From Meghan Markle to Thai royalty – the no-fuss Bangkok restaurant that’s a hit with the rich and famous
Located near the city’s Grand Palace, Chote Chitr’s homespun fare is popular with members of the Thai monarchy, as well as with the British princess-to-be
What is it? A tiny, affordable and frankly rather shabby restaurant in the low-rise old quarter of Bangkok, near the Democracy Monument. It’s been in business for nearly a century, has only five tables and is run by elderly sisters. Oh, and it serves food fit for royalty.
Food fit for royalty? Come off it. That’s just a tired food writer’s cliché. Not in this case. The Thai royal family lives just around the corner – the Grand Palace is 1km away – and the owners claim that highnesses dispatch flunkeys to collect takeaways. They don’t come in person, maybe because the decor is less than palatial and the atmosphere slightly chaotic, with the owners’ pet dogs running around the restaurant floor.
Seriously? Haven’t the Thai royals got enough chefs of their own? Yes, but like anyone they tire of state banquets and pâté de foie gras every once in a while. And when they do, it seems there’s nothing they like more than a takeaway from a place where simple, delicious recipes have been passed from generation to generation for 100 years.