Bangkok is a city that never sleeps, at least in the food and beverage department. Blink and you’ll miss another new restaurant opening or a drink launch. Guru By Bangkok Post is making sure that even if you blink, you don’t miss out on the new taste tinglers that are worth mentioning.
Beer Pradith
A new bar on the up and coming Banthat Thong Road, Beer Pradith serves a collection of Thai craft beers from four regions, all on 24 taps.
Founded by a group of people that love beer (duh!), the name is a combination of Thai words. Pradith is the Thai word for “craft” and well, we all know what beer is.
Along with serving local craft beer, the bar has also launched two new beers in the market. The Banthat Thong Golden Ale and Samyan Triple IPA will only be available at Beer Pradith. The 24 Thai craft beer taps have been collected from brewers in the four regions of the country and the bar aims at supporting small entrepreneurs.
The 24 beers are rotated regularly to ensure that everyone in the market is represented. The bar even has a “Beertender”, who will expertly guide guests seeking new flavours and recommendations.
The launch beers at Beer Pradith are those produced by Saha Prachachuen Brewery (United People Brewery), which makes the Banthat Thong Golden Ale and Samyan Triple IPA. The former has a golden colour with a fruitiness aroma.
Not too bitter, smooth and easy to drink. The Samyan Triple IPA is a collaboration of Saha Prachachuen Brewery and Beer Pradith. The New Zealand hops gives the beer a fruity flavour, along with a little bit of berries. Though the alcohol content is 9%, the body is designed to be light.
Coolies Club
Designed by Bill Bensley, the Coolies Club recently opened on Soi Romanee in Phuket Old Town.
The Slate Phuket’s sister venue celebrates the island’s rich mining history and pays homage to the area’s colourful past. Located in a traditional Sino-Portuguese shophouse, the new restaurant and bar tells the history of Soi Romanee, which was once Phuket’s red-light district. This was where tin miners would visit brothels, gambling houses and opium dens. Today, the street is more famous as an Instagrammer’s dream, with its vibrant colours and colonial architecture.
The Coolies Club also ties back to the family history of The Slate’s owner, Krystal Prakaikaew Na-Ranong. Krystal’s great-grandfather came from China in 1912 and began working as a miner. As a reward for his hard work and loyalty, he was given land parcels and mining rights by his employer. In those days, foreign labourers were known as “coolies: and the club is named in honour of Krystal’s great-grandfather and all the other hard workers who played a role in Phuket’s foundation.
The restaurant features Chinese Baroque architecture, with ornate wooden doors, intricate Chinese fretwork and a striking façade in white, turquoise and antique red. Inside, Bensley has created a moody, sexy interior that harks back to the area’s famous opium dens using antique furnishings, rich materials and gorgeous shades of coral, turquoise and jade green. Guests can enjoy a themed list of creative cocktails including the Miner’s Whisper, Mama’s Twist, Spicy Maria and Courtesan’s Kiss alongside bar bites and bigger plates.
The venue features two private bedrooms, where Opium Den dining experiences will be offered. The bar plans to work with local artists, DJs, performers and musicians to bring themed events to the space. Paying respect to the methods by which tin miners cooked their food, the restaurant uses smoking over an open fire for many of its dishes.
Feaw Thai restaurant
Serving Thai comfort food, Feaw by Piti "Todd" Bhirombhakdi and chef Pakpoom "Art" Suwantamee, recently opened at the Racquet Club's RQ Bite49 on Sukhumvit 49.
Chef Art describes his menu as "comfort Thai dishes that are from his memory and travelexperiences. “If it’s not special, we don’t serve,” he adds. Open for lunch and dinner, Feaw serves sharing portions and the menu is divided into appetisers and main courses. There are also "Feaw Single-Dish Meal", should you need a snack after working out, and "Feaw Noodle" dishes, which come in a variety of toptions.
Dishes that shouldn't be missed are the Fried chives cake served with a dipping sauce. It's all about the crispiness of the chives until the last piece, despite dunking it into the sauce. The Deep-fried pork belly with fish sauce served with a spicy fermented fish dipping. The spicy fermented dipping is chef Art's secret recipe, also known in Thai as "jaew pla ra". It may sound funky, but it's rather mellow and goes well with the pork. Continuing with the fried food, try the Deep-fried beef jerky served with a chilli sauce, Deep-fried calamari or Deep-fried wontons filled with minced pork and shrimp.
Single dish highlights are the quintessential Stir-fried Thai basil with minced beef. Here chef Art uses wild basil for its aroma that goes perfectly with the Australian beef. The pad krapao also comes in a crispy pork version. Dishes from yesteryears include Thai mackerel fried rice served with chilli fish sauce, which is an aromatic fried rice served with deep-fried mackerel, chilli, shallots and lime. Shrimp pink sauce fried rice uses pink fermented bean curd, similar to yen ta foo. There are dishes for seafood lovers, as well. Think Steamed crab rice served with one of my favourite things to come out of Thai cuisine — Thai seafood sauce.
The noodle dishes include Egg noodles with pork where chef Art uses Hong Kong-style eggnoodles for texture. Steamed beef with spicy sauce uses the part of the cow that chef Art calls " crispy drum". You'll have to visit Feaw to learn more about that one. Desserts are simple like Soft serve ice cream that come with a choice of toppings. There is also Steamed toast with pandan and Thai tea custard.
Enoteca
Enoteca welcomes a new head chef, Federico Orrù, who comes from Milan.
Chef Orrù brings extensive experience from renowned Michelin-starred restaurants, including Paul Bocuse, Lyon, France; Jan, Nice, France; Le Table de Xavier Mathieu, Joucas, France; and The Roots, Fluelen, Switzerland. With a passion for culinary innovation and a deep understanding of diverse cuisines, chef Orrù is set to bring a unique and memorable dining experience to Enoteca.
Akkin
In Japan, tachinomis are cosy, little bars found near train stations where salaried individuals can unwind with a light bite and a few highballs after work.
In Bangkok, Kimpton Maa-Lai Bangkok debuts a pop-up hidden bar “Akkin”, which will provide a 15-minute tachinomi experience per person in collaboration with Nikka Whisky, from Yoichi, Japan. Reservation is required and there is limited availability per round.
Napasai, Koh Samui
The Belmond hotel has announced a new executive chef, Mauricio Reyes Corti, for the Beach Restaurant and Lai Thai Restaurant.
With more than 20 years of culinary expertise and a journey that spans countries rich in gastronomic traditions, Uruguayan-Italian chef Corti brings a wealth of experience to Napasai. "I focus on clean and pure flavours with the aim of respecting each ingredient's integrity. The menus highlight the richness of local produce, celebrating the unique environment surrounding us. My vision is to bring a sense of honesty and authenticity to each dish, with a special emphasis on the simplicity and sophistication derived from the local terroir."
The resort has also launched fresh culinary concepts that showcase the flavours of Samui, sourced from the surrounding ocean, farms, and mountains. At The Beach Restaurant, chef Corti’s new menu comprises signature dishes, such as Octopus anticuchos with sweet potato chips and an aromatic coriander-tomato dressing; Grilled seabass with a beer-naise, roasted kale and tomato salad; as well as a Coco puff tiramisu with a fragrant coconut mascarpone cream, cacao, Baileys and coffee.
Meanwhile, at Lai Thai Restaurant indulge in a culinary journey where refinement meets tradition at Wok-fried kuey tiew and Pad Thai kung hin, Thai crab curry kanom jeen gaeng poo and Mango sticky rice. Vegan diners also have an array of international favourites and local specialties such as Gaeng liang, a hearty Thai vegetable soup with tofu amongst other plant-based selections.
Italasia Erawan
Revealing an ancient Roman bar concept, Erawan Bangkok Italasia recently opened its doors.
On the LG floor, spanning more than 160m2, the showroom is designed with an ancient Roman bar concept in mind. The shop’s simplistic interior is accented with warm colours inviting visitors to soak up the relaxing atmosphere while browsing a wide range of top-notch products from around the world. The Erawan branch packs with a complete array of premium imported products from wine, liquor, sake, chuhai, soju and other beverages from Italy, France, Spain, Australia and Chile, to nonalcoholic beverages such as Monin and illy coffee.
Besides drinks, the store features tableware brands such as Alessi, Luzerne, Wedgwood, WMF, Cutipol, Chilewich and Schott Zwiesel, the crystal glassware brand from Germany and maker of the best-selling wineglasses at Italasia.
Sindhorn Kempinski Hotel Bangkok
Satoshi Sawada is the new Japanese master chef at Sindhorn Kempinski Hotel Bangkok’s Japanese restaurant, Ki.
Chef Sawada has spent more than 30 years overseas honing his skills in all types of cuisines at five stars international hotel brand chains. Not his first stint in the kingdom, Thailand was chef Sawada’s “home away from home” from 1995-2020.
The veteran chef introduced traditional Japanese culinary with a twist at the award-winning Shintaro Restaurant, The Regent Hotel Bangkok, Four Seasons Hotel & Resort. He was later appointed chef de cuisine and then executive sous chef at Anantara Siam Bangkok Hotel, before taking up the role of executive chef at Double Tree by Hilton Toyama.
