Few are the arts or crafts where the product is not truly finished. For example, how many readers would be interested in buying a novel at its first draft stage, how many music lovers would buy an album only consisting of practice sessions, or how many filmgoers would prefer a storyboard to the film itself?
Yet that is what the cutting edge of fine dining is – a world in which diners not only tolerate experiments, improvisations, developing ideas, and even potential missteps but indeed so often thrill in it. And with the advent of open kitchens and chef’s tables, observing the process becomes part of the joy of the experience. Sure, there will always be a place for the old-school steakhouse, but life is often much more interesting on the bleeding edge.
So it was that 11 months ago, Greek chef Dimitrios Moudios opened his tiny (six-seat), borderless, and proudly iconoclastic, 2025 MICHELIN-listed restaurant Ōre on out-of-the-way Sathu Pradit Road in Bangkok, for which he just received the Opening of the Year Award at this the 2025 MICHELIN Guide Ceremony in December 2024.
Given the near-spiritual terms that the dining public has been talking about Ōre in (go to Reddit’s r/finedining for a few prime examples), Moudios himself is much more humble and straightforward about what he is doing:
“I’m basically just serving to people what I want… it represents myself.”
As to what that is?
Start by considering Moudios’ background – born in Greece, and working in Europe, Asia, and the Americas, working largely not on the line, but in research and development for top-end restaurants. He takes this R&D ethos to the kitchen at Ōre as well – constantly tinkering with techniques and ingredients to achieve his vision, working long days with his tiny staff to develop 30 to 34 small plates on any given night, with recipes in frequent flux depending on the availability and quality of what they have that day. Dishes are – to use an overused term, but this is about the most perfect use of that term – minimalist.
But rather shockingly, Moudios says that “the name was the most difficult part of opening the restaurant.” “It was the best we had.” This simple Greek exclamation was what Moudios said as a child when he ate something he truly loved – difficult to translate, it is simply an expression that something is great. And it seems fitting for Ōre, a restaurant that seems to embrace the spirit of constant creation.
Spontaneity is necessary when one lands in a foreign country and makes do with what they have, and Moudios never really planned on being here per se – it was where opportunity struck. As a result, while the menu is dictated by Thai ingredients (they do import, but not that much), the result is about as far from traditional Thai cooking as could be:
“Whether you want it or not, the food will have influences from the country, it’s impossible not to have it, but we try in general to stay away from traditional flavours and ideas, because we don’t want the restaurant to become a Thai restaurant… for example, for a first course, we have a guava, we just slightly grill it and then we add some lard on top with some peppercorns and cherry blossoms.”
Readers might notice the giant question mark suddenly popping up over their heads – something that Moudios might sympathise with.
“It’s very difficult to explain because it might not make sense if you haven’t had it.”
But is that not the essence of the minimalist approach? Taking something that is normally surrounded by clutter and finding its genuine meaning? Using locally designed ceramics based on ancient Greek designs that could easily be mistaken for Japanese pottery, the plating is deceptively simple – it might just look like a single vegetable, but it is presented in its refined form.
As one might expect, the interior is minimal as well – but with a twist that again reflects Moudios’ own tastes.
“In one room you have your savoury dishes… It’s a very minimal space, earthy tones… and then we have the new space downstairs where all the desserts are happening, which is a space that I designed, it’s a completely blacked-out space. Everything is black. The music is Atlanta hip-hop, mostly Future and Gunna because that’s what I listen to.”
A dark room with an equally dark beat by Metro Boomin as a setting for a nice dessert might be a left-field option, but at a restaurant this idiosyncratic, it hardly seems to be a surprise. Beverage pairings are likewise unexpected – no wine pairings here. Rather, there’s a local beverage pairing using all Thai craft alcohols, but also a tea pairing that is more than just an afterthought for the non-drinkers in the group, their tea master pours rare selections with highly limited production runs – maybe even as little as one kilo per year.
With bold statements like these, perhaps it comes as no surprise that Moudios and his team at Ōre were granted the Opening of the Year Award, presented by UOB, which honours chefs, owners, or managers whose restaurants become rising stars within 12 months of the public opening. The establishments must showcase unique culinary creativity that sparks conversations throughout the domestic F&B industry. UOB is not only a financial service provider but also a friend to foodies and talents.
Illustration image: © Anuwat Senivansa Na Ayudhya/ MICHELIN Guide Thailand
