The MICHELIN Guide Thailand 2027 gives Phuket its first two-star table

Words: Pasuta Phongam Photos: Michelin Guide

In the Guide’s 10th Thai edition, PRU earns a second star, Chiang Mai celebrates its first, and ten restaurants join the one-star selection. Chomp takes a closer look at the dishes and people behind the honours.

At PRU in Phuket, durian shares a plate with caviar and sea grapes. The kitchen calls the dish King of the Fruits, and its appeal lies in an unlikely meeting of textures. The rich flesh of the durian finds a counterpart in the briny pop of the roe and the sea grapes. In Chiang Mai, Belén by Paulo Airaudo takes a quieter approach with a silky goat’s cheese flan and fruit that changes with the season. Both dishes now come with a distinction for their home cities.

Unveiled in Bangkok on 10 November, The MICHELIN Guide Thailand 2027 marks the Guide’s 10th edition in Thailand and a century since the introduction of the MICHELIN Star in 1926. Its 507 entries include a record 53 starred restaurants. PRU becomes the first restaurant outside Bangkok and its surrounding provinces to earn two stars, while Belén brings a first star to Chiang Mai. The rest of the selection gives diners plenty of reasons to travel, from a Swiss kitchen in Phuket to a Bangkok counter that follows the old caravan routes of the north.

Ten restaurants earn their first star

Five restaurants enter the Guide with a star on their first appearance. Two of them look to Thai history for their menus. At MACHRI, the starting point is the food diary King Rama V kept on his European journey in 1897. The kitchen draws on French technique to revisit the royal table, serving mackerel with roasted chilli paste and sticky rice, and a samrap built around pigeon red curry. THARN takes a longer view, tracing Thai cooking from Sukhothai to Rattanakosin through ingredients whose geographical indications tie them to particular places.

At Liana, European seasons set the pace for a menu of local produce prepared with a light hand and French technique, with desserts a particular strength. The China House by Chef Fei makes its case through a Cantonese roast chicken. Flax seeds give the crisp skin a delicate nuttiness. Phuket’s Omemo completes the five newcomers with an Alpine menu of house-made sausages, potato rösti and dishes that borrow from the Swiss tradition of fondue.

The other five move up from MICHELIN Selected. Duet by David Toutain gives vegetables a leading role in a seasonal tasting menu, with an alcohol-free pairing to follow its shifts between land and sea.

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At I-SANG, local catfish goes into Korean eo-mandu, while crispy crab borrows the idea behind Korean fried chicken. Sartoria by Paulo Airaudo gives its Tuscan menu a Thai inflection with cappelletti filled with local duck confit. Further afield, Belén applies European technique to Chiang Mai’s produce, while Phuket’s Jaras draws on its own garden for a seasonal menu. Its Jorang brings prawn, Thai curry sauce and aromatic herbs together with a little crunch.

Three second stars, from Bangkok to Phuket

In Bangkok, Blue by Alain Ducasse and Mia both move from one star to two. Blue’s French menu makes room for Southeast Asian ingredients and Mediterranean influences. That lightness carries through to the Delight Collection, a succession of small seasonal desserts. At Mia, a signature appears in the bread course. Its sourdough brioche brings the character of a fermented loaf to an enriched dough, a personal detail in a modern European menu threaded with Asian influences.

At PRU, the new two-star address in Phuket, the menu begins with what the team can grow and what its Thai suppliers can provide. Fermentation and preservation give the kitchen ways to work with those ingredients beyond the moment of harvest.

In Bangkok, Sorn and Sühring retain three stars. At Sorn, Supaksorn “Ice” Jongsiri researches recipes from southern Thailand. At Sühring, twins Thomas and Mathias draw on their family’s German cooking traditions. Both kitchens have made a particular inheritance the subject of an entire restaurant.

The people behind the honours

Two of this year’s five Special Awards go to Phuket. Chanyawi Mukmaneerattanapon, part of the team at hom since its early days, receives the Service Award for the attention she gives each table even while looking after several.

The Young Chef Award goes to Phuket-born Natdanai Kitkorsup of lob-baan. After cooking in Bangkok, he returned home to work with the native ingredients and southern flavours he grew up with. His restaurant holds a Bib Gourmand.

Bangkok’s Opening of the Year Award goes to Kongwuth Chaiwongkachon of Taang. At the intimate counter he opened in June, the Chiang Rai native follows the caravan trade routes that once carried ingredients and cooking traditions across northern Thailand and its borders.

Arnaud Dunand-Sauthier of Maison Dunand receives the Mentor Chef Award. Chefs who trained with him now lead kitchens in Thailand and Europe.

The Sommelier Award goes to Charles Elie-Rodenstein of Cannubi by Umberto Bombana, whose route from Alsace to Bangkok took him through Monaco and Japan.

Across Thailand, the 2027 edition counts two restaurants with three stars, ten with two and 41 with one. For readers planning their next meal, the Guide also includes 151 Bib Gourmand addresses and 303 MICHELIN Selected restaurants. Two places to start are among this year’s award recipients. In Bangkok, there is a seat at Taang’s counter for a journey through northern food history. In Phuket, there is a homecoming to discover at lob-baan. Explore: https://guide.michelin.com/th/en