Arrivals to this month’s Chaîne dinner in Bangkok were greeted to the heart-warming sight of a full box of white truffles, each awaiting the lucky plates of our 2020 traditional truffle extravaganza.

Held every year at the beloved Italian institution that is Gianni Ristorante here in Bangkok, the dinner seeks to highlight the earthy pleasures of the truffle which is liberally festooned on every course - from starter to dessert!

The evening began with the reception where we enjoyed amuses bouches and glasses of Ferrari Perlè Brut Riserva 2012 served from magnums.

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Tartare of red prawns
fresh almonds, mache pesto, white truffle
Roero Arneis ‘Cecu d’la Biunda’ DOCG 2018
Monchiero Carbone, Piedmont

Baked potato, organic egg yolk Castelmagno
on cream of ceps mushrooms, white truffle
Lis Neris Sauvignon Blanc 2018
Friuli-Venezia Giulia

Lightly smoked pumpkin risotto
golden sweetbreads, white truffle
Langhe Bianco ‘Bussiador’DOC 2016
Poderi Aldo Conterno, Langhe

Foie gras filled tortellini
mountain butter*, roast pan juice, white truffle
Gaja Barbaresco DOCG 2012 - Piedmont

Pancetta-wrapped venison medallion
cauliflower cannelloni, thyme gravy, black truffle
Uccelliera Brunello di Montalcino DOCG 2013 - Tuscany

Candied clementine filled with sweet ricotta
salted chocolate crumble, hazelnuts, truffle ice cream
Tre Filer Vino Dolce 2016 - Cà dei Frati

Coffee and teas with petits fours

Each course was lovingly paired with careful selections made by Bailli Délégué Joe Thawilvajjakul fulfilling the role of Échanson. His choices amplified, rather than contested, the truffle’s deep umami flavours.

Highlights of the meal included a mundane-sounding baked potato that ended up serving as the casing for a bewitching mixture of ceps, truffle and egg yolk, as well as Gianni’s signature house-made tortellini stuffed with foie gras and hidden under an avalanche of white truffle.

By the meal’s end guests truly had had more than their fill of the pricey tuber.

Vive la Chaîne!

Chawadee Nualkhair
Chargée de Presse

* Ed. Mountain butter is a specialty produced in the Alpine region. Its production is limited due to the difficulties of transport and conservation. There is also a growing tendency to eat lighter nevertheless the butter remains strongly rooted in local tradition. The colour - from white to yellow - depends on what the animals have been eating in the upland pastures, also on the acidification of the cream during processing. Mountain butter has an intense, lasting taste considerably more than that found in mass-produced butter.