Haoma, an intimate farm-to-table restaurant with an outsized social conscience, is offering a special menu for the season of good cheer. From Christmas Eve till New Year’s Day, the eight-course Festive Menu is available in a sprit-raising gastronomic extravaganza of varied meats, veggies and sophisticated medleys selected from an array of organic ingredients largely grown on premises in line with Haoma’s ethos of supporting a sustainable fine dining culture. The restaurant has set for itself the ambitious goal of becoming the first restaurant to be certifiably carbon-neutral by 2020.
Named for, haoma, the elixir of life of ancient faiths across the Middle Eastern and South Asia, the ma in the restaurant’s name shares root origins with the ma in magic and the magi - the Three Wise Men in Christian tradition. Among the highlights of Haoma’s own brand of edible magic featured in the Festive Menu are Thailand’s own Royal Project Caviar balanced with smooth panna cotta starring robustly parsley-like lovage and taken with celery and brioche croutons. Also worth slowly savouring are succulent scallops from the Gulf of Thailand enhanced with a unique emulsion of juicy heirloom tomatoes in a concassé that teases out their red riches, plus a vermouth wine from Noilly Prat, a storied brand now owned by the Italy’s renowned Martini & Rossi.
Discerning guests who make it to Haoma for the holidays will also enjoy the special menu’s Brioche with Pak Chong Animal Farm Butter and a choice of chicken or beef. The first option, Khao Yai Ranch Poultry is paired by wild mushrooms, Bartlett Pears compressed to release their rich core flavours, and watercress pureé. The second option, Thai Wagyu Beef Short Rib, is slowly braised over no less than 48 hours and classically paired with mille-feuille puffs filled with Yukon Gold potatoes, aged cheddar and broccoli florets. Special sections from the extraordinary onsite garden feature particularly in the Salad of Thai Hearts of Coconut featuring roasted beets, petite radishes, Meyer lemon and sunchoke aioli.
A whole world of flavours, carefully sourced and grown in an environment in which recycled rain water is constantly reused and recycled, is on display from Haoma’s windows, and picked fresh for diners to ensure the best possible flavours.
The spirit of service - to customers, and the wider world - comes naturally to Haoma’s innovative chef and co-owner Deepankar “DK” Khosla. When the restaurant shortly after being set up early last year experienced a few growing pains, DK did what he did on countless occasions, and called his mother. Out of this difficult time when he questioned the significant investment had had put in to Haoma when returns still seemed a long way away, DK’s mom, like she had been countless times during is childhood in Allahabad, India, convinced him to stay inspired and look within for the right answer. “She told me not to give up, and to put my hands in the water and ask the gods for an answer,” DK says about the wise words passed on from mother to son. He took the advice to heart, redoubled his commitment to his dream, and stayed true to seeding his dreams. As a result, Haoma is now home to more than 5,000 plants lending unique tastes to menus chosen to optimise what grows best in Thailand’s seasons. New hybrid plants with special attributes are constantly being created for the benefit of diners here.
The verdant environs of the restaurant on Soi Sawatdee, a modern-day take on the Hanging Gardens of Babylon, creates a charming venue for fine dining. “Ethical preparation of food a big part of what Haoma is,” says DK. “My sense of corporate social responsibility focuses strongly on giving back to world and to the environment.”
The Festive Menu is available from December 24 to January 1 for B2,990++ (B4,980++ with wine pairing).
Soi Sawatdi (Sukhumvit Soi 31). http://haoma.dk/ or https://www.facebook.com/HaomaBKK/. Email reservations@haoma.dk. Tel. 02 258 4744.
