Latest news with #GagganAnand
Time Out
21-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Time Out
Restaurants in Bangkok on Asia's 50 Best Restaurants 2025 list
What is it?: Silom's Le Du raised eyebrows in 2023 as the number one restaurant in Asia. And while Gaggan Anand may have snatched the gold medal from them this year, they still hold a respectable number 20, the second restaurant run by Chef Thitid 'Ton' Tassanakajohn to make the list this year. Why it's loved: If Chef Ton's Nusara is a look back in time to his grandparents' day, Le Du is his more modern approach. The name is a bit of a key. Sure, it's a Thai word (reudu meaning 'season'), but it's spelled en français, and this was one of the first fine dining restaurants in Bangkok to take part in the international trend of local wisdom plus modernist technique. Seafood, in particular, is given priority, and expect dishes made with top-tier crab, squid, and grouper, and river prawn remains the one constant on the menu, served with brown rice risotto.
South China Morning Post
25-04-2025
- Entertainment
- South China Morning Post
Thailand embraces Latin American cuisine, with top Bangkok restaurants leading the trend
What is the first thing you buy to eat after arriving in Thailand? A bowl of tom yum soup or some street-side noodles, perhaps? Advertisement For most visitors, Latin American cuisine will not be top of mind, but it is certainly having its moment in Bangkok. 'There's been a global wave of appreciation for Mexican food, and Thailand is no exception,' says Alonso Luna Zarate, executive sous chef at The Standard, Bangkok Mahanakhon hotel. 'People are beginning to recognise that Mexican cuisine is just as diverse and complex as French, Italian or Chinese. What I've seen here in Bangkok is a growing curiosity – not just for tacos or guacamole, but for the depth and regional variety that Mexico has to offer.' Alonso Luna Zarate is the executive sous chef at Ojo Bangkok at The Standard, Bangkok Mahanakhon hotel. Photo: Ojo Bangkok Elsewhere in the Thai capital, Gaggan Anand has operated Indian-Mexican restaurant Ms. Maria & Mr. Singh since 2020. The same building houses the chef's eponymous restaurant Gaggan, which was recently crowned No 1 in Asia's 50 Best Restaurants 2025 list
South China Morning Post
13-04-2025
- Entertainment
- South China Morning Post
Why Asia's best restaurant, Gaggan in Bangkok, is about more than flavours
For those who love experiential dining, Gaggan Anand is well known. Advertisement The innovative chef's eponymous restaurant in Bangkok, with its unconventional approach to fine dining, had a year-long waiting list at one point. It recently made the headlines for achieving the top spot in Asia's 50 Best Restaurants for the fifth time since 2015. Anand, born in Kolkata, India, not only put the Thai capital on the progressive dining map, he also pushed the boundaries of Indian cuisine and its perception around the world. The chef was featured in the second season of Netflix's Chef's Table in 2018. Anand's journey began in hotel kitchens in India before he moved to Thailand in 2007, where he was appointed executive chef of Red, an Indian fine-dining restaurant in Bangkok. Gaggan Arnand and his team receive the award for Asia's top restaurant at Asia's 50 Best Restaurants ceremony in Seoul, Korea, in 2025. Photo: handout He did a stint at Ferran Adria 's restaurant El Bulli in Spain. Having learned boundary-breaking techniques from Adria, known as the father of molecular gastronomy , Anand brought them to Bangkok upon his return. Advertisement He launched Gaggan in 2010, and described it as a laboratory for his radical culinary reinventions. In the space of a few years, his 25-course emoji menu – where each course was defined not by a name but by one of the tiny pictograms – featuring dishes such as Lick It Up, which required diners to eat with their tongues, propelled the restaurant to number one on Asia's 50 Best Restaurants list and earned it two Michelin stars.
Japan Times
26-03-2025
- Entertainment
- Japan Times
11 in Japan win Asia's 50 Best Restaurant honors, but Gaggan is tops
Gaggan Anand is back. The Kolkata-born, Bangkok-based, self-styled rebel chef's eponymous restaurant, Gaggan, won the crown at the 2025 Asia's 50 Best Restaurants awards ceremony held in Seoul on March 25. For Anand, this represents more than just a professional success. It is also vindication for his decision to walk away from the initial iteration of his restaurant — also called Gaggan — despite it having held top spot on the list for four consecutive years, from 2015 through 2019. Speaking after the ceremony, Anand said the hiatus between the two operations not only allowed him to evolve his India-meets-Europe-meets-molecular cuisine but also to give it a setting that is more operatic — music, much of it rock, is high in the mix — and interactive with guests. Gaggan was one of nine restaurants in Bangkok that made it onto the prestigious 50 Best list — including two others that Anand is involved with. Gaggan at Louis Vuitton (No. 31) is a collaboration with the global luxury fashion brand, while he is also part owner in Suhring (No. 11), the stylish, modern German restaurant which has held spots in the top 10 for the past seven years. After walking away from his first self-named eatery, chef Gaggan Anand has returned to glory in this year's Asia's 50 Best Restaurants rankings. | ASIA'S 50 BEST RESTAURANTS Although Bangkok tied with Tokyo as the cities with the largest number of entries on this year's list, Japan won bragging rights for having 11 in all. Dropping three places from last year's top billing, Sezanne (No. 4) was still the highest-ranking restaurant in Japan, followed by perennial favorites Narisawa (rising two spots to No. 12), Florilege (down from second place to No. 17) and Den (down 14 to No. 22). Three Tokyo restaurants cracked the list for the first time: Crony (No. 30); Maz (No. 43) and Myoujyaku (No. 45), while Sushi Saito made a surprise return to the rankings at No. 33. Rounding off the Tokyo contingent is Sazenka (No. 34), joined by Osaka's La Cime (No. 8) and Fukuoka's Goh (No. 36). Meanwhile Crony's co-owner and sommelier, Kazutaka Ozawa, won the Asia's Best Sommelier award. The South Korean capital was hosting the influential event for the second straight year. This has helped boost Seoul's presence on the list, with Mingles at No. 5, the highest result to date for chef Mingoo Kang, and Onjium rising 11 slots to No. 10. They were joined by 7th Door (No. 23), and Eatanic Garden, which won the Highest New Entry award at No. 25. The annual Icon Award was presented posthumously to the late Margarita Fores of the Philippines. As the 2016 recipient of the Asia's Best Female Chef award, she was honored for her influence in putting Filipino cuisine on the map. To the chefs involved in the ceremony, the importance of the rankings pale in comparison to the sense of community the 50 Best events have fostered over the years. | ASIA'S 50 BEST RESTAURANTS It was a somber moment in an otherwise upbeat and enthusiastic event punctuated by great applause and cheering from all sides for the restaurants on the list. The warmth and enthusiasm that pervade the awards ceremonies is something that Anand touched on in his acceptance speech. "When I was young I never imagined Asia could be a gastronomic hub,' the 47-year-old chef said. 'Today, look who we are. We are not just one city or one country. We are a family of so many people from around Asia, representing our families, our culture, our cuisine." While the media focus is always — and understandably — on the countdown to the great reveal, the awards ceremony is just the climax of a much longer gathering taking place around the 50 Best event. There are talks and workshops, as well as feasts that bring together all the chefs of the restaurants on the list. This year, a number of workshops or introductions to jang (sauces and pastes prepared from fermented soybeans) were held at restaurants around Seoul during the run-up to official events, a response to UNESCO recognizing Korea's deep-rooted culture of jang production as an Intangible Cultural Heritage on Dec. 4 last year. There were also numerous four-hands (or more) collaborative meals arranged by individual restaurants, an indication of how the 50 Best ceremony has become an opportunity for Asia's chefs to rub shoulders and do what they do best — cook together, share recipes and serve the results to the assembled gastronomes and foodies who make sure to arrive well ahead of the awards ceremony. To round off the celebrations, there were the inevitable afterparties, many of them running till the not-so early hours of the morning. This is the process that has created the camaraderie, fostered the friendships and turned the Asia's 50 Best event into an annual culinary carnival for chefs across the region — no matter which city is hosting it.
CNN
26-03-2025
- Entertainment
- CNN
Asia's 50 best restaurants for 2025
A Bangkok restaurant has reclaimed the number one spot at the annual Asia's 50 Best Restaurants Awards. Gaggan, named the best restaurant in Asia in 2025, is known for its boundary-pushing fine-dining experience that serves progressive Indian cuisine with influences from around the world. It was the first time the eponymous restaurant by chef Gaggan Anand had snatched the top prize since he redefined his restaurant concept and moved to a new location in 2019 following wins in 2015, 2016, 2017 and 2018. It ranked third on the list last year. 'When we started as a restaurant, it was not about me but it was about Asia. Everyone in this room is a winner. Today, I'm taking the podium, but that doesn't mean that one of us from Asia will not take it next time,' said Anand as he accepted the award during the ceremony in Seoul, South Korea, on Tuesday evening. 'When I was young, I never imagined that Asia could be a gastronomic hub. And today, look who we are. We are not just one city, one country. We are a family of so many people from Asia, representing our culture, our family and our cuisine.' Two Chinese establishments in Hong Kong, The Chairman and Wing, took second and third spots, respectively. Both restaurants moved up two spots (from fourth and fifth) from last year's awards. Vicky Cheng of Wing (no.3) also earned the peer-voted 'Chefs' Choice Award.' Last year's winner Sezanne — a neo-French restaurant residing within the Four Seasons Hotel Tokyo by English chef Daniel Calvert — came fourth this year. Mingles, which showcases contemporary Korean food with local ingredients and international techniques, rounded out the top five of this year's Asia's 50 Best Restaurants Awards. It was the top-rated restaurant in Korea and won a huge round of cheers from the hometown crowd. Which city has the most restaurants on the list? The list — part of the global 'World's 50 Best' brand — is compiled by the Asia's 50 Best Restaurants Academy, which is made up of more than 300 food critics, writers, chefs and restaurateurs, all selected for their knowledge of Asia's restaurant scene. This year, Bangkok and Tokyo have the most entries on the top 50 list — both boasting nine restaurants in the rankings. Nusara, helmed by chef Thitid 'Ton' Tassanakajohn, was another Bangkok restaurant that made it to the top 10 this year, ranking number six. Hong Kong and Singapore each had seven entries. Host city Seoul, like Shanghai, bagged four spots in the 2025 awards, including Eatanic Garden — a menuless fine-dining concept that highlights ingredients using five senses — at 25th place, which was the highest new entry on the list. For local chefs and foodies, hosting the event in Seoul for the second year in a row was a sign that Korean food has truly earned a place of global influence. 'Because (this) event has happened in Korea, I was able to participate and interact with many chefs,' Kim Jae-ho, chef at the Andaz Seoul Gangnam, told CNN Travel at the event. 'Korean culture is becoming popular abroad. I will work to become a chef who can play a role in further spreading Korean dining culture to overseas.' It's also the second year Bangkok brought home the award for 'Asia's Best Female Chef.' Chudaree 'Tam' Debhakam, this year's awardee, is known for her farm-driven cuisine highlighting the beauty of Thai produce. Her restaurant Baan Tepa was named 44th on the list this year. Last year's winner, Pichaya 'Pam' Soontornyanakij, and her Thai-Chinese restaurant Potong secured 13th place this year. Chef Tam's Seasons in Macao, which came ninth, was the winner of this year's 'Highest Climber Award,' dramatically ascending 40 spots from 49th in 2024. Kazutaka Ozawa from Crony (no.30) in Tokyo was recognized as the best sommelier in the region. Asia's 50 best restaurants for 2025 – The full list 1. Gaggan (Bangkok) 2. The Chairman (Hong Kong) 3. Wing (Hong Kong) 4. Sezanne (Tokyo) 5. Mingles (Seoul) 6. Nusara (Bangkok) 7. Odette (Singapore) 8. La Cime (Osaka) 9. Chef Tam's Seasons (Macao) 10. Onjium (Seoul) 11. Sühring (Bangkok) 12. Narisawa (Tokyo) 13. Potong (Bangkok) 14. Meet the Bund (Shanghai) 15. Fu He Hui (Shanghai) 16. Sorn (Bangkok) 17. Florilège (Tokyo) 18. Caprice (Hong Kong) 19. Masque (Mumbai) 20. Le Du (Bangkok) 21. Neighborhood (Hong Kong) 22. Den (Tokyo) 23. 7th Door (Seoul) 24. Mono (Hong Kong) 25. Eatanic Garden (Seoul) 26. Logy (Taipei) 27. Ling Long (Shanghai) 28. Les Amis (Singapore) 29. 102 House (Shanghai) 30. Crony (Tokyo) 31. Gaggan at Louis Vuitton (Bangkok) 32. Estro (Hong Kong) 33. Sushi Saito (Tokyo) 34. Sazenka (Tokyo) 35. JL Studio (Taichung, Taiwan) 36. Goh (Fukuoka, Japan) 37. Labyrinth (Singapore) 38. Burnt Ends (Singapore) 39. Meta (Singapore) 40. Seroja (Singapore) 41. Ando (Hong Kong) 42. Toyo Eatery (Manila) 43. Maz (Tokyo) 44. Baan Tepa (Bangkok) 45. Myoujyaku (Tokyo) 46. Indian Accent (New Delhi) 47. Samrub Samrub Thai (Bangkok) 48. Euphoria (Singapore) 49. August (Jakarta) 50. Lamdre (Beijing)
