The end of the year is fast approaching. Shops, restaurants, and hotels are preparing for this holiday season while offering opportunities for diners to eat, drink, and be merry. And as winter arrives in Thailand, many Western chefs are revelling in the autumn back home, creating myriad menus for you to try.
What does the rest of October have in store? Here is the latest from MICHELIN-listed restaurants that you might want to try.
Dessert outlet joins R-Haan
After carving out a little niche in a big house in Bangkok’s Thonglo neighbourhood, two MICHELIN-Starred R-Haan’s Chef Chumpol Jangprai opened a Thai dessert and snack spot in the same compound. He told us that he will serve traditional Thai desserts with a modern twist, as well as tea sets and pastries. As always, the chef will feature ingredients from all over Thailand, presented as mouth-watering temptations to serve with beverages such as herbal drinks, coffee, and teas. There will also be simple savoury offerings and one-dish meals to try. So, you are only a few steps away from R-Haan deliciousness without the formality of fine dining.
P.S. Anyone who does not have time for the full R-Haan set menu experience, can order signature dishes a la carte, such as Chef Jangprai’s renowned traditional pomelo salad, phad thai with charcoal-grilled river prawns, Grandma’s five-spice egg stew, phad kaprao with Wagyu beef, and sous vide braised duck eggs.
Location: 131 Soi Sukhumvit 53, Khlong Tan Nuea, Bangkok. For more information or to make a reservation, call +66 2059 0433
Two rising culinary stars converge in Phuket
L'Arôme by the Sea is the latest hot new restaurant in Phuket, the Pearl of the Andaman, to be listed in MICHELIN Guide Thailand 2022. Head Chef Yannick Hollenstein from Switzerland has invited fellow countryman Chef David Hartwig, from one-MICHELIN Starred IGNIV in Bangkok, to join in creating a menu reminiscent of their roots. From this collaboration, we get “From Swiss Alps to the Andaman Sea”, with the two Swiss natives also celebrating their new-found home. Featuring the delicious flavours of local Thai ingredients from the mountains to the Andaman Sea, while showcasing European cooking techniques, these two Swiss transplants have devised a uniquely delightful menu.
“From Swiss Alps to the Andaman Sea” is open for reservations from 25-26 October 2022 only. The nine-course dinner is priced at 4,500 THB++ per person. Add a wine pairing for 3,500 THB++.
Location: 247/5 Phrabaramee Road, Pa Tong, Phuket. For more information or to make a reservation, call +66 7634 6271.
Clara’s latest fall menu
This Bauhaus-style villa is part art gallery and all Italian restaurant, located in the Yen Akat neighbourhood of Bangkok. Clara, listed in MICHELIN Guide Thailand 2022, has revealed a new menu for autumn, featuring the artistry of Chef Christian Martena and his wife and namesake of this eatery, Clara Del Corso-Martena. “Once Upon a Time in Italy Chapter V” is their latest offering, with choices that take diners on a culinary tour of either five or seven Italian regions, with high-quality local Thai ingredients blending smoothly with selected imported items.
Once Upon a Time in Italy Chapter V has a five-region menu for 2,689 THB++ per person and a seven-region menu for 3,680 THB++.
Location: 69 Soi Prasat Suk, Chong Nonsi, Bangkok. For more information or to make a reservation, call +66 9 5879 6257.
A special menu to celebrate 125 years of Kempinski at Sra Bua by Kiin Kiin
To celebrate the 125th anniversary of Kempinski hotels, Sra Bua by Kiin Kiin’s founder and Chef Henrik Yde-Andersen and Head Senior Chef Chayawee Sucharitchan collaborated on a special October menu for this one MICHELIN-Starred restaurant. This menu starts with street-food style appetisers, then moves on to dishes inspired by Thai and European flavours together. This includes Bloody Mary tom yam soup, Waldorf-style salad from New York, traditional German currywurst, French-style truffle puff pastry soup, crêpes suzette with a Thai flair, and more.
For lunch, the prices per person are: four courses, 2,150 THB++; six courses, 3,200 THB++; and eight courses, 3,900 THB++. Add juice pairings, per person, for four courses at 790 THB++ or for six courses at 990 THB++. Add wine pairings, per person, for four courses at 1,700 THB++, six courses at 2,500 THB++ and eight courses at 2,800 THB++. This special menu is available until 31 October 2022.
Location: 991/9, Floor G, Siam Kempinski Hotel Bangkok, Rama 1 Road, Pathumwan, Bangkok. For more information or to make a reservation, call +66 2162 9000.
A sneak peek at Mezzaluna’s French-Japanese autumn menu
Chef Ryuki Kawasaki of Mezzaluna (Two MICHELIN Stars, MICHELIN Guide 2022) at the hotel lebua celebrates the autumn by blending the finest Japanese ingredients and his expert French cooking skills. The exquisitely delicious results include Bafun Uni “Jelly” with red sea urchin, grey shrimp, avocado, and caviar. Chef Kawasaki plays with Indian flavours with his Pigeon Au Sang “Cooked On The Bone”, featuring samosa and maitake mushrooms. Then his Sanko Menuke “Shio Koji Marinated”, shows his skills marinating red rockfish, Japanese style, with matsutake, believed to be an elixir in Japan, an Iberico ham bouillon. The chef’s recommended course, and why not, is dessert. His Markrin 80% Chocolate “Tart” showcases an enticing Thai chocolate cut with sorbet made from Taiyo No Shizuku mangos. Translating to “Drop of the Sun”, these fresh fruits come from an orchard in Chiang Mai. The tart sorbet complements the rich chocolate, while the presentation of the sorbet as a scoop resting on a cloud or chocolate is a delight for the eyes.
The autumn menu is available for 8,000 THB++ per person. A wine pairing per person is 8,000 THB++, and for an upgrade to Château Margaux 2009 1er Cru Classé pairing for the main course, it is 3,500 THB++.
Location: Floor 65, Tower Club at lebua, Silom Road, Bangrak, Bangkok. For more information or to make a reservation, call +66 2624 9555.
La Scala meets Abbruzzino, with dishes from the mountains and sea
After moving to Thailand about a year ago, MICHELIN-listed La Scala's Chef Eugenio Cannoni from Piedmont is still influenced by his mountain home in Northern Italy, where his mother instilled his passion for food. For a full flavour fest from home, he invited fellow Italian, Chef Luca Abbruzzino of one MICHELIN-Starred Abbruzzino in MICHELIN Guide Italia 2022, to fly here for “Italian Job Volume 8 - Piedmont x Calabria in Bangkok”. Chef Abbruzzino brings southern Italian style that he learned from his father in Calabria. The two chefs will showcase ingredients from their respective home regions. What will a meeting of mountain air and sea breezes be? You will have to go to find out.
Available only from 27-29 October 2022, This special menu from the two chefs is four courses for 2,300 THB++ per person, six courses for 3,900 THB++ per person, and eight courses for 4,600 THB++ per person.
Location: Sukhothai Hotel, 13/3 South Sathon Road, Thungmahamek, Bangkok. For more information or to make a reservation, call +66 2344 8888.
Chef’s Table dishes up Autumn in France
You can still enjoy Chef Vincent Thierry’s signature duck dish at Chef’s Table (Two MICHELIN Stars, MICHELIN Guide Thailand 2022) with his fall menu. Chef Thierry, as always, presents the finest French dining surrounded by gorgeous panoramas of the city’s high-rises. Highlights include Warm Spéciale Oyster with Jerusalem artichoke, crispy buckwheat, and whisky aroma, as well as Seared Foie Gras with smoked eel, broccoli, marine lemon, and tasty consommé. There is, as mentioned above and often elsewhere, the chef’s famous Roasted Challans Duck, but what he is most excited about is his Scottish Langoustine with crispy sweetbread, fennel, and light shellfish emulsion.
This autumn set menu is available for 9,200 THB++ per person. Add 9,000 THB++ per person for wine pairing.
Location: Floor 61, Tower Club at lebua, Silom, Bangrak, Bangkok. For more information or to make a reservation, call +66 2624 9555.
Hero image: © Chef's Table
