Showing 1 - 10 of 15
A journey to remember
Holiday Time, Gary Boyle, Published on 25/12/2019
» It begins with a magic trick. Your waiter presents a pot of seeds, closes the lid, then abracadabra! Two meringues appear inside. They come with a small plastic bag of crispy rice, and, the waiter informs us, the bag is edible. As a culinary curtain-opener of an eight-course meal, this is a hint of the intricate delights to come.
SAY bonjour to beef
Holiday Time, Gary Boyle, Published on 21/12/2018
» Bangkok takes its meat seriously these days. Foodies know their wagyu from their Angus, and if there are marbling grades lower than A5, I’ve never encountered such bland matter on any decent downtown menu. Committed carnivores require a place of worship to the pleasures of the flesh, a T-bone temple or a sirloin sanctuary. The devout will already know where to go.
All the classics
Holiday Time, Gary Boyle, Published on 20/12/2016
» Nobody needs to reinvent the wheel of a thousand-year-old cuisine. The recipe for success for any Chinese restaurant is to have an experienced chef producing consistently delicious dishes, maybe making a couple of slight adjustments for local tastes and, if you're extremely lucky, for the venue to have a sensational view.
Annual extravagance
Holiday Time, Gary Boyle, Published on 20/12/2016
» What a year it's been! The world of music alone has seen a greatest hits compilation of legends leave the stage, while the kingdom suffered its heaviest loss imaginable. Politics was even more of a global shambles than ever, and there are those that believe 2017 could make 2016 seem like a dress rehearsal for the end of days.
ZOOM with a view
Holiday Time, Gary Boyle, Published on 25/12/2015
» If 2015 has been a year of difficult decisions -- which organic, artisanal single origin coffee to buy, which hipster burger truck to chase, which empty new mall to haunt -- then solace is to be found in the realisation that only one decision remains. The choice of where to spend the last hours of the year is, however, often fraught with an abundance of options.
Prime Time
Holiday Time, Gary Boyle, Published on 11/12/2015
» Steak lovers are spoilt for choice in Bangkok these days. Cattle are being pampered around the world and their best chunks of beef are flying in daily, landing on plates across the capital. But for the true beef fiend, only the best will do.
Truffle Hound Heaven
News, Gary Boyle, Published on 30/12/2014
» It's odd how we ascribe value these days. We're happy to spend several hundred baht daily for a couple of coffees and a stale bun, but baulk at rewarding a musician's soulful outpourings by actually paying the same amount for an album. Food, however, in its stubborn refusal to be digitised, has avoided devaluation and Bangkokians are seeking ever higher and more expensive culinary experiences. Michelin-trained chefs used to be enough but now we crave an actual multi-Michelin-star celebrity in the kitchen. Decadent treats like foie gras perennially pop up on every festive menu whether people actually enjoy them or not. But this month Centara Grand at CentralWorld has trumped them all with its truffle menu.
Every firework at once
News, Gary Boyle, Published on 22/12/2014
» Question: where's the best place to watch Bangkok's countdown fireworks? Is it in the city centre, craning your neck trying to see them all? Or from the rooftop of a glitzy downtown hotel, trying to glimpse them as they explode behind the neighbouring, slightly taller glitzy hotel?
Uptown is the new downtown
News, Gary Boyle, Published on 12/12/2014
» Sorry CBD dwellers, zone 1 citizens and heart of the city hipsters: downtown is over. Developers have ripped the soul out of your neighbourhood and hoodwinked you into paying astonishing rent for the privilege. Who wants to pay more for a macaroon in Ploen Chit than in Paris, or buy a New York Deli-style brunch for the price of a flight to Phuket?
Head to Hank's
Life, Gary Boyle, Published on 23/12/2013
» You'll hear Christmas songs, you'll hear classic party music, you might even hear some Elvis but one sound that's definitely absent is the rumbling of tummies. No one goes hungry here. Henry J. Beans is a classic American diner, which means everything is big: huge plates of wings, 750g T-bones, two-hander tacos and giant glasses of margarhita. Go alone if you dare, but it's best to share.