On Sunday 16th June, restaurateur Samyukta Nair will launch KOYN Thai with Rose Chalalai Singh, a new restaurant that celebrates the flavours, spices and cooking techniques of Thailand. Guests will find KOYN Thai hidden below Nair’s contemporary restaurant KOYN Japanese, which will continue to reside on the ground floor of the Grosvenor Street location, serene and verdant, known for its Japanese umami flavours and izakaya dining style.
Singh, born in Bangkok, is a chef known as much for her home-style Thai cooking, as she is for being a new archetype of the celebrated café society in Paris. Through her heartfelt, fiery approach, Singh will bring to KOYN Thai the dishes her grandmother cooked for her in Bangkok, where she grew up. This nostalgia will also be much influenced by Singh’s time spent in Paris’s 11th Arrondissement, the loved grocery store opened in Le Marais and her Thai style café, Rose Kitchen, in the historic covered market, Marches des Enfants Rouges.
Reflective of Samyukta and Rose’s recent travels across Thailand, KOYN Thai will bring forth plates which reflect the complex flavours across the Kingdom. Drawing inspiration from the North, South and Central Provinces, featuring dishes such as a Toasted Coconut Pomelo Salad, Wild Garlic, Green Chilli & Thai Basil ‘Escargots’ and a Chiang Mai platter featuring Spicy Homemade Pork Sausage, Capsicum Nam Prik, Sticky Rice and Crackling Pork Skin. Journeying further through the menu, guests can expect the likes of River Prawn Choo Chee and Southern Thai Crab Curry with Wildbetal Leafbush.
Diners will descend the black winding stairs to the low-lit dining room of KOYN Thai detailed by Nair with Tom Strother of Fabled Studio to reflect Thai flourishes. The room features the works of Chiang Mai artist and printmaker Kitikong Tilokwattanotai, set against the background of black oak ceilings, handmade terracotta roof tiles, hand-painted tapestry, and lacquer antiques. The focal point of the space is the open kitchen, where Rose and executive chef Rhys Cattermoul will don the pass and show their culinary artistry with dishes cooked over live fire.
The KOYN Bar, will retain its izakaya essence, drawing from KOYN Japanese, and will also champion flavours and liqueurs from Thailand in cocktails such as the classic Sabai Sabai, a blend of Mekong, citrus and Thai basil, and Blue Breeze with Blue Butterfly pea infused tequila, coconut water and aloe vera.
Samyukta says, “The cosmos of KOYN has always focused on duality and KOYN Thai is an exciting addition that takes this a step further. Travelling with Rose, eating together and finding inspiration that celebrates the diverse flavours of Asian cuisine is at the forefront of our collaboration, one that I am particularly excited to bring to London this summer”.
Rose says “I’m excited about my new home at KOYN Thai in Mayfair and the opportunity to be able to come to London and collaborate with Sam in the best way I know – with great spirit and the very best of Thai flavours.”
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