Khaan Bangkok – Thai Fine Dining
Words: Alison Christ
Photos: Monica Tindall
Khaan Bangkok is located down the street from the bustling Phloen Chit road on a pretty side street around the corner from Central Embassy, the popular luxury shopping centre, conveniently located between two sky train stations, Chit Lom and Phloen Chit. I walk just a few minutes down Soi Somkid, away from the traffic and buzzing Bangkok; the closer I get to Khaan, the more tranquil my surroundings become. Trees are the majority here, as opposed to cars and motorbikes.
I arrive at an architecturally pleasing free-standing Khaan, reminiscent of a Franck Lloyd Wright design, interpreted in a more complementary way. His work always echoed geometrical simplicity integrated with nature just like I see here outside Khaan. This once-residential space has been transformed into a fine dining establishment. The façade’s paint is strikingly alternating maroon and off-white with an artistic vertical metal design resembling soundwaves at the top. The maroon-coloured kitchen is jutting out, almost as a separate entity, with panoramic windows offering a sneak peek at the action behind the line. Intrigued by the design, I can’t wait to get inside. I am greeted by a lovely hostess at the door who ushers me upstairs to the table where Monica is already sitting in our virtually private room. Since this was once a home, the dining area is separated into many rooms. I imagine we are in what used to be the guest room with a view.
It’s so nice to see Monica’s smiling face again. I sit across from her and gaze out the window behind. The setting sunlight is seeping through the lush foliage, hiding the craziness of Bangkok, making me feel like we are deep in an enchanted forest somewhere. Our server comes over to greet us and explains the journey we are about to embark on, Chef Aom Sujira Pongmorn’s Eleven-Course tasting menu (THB 3850) with carefully curated Wine and Tea Pairing options (4-Glass Wine Pairing THB 1,950++), or the 6-Glass Wine Pairing (THB 2,450++). Monica and I look at each other and say tea pairing, please. Just kidding!
We agree the six-glass wine pairing will be a necessary companion for eleven courses. Our server agrees and happily explains that all of the wines are biodynamic or sustainable. Happy days for Mon and me! She continues to elaborate that the concept at Khaan is to elevate Thai street food into fine dining with local produce that we source from around Thailand with an emphasis on sustainability, highlighting zero-waste practices. Monica and I avidly practice sustainability and are very happy to hear this. The food menu is constantly changing based on the freshest possible ingredients. We are encouraged to begin our culinary voyage with an open mind.
My mind is open, albeit slightly confused. This is an eleven-course tasting menu, but the actual menu only has seven courses on it. Monica says the rest must be a surprise. Surprises! I like surprises (as long as they aren’t moving). Chef starts us off with four stunning amuse bouches served individually on their own special serving vessels. Our server comes over to describe each of the four regions of Thailand, which can be eaten at our leisure as they are not hot. Thank goodness, because I’m slightly overwhelmed. I need time to grasp these beautiful amuse in front of me.
We ask for our wine; these dishes demand it! She says, “Oh yes, I will bring it. We usually save it for the first course.” Anyway, she pours us an awesome natural bubbly from South Africa, the 2023 El Bandito I Am The Ninja by Testalonga, into our sexy Riedel Champagne glass. I love this winery, El Bandito! Now we have wine, and we can begin to indulge and explore the different culinary delights from across Thailand.
First, we are presented with a perfect eggshell open at the top and filled with Southern Thai-style curry crab meat, organic confit egg with turmeric oil, and kafir lime powder on the top. We are instructed to stir the egg and eat it with a tiny spoon. The combination creates a delicate yet complex experience with a surprisingly spicy finish. Next, two small round cakes are served on an intricately designed copper piece, reminding me of Islamic art. These Eastern Thai-influenced cakes are pleasantly sweet from coconut and help ease the chilli left on my palate. We have a central Thailand-inspired veggie dish with fermented celtuse, a popular Southeast Asian lettuce, the eight-day-long pickling process gives the vegetables a refreshing tangy flavour with fragrant aromatics. The final amuse is a crispy cup of squid ink with uni and peanut sauce. They recommend taking this in one bite. Monica knows I don’t usually love uni and says, take a small bite first. I do. I like it a lot. I finish it. The peanut sauce is like a peanut butter cup, making the uni pleasant. I enjoy it immensely with my last sip of sparkling wine.
Do not worry; our host pours more bubbles to accompany its intended course, the Andaman tiger prawn, with homemade pickled lime and tomalley cracker. This ‘second’ course has two separate dishes. The first is the tiger prawn, dressed up in delicate flowers and herbs. She pours the liquid from pickled limes onto our plate and shows us the jar of fermenting limes. I take a spoonful; the prawns are delicately cooked, and the sauce is sweet yet sour, zesty with a nutty creaminess and a very refined and feminine presentation.
Resting daintily on a nearby handmade ceramic rock is the tomalley cracker with itsy-bitsy-tiny shrimps with their heads still on waiting patiently to be enjoyed. Here, I remember the chef’s desire for us to come with an open mind. Tomalley (not to be confused with Tamale) is the crustacean’s liver and pancreas; I had no idea a crustacean had a pancreas. Until now, I go for it, ensuring El Bandito is nearby. I take a small test bite and I’m pleasantly relieved by the creaminess and delicious umami flavours hitting my tongue. Monica is also surprised, (she knows me well) as I ram the remainder into my mouth, say yum out loud, chew slowly, then enjoy another sip of my bubbles.
Next, we will learn about rice paddy crab with sticky rice served wrapped in banana leaf. As we gently unwrap the leaf, we are told that the little crabs live in the rice paddies, not in a body of water. Another thing I have learned this evening. Farmers think of these crabs as pests, as they can disrupt the rice. However, they can also act as a second crop and be sold or enjoyed by the farmers, usually turned into som tam. The crabs hibernate during the rainy season. They are endeared for their distinctive earthy flavour. Accompanying the crab is another familiar wine, one of my favourite Austrian producers, Fred Loimer Grüner Veltliner from Kamptal. I love Grüner with its white pepper spiciness and bright acidity. It’s a great pairing with the crab which is a signature dish of Chef Aom. She uses rice field crabs from Singburi province, extracting only the crab fat. The fat is then mixed with red curry paste and kaffir lime zest. This is served with Khao Niaw Kiew-Ngoo, a high-quality sticky rice, which is mixed with coconut milk, wrapped in banana leaves, and grilled. We unwrap the leaf, pull out the sticky rice, and dip it into the crab fat. It’s superb; we love it.
Monica and I are busy chatting and don’t notice someone placing a long radish in the centre of the table. Like the fermenting lime juice before with the tiger prawn, we are being shown the ingredients of several dishes. I comment to Monica, this is cool. Mon says this is a trend now in fine dining; for better or worse, we get to see the raw ingredients to understand fully what we are about to eat. An Asian radish isn’t sexy, no matter what, but I love to see these things. Our next course is fermented sangyod rice with 60 days of dry-aged radish and Thai borage. This dish is a labour of love. Chef uses a method of fermenting sangyod rice to release its starch by changing the water daily for seven days. After that, the rice is ground to create flour, which gives a unique chewy texture. There’s homemade peanut sauce (yum) made with pickled ginger, shallots, chopped coriander stems, and Thai borage leaves. These leaves, also known as pak krachae, add unique aromatics to the dish, while the dry-aged radish provides a crispy textural mouth-feel. This sounds a bit strange. However, it’s my favourite course so far. It’s sweet and spicy with beautiful aromatics and feels good to eat.
Next, we have a playful dish with Barron Point oyster, Surat Thani oyster, and lacto-fermented king oyster mushroom. Quickly, I read fermented oyster and then realised it’s an oyster mushroom that’s been fermented for 45 days. Lacto-fermentation is simply fermenting in salt and water. I love to lacto-ferment things at home – mangoes, jalapenos, carrots, you name it. I’ve never tried a mushroom before. I am sure the health benefits are outstanding. These mushrooms are unlike anything I’ve tasted and the presentation is stunning. We have a lone oyster shell sitting in a box to the side, which holds a creamy oyster sauce and oyster powder made from Thai oysters sourced from Surat Than. We are instructed to mix them into the broth in the bowl directly in front of us, which also contains coconut foam and a Washington State Barron point oyster. The result is fragrant, smooth, bursting with umami and a hint of galangal. We are washing down the oysters with a deliciously off-dry Brauneberger Juffer Riesling Kabinett Grand Cru by Fritz Haag from Mosel, Germany. Another familiar face, I am a big fan of Fritz Haag and actually had wine with Oliver Haag a few weeks ago in Bangkok. The wine pairing is making me happy. The minerality of the Riesling is enhancing the salinity of the oysters and the sweetness is complementing the heat from the roasted chilli paste in the dish.
I take a moment to admire my delicate Riedel Riesling glass. Riedel specialises in individual grapes. For example, I have this lovely Riesling glass in my hand, as well as a Cabernet or Chardonnay glass. The Riedel glass always makes the wine shine and is a pleasure to drink from. I love that the Khaan wine pairing is utilising these great glasses.
I’ve lost track of which course we are on and, frankly, does it matter? All that matters is we get to continue enjoying our Fritz Haag while they present us with the most interesting palate cleanser I’ve ever tried. A Chiang Mai tomato salsa granita with a mist of Thai vodka (yes, when you come to Khaan, you will see it for yourself). If you haven’t tried Chang Mai tomatoes, then put it on your list. They are absolutely delicious, my favourite tomatoes (even better than Italian ones – don’t tell anyone I said that).
My palate is cleansed and I am excited to see a Riedel Pinot Noir glass being placed to my right. Into this glass is flowing a lovely German Pinot Noir by Weingut Aldinger, Untertürkheimer Gips Spätburgunder Trocken to accompany the seasonal catch by local fisherman with shrubby basil and spicy Thai bisque with homemade taro and potato noodles. As a sommelier, I love to pair reds with fish. It has to be the right fish, of course, but I enjoy breaking free of the stereotypes that all fish must have white wine. This dish is visually pleasing, as are the ingredients on display in the centre of the table, which contain a variety of herbs and veggies that the catch has been stuffed with. A herbaceous eruption is in my mouth, and the pinot is a well-invited friend.
We are informed that we have one more savoury course to come and a couple of desserts to follow. Next up is a lamb course and Monica and I agree we should share one as we probably can’t finish our individual servings, but please two wines, we are not sharing the wine! I am admiring the sleek Cabernet glass placed on the table and I can’t wait to see what’s going inside it. My excitement continues as I see a new wine for me, the Portuguese Pó de Poeira, a red blend from the Douro produced by Jorge Moreira. The juice is lush with dark fruits, herbal notes, and a smooth, silky full body. We are served an Indian-influenced lamb shank with basmati rice and Mumbai curry. My first bite melts in my mouth and I instantly regret our decision to share this course. The lamb is so tender and mild that the spices are exploding and melding into perfection with another sip of the Pó de Poeira.
Completely satiated, I gaze over to a petit Riedel glass next to my Douro glass; oh, dessert wine must be coming! Indeed, it is! We are served a delicious Kracher Auslese Cuvee a noble wine from Burgenland. Pineapple, peaches, and honey are singing in my glass, the acidity is bright and fresh so I hardly notice the high residual sugar. We have a visitor from the kitchen, a radiating and joyful pastry chef. She is table-siding our Pumpy-umpy-umpkin dessert. Now I know why she is so happy… this pumpkin is amazingly good. It’s a little bit salty, a little bit sweet and a little bit sour. With a sip of the Auslese, it’s heaven, or since we are in Thailand, Nirvana.
As in fashion with fine dining, we are served a selection of Petit Fours. At first, I think I cannot possibly have another bite of anything, and then I try one, and then another, and another, until they have all miraculously disappeared. Monica agrees with me when I say these are some of the best Petit Fours I’ve ever had.
We get to meet Chef Aom Sujira Pongmorn on our way out of Khaan. She was intensely occupied in the kitchen during our meal. Mon and I stick our heads in the window of the kitchen to say hello and thank you. Chef enthusiastically smiles and says she will come out quickly. By now, the dining room is filling up, and I appreciate her taking the time to greet us personally. Chef is a lovely person who is beaming with positive energy, and I want to ask her a million questions. I know I don’t have the time as she must return to the kitchen, so I pick the one question I am most curious about… where did she learn all this creative fermentation? Chef says humbly, from the Noma Guide to Fermentation. Self-taught, using the Noma “bible” with many months of practice and experimenting. Although it’s a very quick interaction, I am left with a powerful impression and a strong feeling that I want her to be successful and for Khaan to be full every night. I hope you will be ready to try new things with an open mind and an open heart when you book your seat at Khaan.
Reasons to visit Khaan Bangkok: creative food, sustainable practices, beautiful design, homey ambiance, awesome wine pairings, creative fermentations, and excellent service.
Khaan Bangkok
14/3 Soi Somkid Lumphini, Pathumwan, 10330 Bangkok, Thailand
Link to Khaan Bangkok on Google Maps
+66 92 441 6547
[email protected]
Website
Khaan Bangkok Opening Hours
Monday: Closed
Tuesday – Sunday: 5 pm – 01 am (Last Seating: 9:30pm)
*Deposit of 2,000 THB per person to secure reservations
*Khaan welcomes children above 12
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