Michelin Guide Thailand 2024: Female chefs lauded as Gaa and Baan Tepa earn two stars

Thailand's most talented female chefs were in the spotlight at the Michelin Guide Thailand 2024 Star Revelation on Dec 13 as Baan Tepa and Gaa were each awarded an additional star.

The two venues, helmed by chef Chudaree "Tam" Debhakam (Baan Tepa) and chef Garima Arora (Gaa), were both promoted from the One Michelin star rating, joining five other venues in the top category of restaurants. The other two-starred restaurants in Thailand are Sorn, Mezzaluna, R-HAAN, Chef’s Table, Mezzaluna and Suhring.

At Baan Tepa, a farm-to-table philosophy is brought to bear by the skilfully crafted, detailed cooking on its contemporary Thai tasting menu. Chef Tam also earned top honours in the 2024 Michelin Young Chef Award, further recognition of her exceptional talent and huge potential.

"This is truly unexpected and the best surprise," said chef Tam upon accepting her second star. "It's incredible. The team at Baan Tepa has been so focused on our mission to be better in every way. And for Michelin inspectors to recognise us in this way is amazing."

Gaa, meanwhile, fuses the tenets of traditional Indian cuisine with modern techniques and presentation, serving assured, skilful dishes where finely judged spicing and contrasts in texture and temperature stand out. “I couldn’t ask for better validation than this,” said chef Arora, whose venue is one of only two Indian restaurants globally to possess two Michelin stars.

Thailand's reputation as a global culinary heavyweight was emphasised at the guide launch, which took place at Capella Bangkok.

Other notable winners at this year's revelation included six new One Michelin star entries. They were INDDEE, a modern Indian restaurant that takes diners on a journey around the different regions of India; NAWA, a Thai contemporary restaurant that embraces the innovation concept, using modern techniques to produce central Thai cuisine with authentic yet bold flavours; and Samrub Samrub Thai, a Thai restaurant offering a truly original tasting menu (changed bi-monthly) featuring ancient Thai recipes reproduced to trace the ages and crafts a complex amalgamation of aromas.

Other new One Michelin star entries were Mia, a restaurant offering modern European cuisine with Asian influences; Resonance, a restaurant where dishes are inspired by Japanese chef Shunsuke Shimomura’s experience working around the world; and Wana Yook, a restaurant offering an innovative seasonal tasting menu whereby every course features flavoursome Thai contemporary dishes with rice from different regions of Thailand.

The six venues, which are all in Bangkok, join 22 other single-starred restaurants across Thailand.

The only One Michelin star restaurant outside Bangkok is PRU, the signature community-to-fork dining venue at Trisara, the exclusive Phuket resort. The restaurant, steered by Dutch chef Jimmy Ophorst, also held on to its Michelin Green Star, awarded for its strong commitment to sustainability. Other Michelin Green Star winners included JAMPA in Phuket, Haoma in Bangkok, and J'AIME by Jean-Michel Lorain, also in Bangkok.

This year’s Michelin Guide listing includes 447 entries for Thailand, a jump from the 441 entries in the 2023 edition. Furthermore, the seventh edition of the guide in Thailand has extended its coverage from Bangkok, Chiang Mai, Phuket & Phang-Nga, Phra Nakhon Si Ayutthaya, and Nakhon Ratchasima, Ubon Ratchathani, Udon Thani, and Khon Kaen – representative cities of the country’s Issan region – to include the Gulf island of Koh Samui and the mainland city of Surat Thani. 

The Michelin Guide Thailand previously unveiled its 2024 Bib Gourmand List. In total, the selection features 196 Bib Gourmand (28 newcomers and four moved from Michelin Selected), and 216 Michelin Selected entries (37 newcomers).

Among new additions to the guide, 23 are from Koh Samui (four Bib Gourmand, and seven Michelin Selected entries) and Surat Thani Mainland (eight Bib Gourmand, and four Michelin Selected entries), the newly covered territories in this edition. The Bib Gourmand distinction recognises restaurants and eateries that offer great food at budget-friendly prices, namely no more than THB1000 (S$37) for a three-course meal.

According to Gwendal Poullennec, International Director of the Michelin Guides, Koh Samui and the mainland city of Surat Thani boast a vibrant and varied culinary scene that further contributes to The Michelin Guide Thailand’s existing restaurant selection.

"Our inspectors have experienced the true diversity that Thailand has to offer, from modern restaurants pushing culinary boundaries to simple street food stalls – continuously reinforcing Thailand's rich gastronomic culture and heritage," said Poullennec. "The 2024 edition of The Michelin Guide Thailand highlights not only these exceptional culinary experiences but also the latest trends in the country's culinary world."

Eyebrows were raised when the Thai government inked an initial five-year contract with the French gourmet bible, worth around THB143.5 million (S$5.4 million), to launch the yearly guide covering Bangkok and other destinations in Thailand. Exorbitant though the price tag may seem, it appears to have been a smart move on the part of the Thai authorities.

Thapanee Kiatphaibool, newly appointed governor of the Tourism Authority of Thailand, expanded on that theme at the ceremony. She said: “Michelin is putting Thailand into the spotlight as an international gastronomic destination, and the country’s restaurant scene is thriving and flourishing consequently. We are sure that dining in any of the restaurants in the newly launched guide will enhance visitors’ enjoyment of visiting Thailand.”