Now that the month of love is over, we can take collective sigh of relief as pressure to book a fancy dinner abates. But the search for good food never stops. With new locations for old favorites, hearty desserts, ramen galore, and more from all over town, 2024 continues to be a good year for foodies.

 

 

The beloved Gigi Dining Hall has opened another Italian restaurant and cafe, this time in Ekkamai. This new Ekkamai venture, which you may have seen already from the BTS, will have both fan favorites and new classics in store. As it's Gigi, you can expect a low key vibe with high quality F&B to celebrate a good time. Their pasta is a forever must-order, covering your standard pesto to vongole, and their satisfying slices of pizza and sandwiches make for a perfect hangover cure for the after party crowd.

 

 

 

The Iberry Group is an unstoppable force, churning out restaurants with elevated niche cuisine year after year. From Fran’s to boat noodles at Thong Smith, the group has launched their new venture, Oh My Godmother, at Phrom Phong’s latest mall, Emsphere. The menu is a nod to “itameshi,” a concept which plays with Western and Asian fusion cuisine. The group brought in some great minds for this project, including Top Tables 2023 Best Chef Chalee Kader who came up with the nostalgic “fat kid food concept.” Expect hearty handmade pasta and lots and lots of cheese. But that’s not all, the restaurant name is actually an homage to their collaboration with Vietnamese chiffon cake business Godmother. Stay tuned because there’s a new spot in Thonglor ready to open. 

 

 

 

Following on from Jharokha last month, Thailand loves its Indian food. Baba’s casual Indian bites, situated in Marche Thonglor, is all about showing off their fire and smoke mastery in an upscale and cozy dining spot. For extra authenticity points, the restaurant imports key ingredients from India and uses seasonal produce from Thailand for local flair. You can start with the bitsize mimosas and pair their black truffle cream cheese naan with some spicy lamb vindaloo. The tulsi chicken tikka is just one of the dishes that this joint chooses to show off their fire. 

 

 

 

For years, the downtown area has been a hub for high quality ramen, and now Ari locals are getting their very own version of that with Kokugura. The founder, chef Kulapol “Air” Samsen has honed his skills at the Michelin-star Indian restaurant Gaa and has already successfully opened the Ari neo-Chinese gem, Yoong Chang. As a ramen lover himself, the chef went all the way to its origin country and tried out 23 world famous ramen shops in Japan. Additionally, it took more than half a year of research before arriving at the restaurant’s signature combo of rich pork and seafood broth. Here, the Ika-Sumi Tsukemen are all the rage. The noodles are customized and imported from Japan and the intriguing black dipping sauce features pork marrow, dried seafood, and squid ink. You can go the extra mile and add some premium toppings like grilled lobster and salmon roe in truffles to complete the experience. As a plus, the resto turns into a luxurious and private sake bar with classic Japanese bar grubs in the evening.

 

 

 

Your comfort childhood brekkie, soy milk and patongko, is getting the rebrand of their dreams at 5am. Opening their first branch at Ban Mo and another one at the end of 2023 in Ari, the cafe serves this nostalgic crowd pleaser like no other. With the option to go “dark roast” or “light roast” – just like coffee – you can select either a smoky heavy body drink or the familiar taste of the classic. But if you want to try something completely different, go for the soy milk infused with coconut water that gives the drink a little more fragrance and sweetness. But it’s not just soy milk, 5am also carries some soft serves, logan juice slushie, and patongko honey lemon for visitors to try out.

 

 

 

 

Welcoming diners since mid-September of last year, Kowloon Diner is quickly becoming the name on everyone’s lips, especially among the Phra Khanong and Ekkamai locals. Now, you don’t even have to venture out to Chinatown for some authentic and affordable dim sum. Decorated with vintage posters, lanterns, and neon green signs, the spot is reminiscent of a Hong Kong diner. Homemade dumplings, rice noodle rolls, pan-fried buns, are staples that you can expect on the line up. The star of the the show, however, is the small but mighty broth filled xiaolongbao dumplings. These guys are just bursting with flavor and served hot. So be warned! With the mala craze not dying down anytime soon, they also incorporate the optional ingredient into xiaolongbao and wontons. To cool things down, their house brewed oolong and chrysanthemum will do the trick.

 

 

 

This brand new Sathon cafe is taking the saying “an apple a day keeps the doctors away” quite seriously. DYSF (short for Darlin You’re So Fine) is a two-story brunch to late night eatery, serving several apple based items. From apple cranberry salad, caramelized apple bruschetta, to apple soup, who knew that apples can be so versatile! If the fruit isn't your thing, fear not, the dining spot also nails down pastas, fish and chips, and other classic brunch bites that we all know and love.