MATTEO CADEDDU

Head Bar and Beverage Manager at Opium

Born in Sardinia – “an island boy,” he says with a grin – Matteo Cadeddu did hospitality training as part of his schooling in Italy. However, in 2009, at the age of 19, he left his native land to explore the nightlife scene in Amsterdam, after hearing from a friend that it was a cool city. It was to be the beginning of a long worldwide journey that would end, for now, in Bangkok’s Chinatown, where Matteo can be found conjuring up creative cocktails at Opium, the beautifully designed 4th and 5th floor bar and lounge located above Potong restaurant.

After spending four-and-a-half years living and working in the Netherlands, Matteo relocated to Australia – first to Brisbane, then to Melbourne – but the exotic lure of Asia was always beckoning. “I wanted to go to Japan after Australia,” he recalls, “but the language barrier was a concern, so Singapore seemed the easier choice. It has a good bar scene and is an English-speaking country. Ironically, I ended up in a small bespoke Japanese cocktail bar,” he laughs.

After his Singapore sojourn he did some travelling in the Philippines, and then in 2018 relocated to Thailand, taking a position at the Avani+ Riverside Bangkok’s rooftop bar Attitude [which is now called SEEN]. By the time October 2019 rolled around he had set his sights on India, specifically Mumbai, where his next project was all lined up. Needless to say, the Covid crisis disrupted those plans and he eventually returned to his native Italy to plan his next chapter.

In early 2021 Matteo returned to Bangkok, and through a series of events he eventually came into contact with the team behind Potong. “I liked the building, and I liked that they were very forward thinking,” he explains. “We keep the history of this building alive through the food and the drinks, and here – on the 4th floor – it was once an opium den, so we call it Opium Bar. But obviously we can’t sell opium,” he chuckles. “Instead, with our signature cocktails we play with the all the senses, not only the tastebuds.”

“I got my first tattoo at 16 – my father’s name on my arm, because he passed away when I was 14. Since then it’s become like an addiction. On one of my legs is a tour of every country I’ve lived in, and for Thailand I made a whole sleeve.”