Haoma, Bangkok
Haoma has been the talk of Bangkok for a while, forging a path of its own and setting a new benchmark for dining sustainability. catherine napalai faulder finds out what it’s all about
PASSION-FRUIT TREES and pansies line the walls and hang above the path that leads to Haoma, a peaceful restaurant hidden deep down Soi 31, off Bangkok’s Sukhumvit Road. This floral entrance will soon teem with purple blues and blossoming pinks, a sight I can’t wait to see, smell and taste. The idea is to give visitors a fragrant and edible entrance – one that’s altogether out of the ordinary.
Before reaching the zen flowerof-life sign that signifies the belief system espoused by this progressive urban-farm and finedining destination, I look up and see a wooden zen-patterned roof. I’m told it’s of the type that Japanese monks sit beneath, and helps induce a relaxing ambience.
Even before I’m seated, Chef Deepanker “DK” Khosler is introducing me to the 42 – soon to be 47 – varieties of herbs, plants and fruits he’s growing in his garden, including German dill, Thai-Italian cross-bred basil, Swiss mint leaves, roselle, black tomatoes, baby eggplant chilli and viola flowers. All are grown using aquaponics, hydroponics, certified-organic soil- and waterrecycling systems in which the fish the restaurant serves can be seen swimming.
“We grow what we cook, and we cook what we love.” says Khosler. His restaurant is aimed at being zero-carbon, zero-waste, zero-kilometre and fully sustainable. Khosler speaks with such passion that I’m certain he’ll follow through on these lofty aims.
I’m faced with a choice of sitting outside among the lush greenery, or on a romantic elevated dining deck, next to a 37-year-old mango tree, which sparkles at night with fairy lights. As it’s almost dark, I opt to dine inside and keep an eye on the kitchen.
I start the meal with Stick To The Roots, a sort of European garden on a plate: confit turnip, sous vide heirloom carrots, salt-baked baby beetroot, charred jicama, pickled lotus root, beetroot crisps and burnt feta meringue, all beautifully arranged around each other. It’s a dish that celebrates the diversity of vegetables, cooked minimally to bring out the natural tastes and crunchiness of the roots.
This is followed by the delightful Burrata and The Bubbles, which features freshly pulled burrata, heirloom tomatoes, chimichurri, tapioca pearls and crunchy candied job’s-tears, topped with dainty bubbles. The combination of ingredients perfectly emphasises the cheese’s creaminess.
Duck Liver Rediscovered is my next course, an impeccable creation of liver pate, brown-bread sorbet, reconstructed bacon, roselle from the garden and orange peel and zest. The flavourful and juicy Lamb in The Hills, on the other hand, combines New Zealand lamb, nougatine, Himalayan garlic, snow peas, feta and mint dust, and certainly goes well with a full-bodied red, while Deep Sea Diving – a succulent Hokkaido scallop with baby octopus tentacles on each side, violet potatoes, scallop, brush strokes of miso and slices of edamame beans sprinkled on top – looks like a painting, but one that’s fortunately good to eat.
For dessert, I’m transported to heaven with Black Forest, a chocolate mousse with drops of roselle, cacao tuille and dainty gold leaf adding an exquisite flourish. The evening, however, doesn’t have to end at dessert, because the bar is captained by a mixologist with years of experience. He certainly puts a fire in my soul with his Strawberry, an extravaganza of lemon, vodka, strawberry skin and salak extract whose fruity flavours hide the alcohol quite wonderfully.
In its laudable bid to lessen its carbon footprint, Haoma works with what it grows, so its menu changes seasonally. I’ll certainly be back in a few months to see what Chef Koshler comes up with next.