The price is reasonable at only 1395THB per person for all you can eat. To make reservations you can contact Christer at his website.

THE HORSE RACING V75 LIVE
2-Gether Restaurant is the only place in Phuket that broadcasts the Swedish horse races live (VI Sander V75 Live). Starting at 6:30PM on Saturdays the races are shown live at the Karon Beach location. This is something that you may have to be Swedish to appreciate, however I loved the "competitive" atmosphere in the restaurant during the races. There are serveral Swedes on holiday or even living in Phuket that look forward to race day at 2Gether on Saturdays.

THE STAFF
I have always noticed that the most successful restaurants always have happy staff. 2Gether Restaurant is no exception, the entire staff and ownership live and work together as more of a family than as employees and employers. Christer's passion about his food is what has lead to his success, and his loyal staff certainly share his passion when it comes to providing great food and friendly service. This is obvious when you experience the pleasant atmosphere while dining at either of the 2 locations.