Lamiat is not only limited to the flavours of the food and the meticulous cooking method. Rather, it is infused into every particle of each of the dishes at Sra Bua by Kiin Kiin, where each dish has been created with Lamiat garnered through years of experience by Head Chef Chayawee Satcharitchan. Presenting modern Thai cuisine with modern techniques gathered through various culinary traditions around the world, Chef Chayawee creates a culinary journey of new and memorable flavours imbued with Lamiat right from the first to the very last dish. As with Chef Chayawee’s creations, Chang’s beverage follows the philosophy of Lamiat, where each bottle undergoes a meticulous process and high standard to create an aesthetic and refreshing experience to accompany each of the dishes.
There is no denying that when it comes to fine dining, one will inevitably be faced with ‘expectations’ from the clientele. However, for one-Michelin starred restaurant, diners who come with an open mind will be delighted with a new and magical dining experience, where the five senses will be dazzled with culinary delights that are inspired by the familiar tastes of Thai cuisine but presented in a new light. Despite their unusual appearance, the theatrical flavours of the menus at Sra Bua promises to certainly leave a lasting impression.
“It is true that Sra Bua by Kiin Kiin is a fine dining restaurant, but we still want to give our diners a fun and astonishing experience, whether it’s the chef’s presentation of each menu or the story behind each dish—there’s always a story behind our dishes. Once they understand the concept of our food, they will remember the dishes that they have eaten. In a sense, it’s very similar to watching a ‘performance’ where every staff member serves as the characters on stage.”
The experience of Lamiat at Sra Bua starts right at the reception area. Upon arrival, diners will be greeted by the staff with a welcome drink, followed by bite-sized snacks inspired by Thai street food—the process is reminiscent of a prelude before the main act. After the diners are escorted to their table, the stage then draws open to Act 1, Scene 2, kicking-off the culinary journey in the style of through explanations of the origin and inspirations drawn by the chef from Thai and international cuisines alike. Just like how one would show their international guest the different spectacles of Thailand, Chef Chayawee takes diners on a culinary journey through myriad techniques and flavours right from the first to the last dish.
“The most enjoyable part of dining at Sra Bua is often at the beginning and the end of the meal, where we try to surprise our guests. For instance, instead of just serving the food as it is, sometimes we would invite our diners to partake in the cooking. Some of the dishes are prepared by the chef right in front of your table, while some would be accompanied by our staff who will season the dish right before your eyes. For every dish, there must be an interaction with our diners, one way or another, and that is what makes Sra Bua by Kiin Kiin unique to any other restaurant.”
Aside from maintaining the harmony of flavours authentic to Thai cuisine, another thing that Chef Chayawee pays great attention to is ensuring that patrons receive the same dining experience like the one offered at Kiin Kiin restaurant—the original brainchild of Danish Chef Henrik Yde-Andersen in Copenhagen. However, one thing that differentiates Sra Bua by Kiin Kiin from its sister restaurant is the ingredients used here. Incorporating high-quality local ingredients into his creations as much as possible, Chef Chayawee makes use of fresh, locally-sourced vegetables and herbs, salt and palm sugar from the Amphawa District, as well as poultry from an organic farm in Khao Yai and organic eggs from Chiang Rai. Aside from beef and foie gras which are fully imported, some of the seasonings such as homemade oyster sauce and hand-crushed ancient Thai curry paste are created by Chef Chayawee himself, who adapts culinary techniques from all over the world to present a modern Thai cuisine.
“When cooking, I would choose the techniques that will help to make the dish as perfect as possible,” says Chef Chawadee. “For instance, for the Slow Cooked Beef Rib with Homemade Oyster Sauce (neua toon pad cha), I sous-vide the beef so that the meat is tender and succulent. This is because when you braise meat for a long time, even at low heat, the temperature is still too high and as a result, the meat becomes dry over time. Using techniques such as sous-vide helps to control the temperature, in turn maintaining both the juiciness of the meat and its shape and form. This is unlike braising, which macerates the meat due to the overly high temperature. Another reason is that I love braised dishes such as stew with succulent meat, so I try to improve my techniques and use them with the dishes that I make.”
An example can be seen from Sra Bua’s Slow Cooked Beef Rib with Homemade Oyster Sauce, which maintains the aroma and flavour structure of ‘neua toon pad cha’ commonly found in any Thai restaurant. What makes this dish special, however, is Chef Chayawee’s choice of meat. Using the chewy short rib, Chef Chayawee would sous-vide the meat at a low temperature of 62 degrees Celsius for 48 hours. The sauce, whose ingredients consist of fingerroot, young peppercorns, garlic and basil is combined homemade oyster sauce, providing a unique and flavourful taste of fresh oysters.
Another dish is Butter Fried King Crab with Celery, Apple and Ginger, whose aroma and flavour structure lends itself from stir-fried crab with curry powder—a classic Thai dish reinvented by Chef Chayawee as a cold starter. Consisting of king crab meat, curry powder ice cream with celery, apple, garlic, ginger and chilli, the menu provides a refreshing note to the palate.
Sra Bua by Kiin Kiin has been operating at Siam Kempinski Hotel Bangkok since 2010. Due to its presentation and appearance which differs from traditional Thai cuisine, the food at Sra Bua by Kiin Kiin was initially deemed by Thai foodies as ‘not Thai’. However, through the vision of Chef Henrik Yde-Andersen, along with the founding team and Chef Chayawee who wants to take Thai food to an international platform, Sra Bua by Kiin Kiin has opened new perspectives to both their local and international diners. The resulting outcome is a modern Thai cuisine that incorporates contemporary techniques to offer a more palatable range of flavours, successfully garnering Sra Bua at Kiin Kiin its one Michelin star in the inaugural Michelin Guide Bangkok.
Viewing that a dish cannot be delicious with its flavours alone, Chef Chayawee notes the importance of the atmosphere and the feelings experienced during the meal is what makes his creations “flavourful with a narrative”. From the visual composition, the presentation, as well as a live demonstration of the dish being made, all of these elements are combined to create an experience of Lamiat.
This content was brought to you by Chang, Official Partner of the MICHELIN Guide 2018.
Here's what our Inspectors said about Sra Bua By Kiin Kiin (One Michelin Star)
There is a burgeoning love affair between Bangkok foodies and envelope-pushing cuisine, and this beautiful restaurant is one of the original purveyors of modern and innovative Thai cuisine. Order 'The Journey'-a ten-course menu-to see the kitchen's full repertoire that respects traditional Thai flavours and ingredients but flips the script to produce something creative and original. Copenhagen's Kiin Kiin was the inspiration for the food and cooking techniques.
