Salefino Koh Samui — Restaurant in Surat Thani Province

After 15 years of regularly haunting Koh Samui’s restaurants — and countless evenings spent at neighboring spots — we finally stumbled upon Salefino. Perhaps it was the subconscious hesitation of ordering pasta and ragu within spitting distance of a palm tree, or maybe the ocean breeze was clouding our judgment all these years. Either way, what a mistake not finding this gem sooner.

Let’s get straight to it: the food was fabulous. The duck ragu pasta — bellissimo. The lamb shank ravioli? A love letter to slow cooking. The lamb shank itself — tender, flavour-packed, and unapologetically indulgent. The tuna and tenderloin tartare both delivered the kind of freshness you don’t expect unless you’re dining on a yacht.

And because restraint is for the weak, we ordered every dessert on the menu. No regrets. Pair all of this with an elegant Rosé Brut and a zesty Italian Sauvignon Blanc, and you have a dinner that makes you question your loyalty to Pad Thai.

Now, no review is complete without a tiny grumble — the croutons in the salad weren’t crispy. Did we complain? Of course not. Who are we to quibble over bread cubes when everything else was such a triumph?

A word of advice though — we arrived fashionably late at 8:15pm, missing the sunset, but it meant a slower-paced evening with a lovely buzz and ample time to chat to the owners. The perfect amount of warmth and welcome, without the forced ‘how’s-everything-tasting’ interruptions you get elsewhere.

Wishlist for next time? A glorious, over-the-top antipasti sharing platter for the table — true Italian family style. Because nothing says “holiday” like fighting over the last piece of prosciutto.

So Salefino — we’ll be back next year. Please save us a table, a sunset, and a bottle of that Rosé. And maybe… crisp up those croutons...

I emailed at 5pm asking if a table was available. No response so I got a taxi from another area and turned up. I was advised that all emails are always read and it either didn't send it was spam. Then I was told emails aren't read after 5pm. They are either always read or they aren't!

My wife and I both ordered salmon nice main with vegetables, unfortunately salmon was half cooked. Who appeared be in charge tried to tell us all salmon is half cooked unless you tell the manager upon ordering you want it cooked fully. I stated unless I asked for gravalax or smoked salmon I expect a salmon fillet at least be cooked.

He then offered remove a desert from the bill. We received the bill and nothing had been removed.

I paid the bill in full despite the problems with half cooked food and was asked if waiter had asked us if we wanted a complimentary limoncello which we stated no. He walked off and nothing was brought so we gave up and walked out.

A place with a really nice setting but almost £80 for two starters, two desserts and a bottle of wine is excessive for half...

We love Salefino. We'd not been for quite a while as we travel so much, but we took some friends there at the weekend, and the high standards have been maintained brilliantly over the past months. The simple, casual ambience belies the superb quality of the food, the welcoming and well-managed service, and the appropriately thought-out wine list.

In addition to the regular menu, there is always an interesting list of daily specials. I had two dishes from this on Saturday, and both were outstanding: burrata and tomato bruschetta that were definitely the best of their ilk that I have ever had, anywhere; and asparagus ravioli that just burst with brilliantly balanced flavours. The rest of our group loved all their dishes too.

You won't find finer Italian cooking in Koh Samui. In fact you won't find finer Italian cooking in most places around the world, and I would rather the relaxed atmosphere here than some fancy joint in London or Bangkok or Singapore (where I would also be paying 2-3 times the price).

Kudos to chef Camilla and host Olivier who run Salefino...