Thai curries join Belgian waffles at Tomorrowland Thailand, Pattaya

Tomorrowland Thailand will pair its signature Belgian butterfly waffles with Wagyu massaman, green curry cheese croquettes and Thai fine dining when the electronic music festival takes place at Wisdom Valley in Pattaya, Chon Buri, from December 11–13, 2026.

The culinary programme brings together Thai chefs and restaurants to showcase local ingredients and regional flavours, with dishes ranging from a five-course meal to food designed for visitors moving between performances. The first participants and food concepts were presented at the Belgian ambassador’s residence on October 7.

Tomorrowland grew from an idea developed in 2004 into a festival first staged in 2005 at De Schorre recreation area in Boom, Belgium. Still owned and organised by the founding Beers brothers, its Belgian edition features hundreds of artists across more than 16 stages, alongside a food and drink programme developed over more than two decades.

Belgian butterfly waffles retain their original recipe

Pastry chef Roger van Damme’s butterfly-shaped waffle will bring one of Tomorrowland’s recognisable food offerings to Thailand, served with Belgian chocolate.

 

Developed with the festival’s owners, the waffle uses a special flour preparation, fresh yeast and a fresh-vanilla recipe brought from Belgium. Sparkling water is incorporated into the batter, while the butterfly-shaped waffle irons are also imported.

Van Damme described a waffle that is lightly sweet, crisp outside and fluffy within, with an aroma released as it comes freshly baked from the iron.

“The butterfly is Tomorrowland’s symbol, representing romance, charm, sweetness, nature and freedom,” van Damme said of the design.

Van Damme also plans to develop savoury versions featuring caviar and lobster and to open a shop in Thailand.

Baan Tepa prepares a five-course Thai menu

Chef Chudaree “Tam” Debhakam of Baan Tepa Culinary Space will create a five-course Thai fine-dining experience at the festival’s temporary Papillon Restaurant by Baan Tepa.

 

Chudaree sees Thailand’s food culture and local ingredients as an opportunity to introduce international festivalgoers to the country’s culinary diversity.

“The main challenge in serving Thai food to visitors from around the world at a music festival is preserving authentic flavours while adapting the presentation into bite-sized canapés that are easy to hold and eat,” Chudaree said.

Dishes outlined for Papillon include:

- Gaeng ji juan: a traditional Thai curry combining Burmese and Chinese influences with Indian spices, served with braised beef.

- Biodynamic Hom Pathum rice: rice grown in Nakhon Pathom and steamed with an infusion of dried bamboo leaves.

- Strawberry chilli relish with goat’s cheese: a canapé combining nam phrik with goat’s cheese from Nakhon Sawan.

The menu plans described at the launch included vegetarian dishes and provision for guests with food allergies. However, the organiser’s current booking conditions offer a vegetarian main course but state that Papillon cannot accommodate special dietary requirements.

Thai curries connect local ingredients with international influences

Blue Elephant co-founder and owner Nooror Somany Steppe is putting Thai curries and their herbal ingredients at the centre of her festival menu.

Nooror’s experience includes opening Blue Elephant in Belgium and developing a business exporting Thai curry pastes to 45 countries. Her two festival dishes draw on those connections between Thai and Belgian cooking.

Blue Elephant’s chicken phanaeng will use free-range chicken from Klong Phai Farm, served over organic rice cooked with coconut milk and coconut water. The dish builds on a favourite that has sold well since the restaurant opened in Belgium.

Phanaeng topped TasteAtlas’s “100 Best Rated Stews in the World” ranking in 2023. At the food programme launch, Blue Elephant presented its version in small krathong thong pastry cups for convenient tasting; the festival serving will be curry with coconut rice.

 

Nooror’s second dish, green curry cheese croquettes, combines a Belgian speciality with Thai curry paste.

“I married a Belgian and opened my first restaurant there, so I combined cheese croquettes with Thai green curry paste,” Nooror said.

The preparation involves frying green curry paste in butter, combining it with béchamel and cheese, and wrapping the mixture around poached tiger prawns from the Andaman Sea.

 

Sra Bua by Num Weerawat at Siam Kempinski Hotel Bangkok will contribute Wagyu beef massaman, drawing on a curry that topped CNN Travel’s “World’s 50 Best Foods” list in 2021.

 

Head chef Chayawee Sutcharitchan described a hand-pounded paste built around aromatic Bang Chang dried chillies. Galangal, lemongrass, shallots and coriander roots are grilled to release their aromas, then combined with cumin, coriander seeds, mace, nutmeg, white and black pepper, cinnamon and star anise.

The dish uses Thai Wagyu neck from a farm in Khon Kaen, simmered for more than 30 hours. Steamed rice accompanies the curry, while pickled local vegetables, including Malabar spinach flowers and white turmeric, replace the usual potatoes and provide acidity.

Chayawee said chef Weerawat “Num” Triyasenawat wanted the dish to convey the identity and precision of Thai cooking. Chayawee also described his own fondness for braised beef massaman and his confidence that festivalgoers would enjoy it.

Sra Bua’s other planned dish is a tom yum seafood ball inspired by the meatballs served with spaghetti. Its rounded format is intended to make it easier to carry and eat around the festival.

At the October launch, Weerawat was still testing seafood ingredients and refining the presentation. The planned accompaniment is a concentrated tom yum sauce retaining the traditional combination of heat and sourness.

Le Du Kaan keeps southern Thai flavours in portable dishes

Chef Thitid “Ton” Tassanakajohn of Le Du Kaan will present two signature Thai dishes as finger food, preserving their spice and intensity rather than adjusting the flavours for foreign visitors.

The first is a Tajima Wagyu khua kling taco. Beef is braised in the southern Thai curry sauce and topped with a sataw bean emulsion, made by blending the beans with egg and curry paste into a gel-like texture. Dill flowers complete the dish.

 

The second is chu chi prawns in a savoury cone. Poached prawns are infused overnight with concentrated chu chi sauce using a compression technique, then diced and placed in a crisp, savoury cone.

 

Fried shallots, aromatic som sa bitter orange and nasturtium leaves finish the prawn dish. Both creations are intended to retain the strong flavours of their Thai originals while making them easier to eat at a music festival.

Other announced participants include:

- Gaggan Anand: B-EAT.

- Pichaya “Pam” Soontornyanakij: Khao San Sek and Smoked.

- Sittikorn “Au” Chantop: AKKEE.

- Teeradon “James” Supapunpinyo: Talayjai.

- Nara Thai Cuisine: whose preview dish featured Sai Nam Phueng pomelo from Nakhon Chai Si, reduced tamarind dressing and fresh prawns. 

Source: Bangkokbiznews