‘Thai cuisine is not just street food’: with 9 Asia’s 50 Best Restaurants 2023 entries for Bangkok – matched by Singapore – top chef celebrates

Thitid ‘Ton’ Tassanakajohn triumphs in annual rankings, with two of his restaurants in the top 3, capping an impressive night for Bangkok, while Hong Kong sinks

Special awards include the debut of a sommelier award, given to a young woman based in China, and a Singapore venue taking the Art of Hospitality accolade

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Thai chef Thitid “Ton” Tassanakajohn using caviar from a Thai sturgeon farm to create a dish at his Nusara restaurant in Bangkok, ranked third on the 2023 Asia’s 50 Best Restaurants list and one of nine in Thailand ranked. Photo: AFP

Published: 12:04pm, 29 Mar 2023Updated: 12:34pm, 29 Mar 2023

Thailand reigned supreme at the 2023 Asia’s 50 Best Restaurants awards, with nine restaurants from the capital, Bangkok, ranked – a total matched by Singapore.

The crown of Asia’s Best Restaurant was awarded to Thai chef Thitid “Ton” Tassanakajohn’s modern Thai kitchen Le Du. One of his newer venues, Nusara, which pays tribute to his grandmother’s cooking, was in third place.

Also in the top 10 was Gaggan Anand, the latest incarnation of the eponymously named Bangkok restaurant of chef Gaggan Anand that previously topped the list a record four times, and Sorn, the traditional Southern Thai restaurant headed by chef Supaksorn “Ice” Jongsiri.

Another Anand venue, Ms. Maria & Mr. Singh, which blends Indian and Mexican cuisines, came in at No 33, while Sühring, the contemporary German fine-dining restaurant opened by twins Thomas and Mathias Sühring, was ranked 22nd best.

A dish from Nusara, ranked third on the 2023 Asia’s 50 Best Restaurants top 50 list and one of nine Bangkok restaurants ranked. Photo: AFP

Two Bangkok restaurants made the top-50 list for the first time: Potong, the innovative Thai-Chinese restaurant by Pichaya “Pam” Utharntharm, blazed in at No 35, while Baan Tepa, headed by chef Tam Chudaree Debhakam, which uses many ingredients grown in the restaurant’s garden, came 46th.

Speaking after the awards ceremony, which was held at Resorts World Sentosa in Singapore, an emotional Ton said his double win, and the dominance of Thai restaurants on the list, felt “unreal”.