Thailand is known for its food. Not just Thai cuisine, but any type of cuisine to which its chefs dedicate themselves. Chef Pom Phatchara has been the rising star in Bangkok’s dining scene. Although she hasn’t yet earned the Michelin Star, she has run such a successful restaurant with her dedicated team that a long list of eager epicureans graces its dining schedule.

Chef Pom Phatchara’s Masterful Interpretation of Thai Delicacies

The Fresh Catch of the Gulf of Siam

Seafood is the star of the show in Thai cuisine and it is certainly so at Chef Pom Phatchara’s kitchen. There were endless highlights throughout the meal. For seafood only, we had multiple kinds of fish, scallops, prawns, shrimps and they were from the seas of southern Thailand or a river catch.

Chef Pom Phatchara greeted us thirteen times with her creative dishes. As far as fine dining goes, she has delivered each of these dishes with brilliance and perfection. She was brilliant with the way that she used traditional ingredients in creative new forms. Our dishes featured an incredible array of cooking techniques that brought forth the very best of the ingredients chosen.

She delivered the food in perfection. Be it presentation, texture or flavors, Chef Pom Phatchara exhibited a keen attention to details that lies front and center in her dishes. The thoroughness in matching the ingredients, herbs, and sauces was never lost on the appreciative diner. Her food inspired intrigue – I wondered often what gave the dish its aroma and taste.

The prominence of tropical fruits, such as pineapple, jackfruit and tamarind, were what made the dishes so distinctly Thai — adding a savory sweetness that runs subtly throughout, like the murmurs of goddess Annapurna.

In this explosive repertoire of flavors I sensed the spirit of a young chef who has dedicated an unwavering commitment to Thailand. Her food bespoke the passion for a cuisine that bears limitless potential for fusing tradition with contemporary savviness. Each morsel represented the best of Thai cuisine in one aspect or another, bearing a mark of excellence that impressed the mind beyond the immediate gratification within the palate.

So Much More than Mango with Sticky Rice

We finished this wonderful procession of Thai food strong, with a platter of traditional Thai desserts. This dessert platter opened my eyes to the vast array of sweetness that Thailand has to offer. I learned that Thai desserts can be so much more than mango with sticky rice (although mango with sticky rice really is so good).

And yes, Chef Pom Phatchara did come out personally to meet us as well. Her smile was as sweet as the desserts.

The dining time takes at least 1.5 hours.

The Beloved, Historic Baan Phraya

The dining ambience was serene and classy at Baan Phraya. A building of the early 19^th century, Baan Phraya’s original owner was Phraya Mahai Savanya, a high-ranking government official. The last office that he held was the Minister of Commerce.

Baan Phraya was beloved as a venue that hosted top government officials and esteemed foreign guests. Phraya Mahai Savanya’s wife Khunying Loearn Mhai Savanya would set up simple tables with the best of cuisine for her guests. Phraya Mahai Savanya would play Thai music with his band, named “Noom Noi” (it means young men), by the treelined riverscape, celebrating a good ole merry time with the dignitaries.

The night dining by the Chao Phraya River began as we boarded the ferry to head over to Baan Phraya, meaning “Phraya House.” I came face to face with the river that served as the lifeline for Bangkok. In 1782, the Chakri dynasty began a new chapter of unbroken monarchial rule in Thailand. Rama I, the first Chakri king, chose Bangkok for the reason that the Chao Phraya River envelops and flows through this location.

Perhaps the strategic significance of the Chao Phraya River has long receded in the ties of history by now — but its beauty remains, the flows that envelope Bangkok bearing everlasting witness to the economic advances that the country has so impressively made in the centuries since Bangkok’s founding.

Baan Phraya under the Mandarin Oriental

In 1986, the Mandarin Oriental transformed Baan Phraya into the first Thai Cooking School in Thailand. The legendary Chef Charlie Amatayagul oversaw its early operations as the Oriental Thai Cooking School. Under this tutelage, a host of culinary students perfected their crafts at Baan Phraya.

Today, Chef Pom Phatchara takes the helm at the restaurant at Baan Phraya. She draws inspiration from the large archive of recipes developed at the Oriental Thai Cooking School, with her own expertise in reinterpreting them, giving traditional Thai food a contemporary twist in both presentation and flavors.

Sources

Descriptions on site at Baan Phraya.