In the midst of row houses deep inside Charoen Rat 7, the contemporary French restaurant Patt Bangkok stands out like a sore thumb. Rama III is my turf but I would never expect something like this to exist.
Leave your car at a nearby parking lot and be chauffeured on a golf cart to Patt Bangkok. It opened late last year on the third floor of Pattana Graphic Print, a 41-year-old printing family business owned by chef-patron Arttasit "chef Big" Pattanasatienkul, who was Top Chef Thailand Winner 2023.
Big and his brother Boat expand their culinary ambitions, following Yaktummaiyakgin, a predecessor to Patt Bangkok, and YakYang, a French bistro not far from Patt. With Patt, they bring it back to where it all started — their family business/home — but this time, chef Big shoots for the stars with a proper restaurant.
Behind the sliding doors, guests are greeted with printing apparatus through the ages before they reach a lone elevator, which takes them to Pratt. The lift's door opens to an impressive seven-metre-high-ceiling dining hall, which blends elements of a press room and an opera house. The sophisticated vibe inside is such a stark contrast to the row houses outside. All seats are positioned in a way that patrons can get a cooking show from the open kitchen while certain dishes are prepared tableside.
Patt offers two tasting menus — the six-course "Best Of Patt" or eight-coursed "Patt's Experience" — both with an optional wine or juice pairing. It's obvious from the menu that chef Big doesn't go strictly traditional with his French cuisine but sprinkles on his own Thai-Chinese and Asian twists on it.
Patt's Experience kicks off with one of three choices of Chill pasta, Shima-aji or Banana prawn. I had a refreshing and savoury start with the Chill pasta, which is topped with beef tartare and Kristal caviar.
Hotate chawanmushi combines various delicacies from premium fish maw (not the spongy kind), dry scallops and Kristal caviar. Delicate chawanmushi containing pieces of Hokkaido scallop is served inside a sizeable piece of fish maw, which is then topped with caviar. Savoury and luxurious.
Abalone is dressed in a beurre blanc sauce, infused with rice paddy herb and coriander oil. The univalve gives satisfying and aromatic chews and is served atop a bed of asparagus and local peas.
Seabass "GI" hides not one but two Asian twists in the forms of lemongrass and turmeric in Hollandaise sauce and yellow curry in the bouillon. The crispy fish belly is also paired with a beautifully decorated watermelon bar.
For the main course, you can choose between the Olive beef striploin or Dry-aged Khao Yai duck. Since chef Big is a big beef lover, I went with the former. The medium rare steak comes with jus infused with Thai herbs alongside ravioli stuffed with tender beef.
Baby chicken pithivier is served tableside and its shiny pastry exterior simply begs you to take photos of it. It contains multiple layers of delights from the crunchy pastry, galangal and black cardamom jus, chicken consomme and tender chicken thigh, which is cooked over binchotan. A chef's kiss.
Another tableside treat is the Baked crab roe rice, which has many things to love from yellow chilli foam, Chinese-olive-infused beurre blanc and crab consomme. Served in a crab shell, the crab eggs could have been overwhelming had it not been paired with the rice that is cooked until slightly crispy.
End the meal with either Pineapple souffle served with ginger ice cream or Chocolate feuilletine. Save room for the five petite four and I always have room for a good madeleine or canelé.
Patt does leave an imprint on me as a restaurant with high aspirations while chef Big delivers in terms of both flavours and finesse.
