Michelin 2-star restaurant Sorn Fine Southern Cuisine is the hardest table to book in Thailand.

So, when the Bailliage was able to secure the entire first floor for its dinner in October, seats sold very quickly. In honour of the occasion, diners turned out in their black tie finest, at six in the evening on the dot. They were greeted with ice-cold glasses of Champagne for their efforts.

Nakhon Sri Thammarat, Chef “Ice”, has never formally studied cuisine. He learnt the art of southern Thai cooking, quite literally, at his grandmother’s knee. Having helped his family with the wildly popular casual restaurant chain “Baan Ice”, Chef “Ice” set his sights on elevating his home cuisine to its absolute pinnacle. He searched out rare ingredients and ancient cooking methods for his new venture, Sorn. Now, after only two years of operation, Sorn has won global acclaim and booked out tables, even in the age of COVID-19.

Diners were treated to a parade of innovative Southern Thai dishes that still smacked of authenticity. Fresh-from-the-ocean giant clam and lobster were flown in that day from Southern Thailand. It was thinly sliced and served raw, carpaccio-style. Sorn’s signature “crab stick” starter came in individual mortars (without the pestles), ready for dipping in crab roe and yellow chilli paste. Chef “Ice” brought the South’s characteristic heat with spicy renditions of southern Thai “yellow curry” and an eye-popping assortment of chilli relishes.

RECEPTION

Amuse-Bouches
Young mangosteen, crispy krill, crispy shallot
coconut palm sugar, cashew nut relish
cashew nut butter, cucumber
Champagne Egly-Ouriet
‘Les Vignes de Vrigny’ Premier Cru

MENU

Prelude

"The Beach"
Sand mole crabs, squid head, seaweed powder
sand mole crab powder

Phuket lobster
mixed Thai herbs, lime zest

"Surat Thani"
Tapee river prawn, rambutan, salted egg

Gems on crab stick
crab, crab roe, yellow chilli paste

Coco on coconut
all good things from coconut
Southern plants, dried squid, shrimp

Grilled southern beef
Phattulung beef, curry paste, mango, termite mushroom

Champagne Egly-Ouriet
‘Les Vignes de Vrigny’ Premier Cru

Vegetables

"The sea holds the forest"
southern herbs, turmeric rice, fish entrails dressing
Piesporter Goldtröpfchen Riesling Kabinett 2015
Reichsgraf von Kesselstatt - Mosel, Germany

Rice

First Main Course

"The Southern Classics"
vegetable parings, stink beans
squid and roe/shrimp paste

Yellow curry
redfin bream, fish roe, grilled vegetables

Pumpkin and egg
Nakhon Si Thammarat pumpkin, wild quail egg, lobster

Sweet bamboo shoots clear soup

Condiments
crispy shrimp, chilli paste, coconut milk dip, sea urchin
sweet pork, pork rind, fish sauce, chilli

Syrah 'Sainte-Agathe' IGP Collines Rhodaniennes 2017
Domaine Georges Vernay, Rhône Valley, France

Second Main Course

Southern beef curry
coconut milk, steamed rice
minced beef, pickled papaya

Crab curry
roti pastry, pickled papaya

Sauvignon Collio ‘Ronco delle Mele’ 2018
Venica & Venica - Friuli-Venezia-Giulia, Italy

Palate Cleanser

Torch ginger sorbet, kumquat jelly

Sweets

Tapioca boiled in young coconut water
longan ice, longan jam, frozen coconut milk, grilled coconut

"Sweety until midnight"
soy-milk ice cream, black sesame cream, pickled ginger
coconut rice tuiles, southern coconut crepe

Domaine Vacheron ‘Le Rosé XVII’
Sancerre 2017 - Loire Valley, France

Petit four southern style
Tea or Coffee

After not one but two main courses, the petits-fours trolley signalling the end of the meal was met with almost a sense of relief.

It was an outstanding evening and we considered ourselves very lucky to have had such a privileged opportunity to dine at Sorn.

We look forward to many more exceptional Bailliage of Bangkok events. The bar has been set more than high!

Chawadee Nualkhair
Chargée de Presse