The luxurious meal, which costs Bt3,700, starts off with raw tuna and avocado tartar with lemon and olive oil served with Belponte 2004, ink spinosini with clams, broccoli and chilli with Calenne 2003, and potato gnocchi with cheese sauce and black truffles served with Mossotino 2004.

The main course consists of fettuccine with duck ragu, black olives and sun-dried tomatoes with Pontene 2004, grilled lamb cutlets, potato and onion cake with Montemoro 2003, and beef tenderloin with Italian-style ratatouille and polenta flan with Montemero 2004 Special Selection.

The meal is wrapped up with cherries and maraschino parfait with Drago Del Polo 2004.

The Puri Charlotte Winery was founded in 1997 to produce high-quality wines and olive oils and to create a country resort for agri-tourism on Bolsena Lake, a very important area for culture, history and tourism. At the centre of the property, amidst vineyards and olive trees, is a 17th-century castle that the owner is refurbishing to be a cellar for wines maturing with a display of oak barrels and bottles of all kinds of vintages.

The dinner is available at Angelini Italian Restaurant & Bar tonight through August 24. Puri Charlotte wine is available at the Lobby Lounge throughout August.

Call (02) 236 7777 or 236 9952 for reservations.

Magic mushrooms at Trader Vic's

Chef Kevin at Trader Vic's recommends diners to try the sublime Black Truffle menu available this month.

This rare and delicate type of mushroom is the key ingredient in several outstanding dishes including risotto rice flavoured with white truffle oil and black truffle shavings, and steamed fillet of barramundi with cassoulet of beans, black truffles and lemongrass broth.

Call (02) 476 0022, extension 1416, for reservations.

Chicken parade

The Landmark Hotel's Greenhouse restaurant introduces chicken cooked in a variety of ways throughout this month. Enjoy tucking into chicken and crayfish, chicken curry, Chinese-style chicken, or chicken Maryland, fried to perfection and covered in mouth-watering creamy gravy.

Call (02) 254 0404, extension 4105.

Dine on credit

Bangkok Bank senior vice president Shoke Na Ranong recently exchanged his suit for an apron to make vegetable salad, fried shrimp and more creations along with celebrities to mark the launch of the 1,001 Fine Dining campaign.

The campaign offers discounts of 5 to 50 per cent to diners paying for their meals with Bangkok Bank credit and debit cards. More than 1,000 eateries and fine restaurants across the country are participating in the campaign.

Shoke showed his culinary flair at the peak hour of lunch hour in front of the bank's Silom Road headquarters in front of hundreds of eyewitness, and while taking cooking advice from celebrity chef ML Sirichalerm Svasti, aka McDang. Five restaurants which are participating in the campaign also took part in the promotional event, making and offering samples of their specialities to passers-by.

The campaign runs from today through May next year.

The writer can be contacted at focusfood@nationgroup.com.