Bite-size 2017: A year on the Bangkok food scene

By Wanvida Jiralertpaiboon
| Jan 08, 2018

January

Sushi Zo comes to Bangkok

Last year’s omakase trend carries over, with Keizo Seiki taking his Michelin-studded sushi franchise outside of the U.S. for the first time.

February

Kinfolk Gathering co-ordinator opens a Vietnamese restaurant

Gai Mitwicharn roots through his grandparents’ Northern and Central Vietnamese heritage to bring us this Tha Tien favorite, named Tonkin Annam (which was eventually listed as a Michelin Plate).

Thai wagyu is suddenly everywhere

Thanks to Thanabodee Ratchana, the butcher behind Best Country Beef, the local, wagyu cross-bred meat is served up at top venues across the city, including Arno’s and KRBB.

Bangkok dominates Asia’s 50 Best

With Gaggan taking the top spot for the third time, alongside eight other local names.

March

Baa Ga Din makes way for a live-fire, Southern American-inspired barbecue house

Chef Chandler Schultz (formerly of Baa Ga Din) works over Le Cochon Blanc’s theatrical grill pit to forge creative, quality takes on American classics.

Gaggan’s ex-sous chef goes her own way

Chef Garima Arora takes the helm at the bright shop-house opposite her former employer to bring her skills to bear in the making of a tasting menu that showcases local ingredients and flavors.

April

Soba gets serious at Marriott Marquis

Chef Mizuho Nagao’s pedigree isn’t pedestrian: he comes from the family that makes soba noodles for Japanese royals. At Soba Factory, his 23 years of experience are brought to the daily task of kneading and cutting buckwheat noodles by hand.

Canvas ushers in a new era of Thai produce fine dining

In Texas-hailing chef Riley Sanders, the team behind Rabbit Hole find a head man capable of delivering inventive dishes that pack powerful originality.

Durian season returns with a new craze

Bangkok dessert empire After You launches a new store dedicated to durian in all its glorious forms: “crumbstick,” kakigori, frappe and on toast. Durian fanatics both foreign and domestic are drawn to the scent.

May

The local coffee scene finds a new center

Bangkok cafe newcomer Red Diamond doesn’t just have a roasting machine, it also has its own farm in Pha Tang Chiang Rai. The coffee gear on display and an in-house coffee academy gather the city’s aspiring baristas to the far-flung building on Pradit Manutham Road.

June

Thonglor gets a punchy pasta house

The folk behind Il Fumo and Vesper turn a Thonglor shophouse into an aquamarine tribute to fine, fresh pasta called La Dotta.

Ben’s Cookies arrives

The UK cookie store with a cult following brings its soft-baked goods to Siam Paragon, drawing social media sweet-toothed foodies into long lines in Siam Paragon.

Michelin’s cheapest starred restaurant opens in Terminal 21

Singapore’s one-Michelin-starred street-food stall, Liao Fan Hong Kong Soya Chicken Rice & Noodles, opens in Terminal 21 under the name Hawker Chan. We’re unconvinced by the import, and wait for Bangkok’s own Michelin-vetted street stall.

July

An antique house in Samsen welcomes a quaint restaurant

Sittisak Sakornsin, a freelance food stylist who’s worked for Elle and Wallpaper*, and his sister Yuwarat open Baannual to showcase quiet Samsen life and home-style recipes.

Japan’s number one ramen shop arrives

Menya Itto, the no. 1 ranked ramen shop on tabelog.com (Japan’s Wongnai, basically), brings its specialty seafood and chicken broth (and long lines) to Erawan.

August

An outbreak in Chinese-themed bars

The Wong Kar-Wai effect of sultry red lighting spreads through the city. Among the effected are Ba Hao, Rabbit Hill and noodle institution Yih Sahp Luhk, along with too many others.

September

Thai restaurants take the limelight

Eight Thai restaurants open within a few months, spoiling us with a showcase of flavors from up and down the country.

Nose-to-tail returns

At Charoenkrung’s rustic looking 100 Mahaseth, chef Chalee Kader (Surface, Holy Moly, Beer Bridge) partners with Randy Noprapa (Fillets) to bring nose-to-tail cuisine back to the Bangkok dining scene with an Isaan kick.

Charoenkrung gets tropical

Two guys formerly from UNCLE and Lady Brett (swanky Sathorn cocktail joints, for the uninitiated) add rum and tropical flavors to the Charoenkrung renaissance that also includes izakaya-slash-gallery Jua and restaurant 80/20.

October

Mikkeller goes Mexican

Mikkeller’s impeccable beer selection meets the vibrant flavors of chef Jimmy Rojas Lopez’s taco-centric menu in laidback Ari.

Spanish food finds a home in Bangkok

After making its name as a W Distract stall, tapas specialist Broken Eggs makes a permanent home of an Ekkamai shophouse. It joins 2017 Spanish cuisine openings Arroz and El Tapeo.

November

Bangkok’s favorite smokehouse makes a move

The Smokin’ Pug outgrows its Surawong shophouse, reestablishing itself in an old house on Lang Suan. The ribs are as good as ever.

A fine-dining restaurant takes farm to table literally

Haoma becomes Bangkok’s first restaurant with its own urban farm, where 37 different kinds of vegetables are grown.

December

Bangkok’s first Michelin-star restaurants are announced

The news sends social media into a frenzy and (temporarily) crashes the BK site. Did the inspectors get it right? Bangkok’s eaters, from the punditry to the peanut gallery, weigh in on the guide’s selections.

Vesper spins off a sister restaurant

Convent Road’s Vesper splits in two. Next door is the vibrant Via Maris, where Sardinian-born head chef Francesco Deiana explores the heavily-spiced flavors of the Mediterranean, from North Africa to the east.