NIKS ANUMAN-RAJADHON
Founder of Teens of Thailand, Asia Today, and TAX
Bangkok-born Niks Anuman-rajadhon is the great-grandson of Phraya Anuman Rajadhon, a revered Thai scholar who at one point devoted considerable time to studying and cataloguing the spirit world of Thai folklore. By contrast, Niks has focused his keen mind on a rather different group of spirits, namely the kind that go into great cocktails.
While studying Political Science at Chulalongkorn University, Niks and some pals founded Vice Versa Company – also known as VV Spirits – which specialises in cocktail catering, and importing and distributing craft spirits. By 2015, he’d opened Teens of Thailand, the country’s first dedicated gin bar, which has gone on to win a slew of awards (including, this year, its fourth appearance on the Asia’s 50 Best Bars list). Two years later he lent his Midas touch to Asia Today bar, where foraged and sustainably grown ingredients – primarily Thai wild honey – take precedence. Then, in late 2020 he opened TAX, which uses homemade craft vinegars in its signature cocktails. Unfortunately, however, the ongoing restrictions regarding alcohol have kept all three of these beloved drink spots shuttered for the majority of 2021.
Thankfully, Niks has a variety of projects he works on outside the confines of the city’s bar scene. In 2020 he joined Left Hand Roasters, a Chiang Mai-based coffee company that works with local farmers. “It’s nice to do something that’s not alcohol-related sometimes,” Niks says. “But I’m not involved in day-to-day operations.” In 2020 he also founded Boom’s Reserve, which procures varieties of wild honey from trusted local beekeepers.
More recently – in June of this year – the now 35-yearold acquired major shares in the Thai-based company Issan Rum, making him an official co-owner of one of the region’s most successful distilling operations. As for the future, he hints at two new bar openings: Independence on Soi Rammaitree (Nana), and G.O.D. in Thong Lor. “That name stands for ‘Genius on Drugs’,” he laughs.