Being awarded the title of Asia's Best Pastry Chef and the first Thai to win the award at Asia's 50 Best this year, Dej Kewkacha began his sweet journey at a young age.
Pastry chef Dej Kewkacha's desserts.
"I first ventured into pastry 19 years ago with Sfree, the sugar-free brand, which opened at Future Park Rangsit. At that time, I was just assigned to be part of the business as I was still studying for my masters at Oxford. My then roommate was a sous pastry chef at Le Manoir Aux Quat'Saisons by chef Raymond Blanc. This is when I began taking an interest in pastry, especially since my roommate used to make pastries for us," says Dej.
"Around the same time, there was a theme park in Japan known for its quirky and experimental ice cream flavours and they had something called 'ice cream champions'. All the champions were invited to open shops at the park. There was a pastry chef who only did sugar-free granita and yoghurt ice cream.
"For Sfree, we managed to get this chef as a consultant and I returned to Thailand to be his assistant. After Sfree, we opened Parfait Rio, which was Japanese parfait, and after that we opened Kyo Roll En. Though that was a coincidence."
Dej's family also runs Safari World, where the brands would serve seasonal menus and "that was where the roll cake was born", he says. "I was the first to do a cow print roll cake in Thailand at Safari World. The cake went viral and we came up with the idea of opening a roll cake shop."
Having travelled to Japan since he was a child and being fluent in Japanese, Dej decided to focus on Japanese roll cakes for Kyo Roll En.
"While we were creating the brand, Japan was awash with the bamboo charcoal craze. That's where I got the idea to use it in an ice cream. No one was doing this in Thailand at the time. Kyo Roll En has two key products, the roll cake and the black and green soft serve. Kyo stands for Kyoto because bamboo charcoal originates from there, Roll for the roll cake and En for the Japanese zen garden," explains Dej.
Dej Kewkacha and his team.
In fact, Kyo Roll En's first branch in Gateway Ekamai had a small Japanese garden. The Kacha Brothers Group operates more than 50 F&B outlets under seven brands, including Thailand's most popular Japanese dessert cafe chain, which at its peak had 67-68 branches.
"This got a bit boring for me as it was producing things on a commercial scale and I wanted something outside from the usual mess, hence Kyo Bar came about," explains Dej. This is also where his masterclass with Pierre Herme, which inspired his daring flavour combinations, came into good use.
The first Kyo Bar was in Siam Paragon but soon moved to Central Embassy "because it was a real shop". It was at Kyo Bar that Thailand's first dessert omakase was offered.
"Initially, my menu wasn't what it is today. It was four or five courses of sweet desserts and was meant for real dessert lovers. However, this required me being there daily and that wasn't possible due to my other commitments. So I only opened Kyo Bar for bookings," says the chef.
Kyo Bar moved to Thong Lo after Covid at the first Jerome cheesecake store outside Japan, which is also under Kacha Brothers.
"Kyo Bar has a Table Check account, which is only open when I am in town. It is a cosy corner, like a shop in a shop, which is quite common in Japan. It is very bespoke," says Dej.
"Over the years of Kyo Bar evolving, so have my desserts. The dessert omakase offers at least five courses and it was impossible to be only sweet. I don't have a sweet tooth and I don't eat cakes but I always like to create something beautiful. The older I get, the more I have started to create desserts that I will eat."
This is where his desserts intentionally blur the line between sweet and savoury, like his banana and curry course.
"I don't run a restaurant but if I did, I wouldn't put all desserts at the end, like I do when I cook with other chefs in a tasting menu format. I see a bigger role for pastry chefs in modern fine-dining restaurants. We can do more than just palate-cleansers, a main dessert and petit fours. For example, I've enjoyed creating desserts using curry, vegetables and even caviar. The sweet and savoury combination when done right is magical.
Asia's Best Pastry Chef 2025 Dej Kewkacha.
"Though I'm inspired and influenced by Japanese food and culture, I've worked a lot more with Thai fruits of late. At their core, my desserts are light, fresh and natural and I only work with fresh fruits instead of commercial purées. I prefer to bring out the fresh and natural taste in fruits and serve them as they are.
"Most of the flavours I come up with are by trial and error. It is just the way I think. Most people pair chocolate with passion fruit, whereas I think of kaffir lime. It's the same basis but I use ingredients that aren't normally used in desserts. This mostly comes from me being a foodie. It's in my DNA. I have experienced a lot of different flavour combinations across the world and I try to apply those to my desserts."
Dej also creates desserts for Gaggan at Louis Vuitton, which showcase his savoury and sweet flavours.
"I have never thought of working in fine dining or a restaurant, but when opportunity knocks, you answer. When the two giants offered me the role of pastry chef, I couldn't refuse. I have eaten Gaggan's food for 15 years, so I know the flavours and can match them," says the chef.
"He is an Indian who likes Japanese flavours and I am a Thai who likes Japanese flavours. It all comes together. Sometimes when I have an idea, we discuss them and a few courses are adjusted to connect to the desserts.
"The first dessert at LV is always savoury and the palate cleanser is always about ice and plants because I love to eat vegetables. It also uses the waste vegetables from the kitchen."
Asia's Best Pastry Chef isn't Dej's first award, it's merely the latest one. In 2023, he was awarded La Liste Pastry Talent Of The Year. Now that he is in even more in the limelight, Dej is busy settling down to a permanent space and plans to keep the premium dessert omakase open late so people can indulge their sweet tooth.
"The plan is a building and different concepts on each floor. The first floor is going to be petit gâteau for sale, then Kyo Bar, a dessert school and my R&D kitchen. But this has no timeframe," he says.
"Before that, I am starting a Thai dessert brand in August. I love Thai desserts. I think it's time to do something about my own country. Thailand has a rich food culture that everyone talks about. But no one talks about Thai desserts, which also have a rich history. This is real soft power. It is about time people recognise our food culture for desserts as well. I want to be part of that.
"Rice will play a big role in this because it is one of a few ingredients that is in between food and desserts. I have a dessert that uses three different types of rice, and of course, coconut. The brand will be my interpretation of Thai desserts.
Dej Kewkacha and his team.
"It's about time for me to do something that people can relate to and can go international. When people think of Kacha, they don't necessarily think of Thailand. I want to change that. This is something of an unfinished business.
"Why do pastry chefs have to play second fiddle to chefs; it's about time for people to think that pastry is also a main job in a restaurant."
