In honour of International Women's Day today, some of Thailand's female culinary talent will be part of the Women in Gastronomy (WIG) symposium, being held the Banyan Tree Bangkok.
The 2nd edition of the annual symposium kicks off today with presentations and panel discussions, followed by a special multi-chefs Bangkok Street Food Lunch featuring unique dishes from the city's leading female chefs and restaurants.
Organised by Gastronauts Asia, the afternoon introduces a new session on "Women in Wine" with some of Italy's most prestigious wine producers from Sicily's Planeta, Bellavista in Franciacorta, Frescobaldi in Tuscany and Masciarelli in Abruzzo. A four-hands dinner "Thailand meets Italy", fusing the talents of Italian chef Cristina Bowerman of Michelin-starred Glass Hosteriaand Romeo in Rome and Chudaree "Tam" Debhakam, winner of Thailand's first edition of Top Chef, will be held this evening, while another will be held tomorrow evening at Vertigo rooftop restaurant.
Presenting the leading ladies of Thai gastronomy participating at WIG 2019.
Chudaree "Tam" Debhakam
As the very first winner of Top Chef Thailand, chef Tam impressed the judges with her creative cuisine and ability to remain calm under pressure. Being a woman in her field can be hard, but the challenge only makes her more determined.
Pichaya "Pam" Utharntharm
Chef Pam is one of the four culinary experts and hosts from Top Chef Thailand. Starting in 2017, she presided over contestants in the inaugural season of the Thai edition of the show, as the youngest and only female judge.
Nooror Somany Steppe
Chef Nooror Somany Steppe studied advanced culinary arts at the prestigious Madame Jacob Institute in Belgium. With her husband, she launched L'Elephant Bleu in Brussels. Today there are a dozen Blue Elephant restaurants worldwide, including the flagship Bangkok branch.
Saki Hoshino
As a child, pastry chef Saki Hoshino helped her family in the kitchen in Japan. However her culinary education and professional career kicked off in Toronto, Canada. She has since become a skilled pastry chef, whipping up incredible desserts at Charong Krung favourite 80/20.
Rungthiwa "Fae" Chummongkhon
Chef Fae spent 12 years of her culinary career in Denmark. While training, she worked under chef Wassim Hallal at the Michelin-starred Frederikshøj in Aarhus, Denmark. She later graduated from the now closed La Belle Époque in Lübeck, Germany.
Porntip "Thip" Eumanan
Chef Thip is the Thai chef de cuisine at Banyan Tree Bangkok, a position she's held since 2015. In 2018, she was assigned to the Saffron Corporate Culinary task force, a role which sees her as an instrumental right-hand to the Saffron Corporate Master Chef to support training, menu development and Thai food promotion across Saffron restaurants worldwide.
Renu Homsombat
Chef Renu Homsombat is Saffron's corporate Thai chef, a position which she has held since 2011. Chef Renu learnt to cook in her mother's small family restaurant, also the place where she knew she wanted to become a chef. She joined Banyan Tree Bangkok in 2003, rising through the ranks and today is the mastermind behind all the culinary creations at Saffron Signature Thai Restaurant worldwide.
Naree Boonyakiat
Chef of Yelo House, Naree, a former choreographer, is an untiring advocate of authentic Thai cuisine. She highlights the finest and rarest ingredients in search of lost recipes from cooking manuscripts. Her unique style of cooking is a means of communicating Thai art, history and culture.
Jutamas "Som" Theantae
Chef Som is the executive chef and co-owner of Karmakamet Diner and Karmakamet Conveyance. Her culinary philosophy of "the happiness of cooking for your loved ones" is what drives her creativity and attention to detail. In 2011, she was invited to be a guest chef on Relais & Château's World Chefs Program.
Rangsima "Nan" Bunyasaranand
Chef Nan studied at the highly-acclaimed Culinary Institute of America in New York, training under Thomas Keller, of three Michelin-starred French Laundry and Per Se, and Jean-Georges Vongerichten, of two Michelin-starred Jean-Georges. She ran the culinary team at the now closed Little Beast on Thong Lor.
Pantong "Aoi" Pratumpak
Chef Aoi is a Bangkok native who honed her skills working at various local eateries before joining the kitchen at Bo.lan under the mentorship of chef Duangporn "Bo" Songvisava. While at Bo.lan, chef Aoi's leadership and passion stood out so it was only natural for her to helm the Err kitchen. Her passion for quality and fun attitude personifies the style of dining at Err, whilst maintaining the core principles of organic and sustainable dining.
WIG 2019 will be held at the Banyan Tree Bangkok on March 8-9. For reservations, call 02-679-1200 or email hostesses-bangkok@banyantree.com. Call 02-286-7821 or email info@gastronauts.asia or visit http://womenInGastronomy.Asia.
