On our last trip to Thailand, Karen and I were most looking forward to experiencing the 2 Michelin star cuisine of chef Gaggan Anand at his eponymous Bangkok restaurant, Gaggan, the #1 ranked restaurant in Asia and the #4 ranked restaurant in the world.
The restaurant is a long and sweaty 20 minute walk from the nearest BTS station so it’s best to take an Uber, tuk tuk, or taxi. Our Sukhumvit hotel seemed easy enough to find but the Uber driver never showed up so the concierge called us a cab. Bangkok traffic is notoriously gridlocked so we felt lucky to arrive just in time for our 9:30 reservation.
The restaurant serves a whimsical menu named The Gaggan Experience, priced at 4000++ THB. Once seated, we were presented with a 26 item “emoji menu. ” Each emoji represents a component of the 26 courses to follow, a server guides each table through the courses as they arrive.
The menu changes every few months, but several classics, like the cumin scented “Yogurt Explosion” continue to stay.
The sommelier presented us with a well thought out wine list but we chose to go the cocktail route instead. Our favorite was a riff on The Coconut Lassi with coconut water, Malibu rum, cow’s milk, and grated tonka bean.
The first several courses consist of a series of small snacks inspired by Indian street food, the tastiest being the “Bhel Puri in Edible Paper,” a great way to awaken our taste buds.
While the menu obviously leans heavily on Indian flavor profiles, the “Green Pea Mushroom Roll” had roots in Europe and East Asia with black truffle and wasabi powder.
The next dish was a unique twist on matcha tea. Presented table side by the Sous Chef, dried tomato powder and tomato water were whisked until bright red.
Every course of the night was a hit, but my favorite was the “Shrimp Charcoal.” The shrimp and potato mixture tasted of mustard seed and fenugreek and was deep fried until crisp. The charcoal powder added smokiness and made for a dramatic presentation.
Another hit were the sweetcorn waffles filled with a goat brain mousse… delicious!!
Our dining experience lasted almost 3 hours and we were back on the streets of Bangkok by 1 am.
The late night food carts started hitting the scene at around 2 so we decided to have a late night snack.
We finished the night on Soi Cowboy with plenty of Thai Whiskey and a healthy dose of Thai Metallica.
We rocked out until dawn and were back at the hotel for an early morning swim.
Chef Chris Colburn 