Haute cuisine meets haute couture

NOW You’ve got someplace else swank to wear all those hot clothes from Vogue magazine. Carrying all the sophistication and glamour of the printed page is the Vogue Lounge atop Bangkok’s MahaNakhon Cube Building.

Thought not affiliated with the Thai edition of Vogue magazine, the Vogue Lounge is owned by business tycoon Sorapoj Techakraisri of Pace Development, who has a licensing arrangement with Conde Nast International Restaurants, part of the publishing giant that produces Vogue, GQ, Tatler and Vanity Fair.

“The world’s first Vogue Lounge” does have cousins elsewhere – there are Vogue Cafes in Moscow, Kiev and Dubai – but Bangkok’s version lives up to its name with more than 400 square metres of legroom. 

A couple of dozen haute-couture images from the magazine illustrate the posh restaurant with a marble-top bar that seats 50 diners indoors and another 60 on the breezy terrace. 

The framed pictures that the magazine’s celebrated editor, Diane Vreeland, commissioned Cecil Beaton to take in the 1960s and ’70s are in black and white and contrast nicely with the setting. London-based David Collins Studio used black and gold in the design to lend of sense of timeless elegance that’s set off by the soft-purple furnishings conceived by the late David Collins himself.

“We’d been approached by Conde Nast International Restaurants to open another Vogue Cafe, but we already had the gourmet cafe Dean & DeLuca downstairs,” says Sorapoj, who builds posh mixed-use properties and recently bought the Dean & DeLuca food brand for the equivalent of Bt4.55 billion. 

“So we came up with the concept of a Vogue Lounge, with all-day dining – delicate contemporary cuisine in bite-sized portions, special drinks and good music, amid elegant decor and with impeccable service. We feel it embodies the spirit of Vogue.”

An avid art collector, Sorapoj has hung his Andy Warhol prints of Mao Zedong and ballet shoes alongside the Beaton photos. His Armand Fernandez violin sculptures are also on display.

“Bangkok has a lot of well-travelled brand-conscious people and an entrenched dining-out culture,” he points out. “And, thanks to the growth of the social media, customers today are informed and selective and also eager to try new things if people say they’re good.”

Maarten Goetheer from Hong Kong is the resident DJ, shaping the mood with a wide range of music, from deep house to dance classics. Thai and foreign DJs make occasional guest appearances. 

Chef Vincent Thierry, who maintained three Michelin stars for the Caprice at the Four Seasons Hong Kong for four consecutive years, is now Vince of the Vogue. He offers fine dining in the style of his French homeland – red shrimp Carabineros, Iberico ham from Spain, French foie gras, sea bass and lamb, Japanese tuna and scallops and Alaskan crab.

“The concept is to pick at the food at your leisure,” says Thierry. “It’s essential to find the best seasonal ingredients, and we cook them so as to maintain their natural flavours. The shrimp comes from Palamos on the Spanish coast and has a unique taste and dense texture, like a lobster. The lamb is from Aveyron in southern France, delicate and intensely flavoured.”

You’ve probably already guessed that the Vogue Lounge is not a place to go if you’re on a slim budget. The 10 choices on the menu cost Bt350 each, a platter for sharing (cold cuts, cured fish, cheese) Bt1,200. Seasonal dishes also run to Bt1,200. Desserts, however, are a more modest Bt250.

We alerted our bank manager and 

 tucked in. First up was Otoro Sashimi, marinated with yuzu and soy sauce and topped with lemongrass jelly, tuna flakes, pickled cucumber and rice chips. 

Next was Alaskan king crab, the meat seasoned with lemon and olive oil, then dressed with spiced mango, papaya and red pepper, then layered with crab jelly and mascarpone mousse. The Crusted Palamos Carabineros is a baked veal sweetbread stuffed with a red shrimp wrapped in nori seaweed. 

The Duck Foie Gras Terrine is dipped in red-berry jelly and served with crunchy hazelnuts, while the Dived Scallop (meaning it’s been ethically gathered by hand) a la Pancha comes on a bed of Iberico ham with a marinated clam. 

Line-caught Sea Bass from the waters off Brittany is accompanied by salicornia (a seaside weed) and, on the side, Savoy cabbage topped with diced green apples and bigorneau (winkles).

The Aveyron Lamb Rack with balsamic vinegar jus is served with a barbajuan (pastry stuffed with artichoke). Arriving astride the marrowbone was Japanese Wagyu Beef Sirloin with black-truffle-based mash and deep-fried potatoes. 

It’s white truffles that are currently in season, through, so the chef is offering two such dishes, each Bt1,200. 

Fregula Sarde Risotto is cooked like risotto but with fregula, a rice-like pasta from the Italian island of Sardinia. It has a quail egg and truffle shavings for company. And Butternut Squash Chawanmushi is steamed egg custard with shrimps, bacon foam and, again, the shaved truffle. 

With barely any room left in the tummy and even less cash, we face a choice of 10 desserts. Among them are the Kalingo Chocolate Tart with cocoa sorbet, the Frozen Matcha Sphere (an amazing creation of green tea parfait, white chocolate tofu and lemon cream) and, just as tempting, the Almond Parfait with Arabica coffee jelly, mascarpone mousse and almond-flavoured foam.

The six cocktails on offer are named after what must be the most important cities in the world – Bangkok, Tokyo, London, Milan, Paris and New York – Bt340 each. Newly concocted, the Bangkok MahaNakhon Julep is a mix of Nikki Thai vodka, absinthe, passion fruit and mango juice. Ringing the gong for London, the Big Ben melds Tanqueray gin, elderflower liqueur, lemon juice, egg white and soda.

 

MODEL DINING

The Vogue Lounge is on the sixth floor of the MahaNakhon Cube Building on Narathiwas Rajanakarin Road. 

It’s adjacent to the Chong Nonsi BTS station and open daily from 10am until late. 

Make reservations at (02) 001 0697 or the “VougeLoungeBangkok” page on Facebook.