Storehouse Dining is a gourmet and private international journey.
The set-up
Enter a shophouse on the alley-like Soi Chokdee, and you will find what initially appears to be a doorway leading into the first floor of a personal home. There is a small sofa, a flat-screen television and a long dining table, the darkened wood of which is somewhat medieval in appearance. A small cocktail cabinet holds a wicker basket filled with complimentary soft drinks and bottled water. The atmosphere is that of a particularly homey speakeasy — secretive, cosy, inviting, sophisticated but not overly formal. Through a partial glass door one can observe the kitchen, where the largely self-taught chef Mor, who lives upstairs, prepares a set menu that changes monthly, depending on ingredients, for a single nightly party of six to eight people, whom must book at least four days in advance. Welcome to Storehouse Dining.
The menu
Because there is no menu, dishes are not named. Guests instead select either a six-course (B1,500 per person) or eight-course (B1,900 per person) meal, which begins with a cocktail or mocktail. We were served a refreshing vodka cocktail in a glass mason jar, containing soda, gooseberry syrup, elderflower syrup and ice. Vietnamese lotus seeds acted as an hors d’oeuvre, addictively crunchy, a strange and exotic — at least to the insular American mind — hybrid between a peanut and a broad bean. Dishes are served on and in tableware of varying shape and size — a rectangular, slate plate here, a stoneware bowl there — drawing the eye toward the food’s delicate presentation: a Hokkaido scallop, for instance, with mashed sweet potatoes, carrot puree and a single fairytale-esque mushroom, so crispy as to have been freeze-dried. Or a Grilled pork salad, with green-podded peas, lettuce, vertically thin-sliced cucumber and a light, savoury vinaigrette. Ingredients are sourced internationally: the abalone in the dumplings (and in the thin, chowder-like abalone soup) from Hong Kong; Wagyu beef from Australia; crab — for the perfectly flavoured, slightly spicy Crab macaroni and cheese — from southern Thailand. A meal at Storehouse is an international journey, touching down at global gourmet hot spots for a fleeting taste of the unordinary. Pork ribs, meat so tissue-soft that a slight breeze could tear it from the bone. Inch-thick strips of Wagyu beef served with garlic-seasoned potato wedges. These are dishes rooted in the basics, then deftly transformed into unique, surprising works of edible art, as in the French toast with cherry ice-cream, vanilla cream, fresh fruit and a small cube of chocolate cake, or the Pickled orange macaroon.
Insider tip
There is no corkage fee for wine, which is all the more reason to splurge on an expensive bottle. Also, it pays to keep your eyes peeled in your quest for punctuality — Soi Chokdee is small and dim, and easily missed. A BMW dealership on Rama IV Rd marks the turn-off.
Value & verdict
This is private dining by definition, and at quite the affordable price. Quiet, comfortable, memorable and delicious, Storehouse is an unassuming locale perfectly suited for holiday meals (or other special occasions), and with Christmas fast-approaching, interested parties would be wise to make reservations as soon as possible. Chef Mor is friendly, accommodating and talented — those who choose to dine with her are in good hands.