It’s a challenging time for fine dining all over the world as the global economy continues to limp along. However, Chef Rôtisseur Arnaud Dunand Sauthier is the picture of unruffled serenity in his chef’s whites, even in the famously unrelenting heat of Bangkok.

“I’m not a frenzied person”, Chef Arnaud says, resting after the lunch service at his eponymous Michelin-starred restaurant Maison Dunand. He acknowledges that, thanks to Gordon Ramsay and shows like “The Bear”, the image of the tantrum-throwing, fish-flinging chef is synonymous with the pressure-filled world of fine dining. Nor is the “Kitchen Confidential” lifestyle of an Anthony Bourdain type something to which Chef Arnaud aspires.

“I don’t go out after service”, the father of two says. “I go straight home. I lead a normal life.”

The simple roast chicken dinner of Chef Arnaud’s typical evening at home seems a far cry from the stylish, sleek glass and wood surfaces of Maison Dunand. Lauded for cushy confines and exemplary service with contemporary French cuisine blending classic techniques with innovative twists. Amongst the perfectly turned-out Hokkaido scallop quenelles, wild-caught turbot with girolles and cherry-flecked pigeon is a cooking sensibility honed in Chef Arnaud’s home in Savoy.

There are “tastes of bitterness” in the cuisine of Savoy, where “cheese is a religion” he says. Even the stone, wood and glass surroundings echo his home region, resembling a ski chalet that just happens to serve a “wow!” menu.

Unlike many restaurants in Bangkok where fickle fads hold sway, Maison Dunand is married to its classic yet contemporary culinary vision more than ever. You will not find “East-West fusion” or “local Thai flair” here.

Today, Chef Arnaud says of that particular fad, “Actually, in the past sometimes I went too much on the path of Asia. The next few months will be more French, more traditional, more luxurious, with a focus on French products.”

Once Executive Chef of the similarly Michelin-starred Le Normandie at the Mandarin Oriental, Chef Arnaud is keenly aware of how fierce competition can be in Bangkok’s French fine dining scene. “As a result, you feel like all the fine dining is the same”, he says. “Everything I do, I want to do because I love it.”

Adding another wrinkle to Thailand’s current food world is the recent arrival of restaurant rating organizations such as Michelin and “World’s 50 Best Restaurants”. Although they have brought much interest and exposure to some of the kingdom’s finest chefs, they are, at heart, marketing firms focused on selling tyres and bottles of water.

“Never forget, they are PR tools” he says, noting that their ratings and rankings have numerous considerations factored in that are not necessarily food related. Michelin, which is seen to be more generous with its stars when it comes to Thai restaurants, has also notched substantial rise in the sale of Michelin tyres in Thailand over the last five years, Chef Arnaud notes.

Perhaps this is why organizations that unabashedly champion good food like the Chaîne des Rôtisseurs are so vital to the local food scene especially in these uncertain times. “We need to have this, a place for people to gather for food and wine”, he says. “The world is so sad, the only way to have peace is to eat and drink together.”

Chawadee Nualkhair
Vice-Conseiller Gastronomique
Bailliage of Bangkok Rattanakosin

Maison Dunand
55 Sathon 10
Silom
Bang Rak
Bangkok 10500

Web: maisondunand.com
Tel: +66 65 639 0515