Meet the new Thai stars in Michelin’s latest restaurant guide
Michelin granted Thailand another four precious stars on Wednesday, as it unveiled its latest guide to the country’s restaurant scene.
Featured in the “Michelin Guide Bangkok, Chiang Mai, Phuket & Phang-Nga 2021” are 299 dining establishments – with a total of 6 two-star, 22 one-star, 106 Bib Gourmand, and 165 Michelin Plate eateries.
Chef’s Table, a French contemporary restaurant in Bangkok, is the only eatery promoted from one-star to two-star status.
Three more Bangkok restaurants have been granted one-star status.
Blue by Alain Ducasse is a French contemporary restaurant that “offers diners a chance to savour world-class dishes using top quality ingredients, well executed with classic French cooking techniques”.
Cadence by Dan Bark is an “innovative restaurant that brings together Western and Asian cuisine, plus features Korean arts through modern and innovative dishes”.
Another addition to the one-star list is promoted from the Michelin Plate: “Sushi Masato, a sushi bar serving omakase menu in an intimate chef’s table setting, where a team of inspired chefs use the finest ingredients sourced from Japan.”
Nineteen other establishments retain their one-star rating, bringing the total one-star count to 22.
The Michelin Plate rating (“good cooking”) sees 32 new entrants – 12 in Bangkok surrounding provinces, nine in Chiang Mai, and 11 in Phuket & Phang-Nga – bringing the total to 165 establishments.
Among the newbies are Banrimbung (Nakhon Pathom), serving family-style Thai cuisine with fresh seafood; Kiti Panit (Chiang Mai), serving authentic Lanna food in a traditional setting; and Beach Grill and Bar (Phang-Nga), where Mediterranean fusion cuisine and fresh local seafood are served from the charcoal grill.
PRU, the one-Michelin-star restaurant in Phuket, is also awarded the Michelin Green Star in recognition of its pioneering sustainable gastronomy practices.
The restaurant uses only seasonal ingredients from Thailand, including line-caught seafood and free-range animals. Its research team have even created a seedbank to preserve local agricultural biodiversity.
Meanwhile the Thailand’s first Michelin Guide Young Chef Award goes to Sujira “Aom” Pongmorn at Saawaan (Bangkok).
Sujira was born into a family of cooks before training under Michelin-starred chefs such as Juan Amador and Thomas Keller.
The Michelin Guide Service Award goes to Guillaume Barray, general manager at Chef's Table (Bangkok) and hailed for his “efficiency, sincerity and passion for good products and traditions to deliver the best experience possible to all guests”.
“The Michelin Guide Bangkok, Chiang Mai, Phuket and Phang-Nga 2021 is available in a Thai/English digital edition at guide.michelin.com/th/en or in print at large bookshops for Bt650 from December 23.
