Bee Satongun

Bongkoch "Bee" Satongun (born 1976) is a native Thai chef and restaurateur. She is known for her landmark restaurant, Paste Bangkok, which received a Michelin star.[1] Chef Bee has expanded the Paste brand to neighboring Laos and recently opened a third venue in Australia.[2]

Chef Bee Satongun

In 2018, Satongun was named elit Vodka's Asia's Best Female Chef by the World's 50 Best Restaurants.[3] She has been invited to cook at culinary events such as the annual Taste of Paris[4] and Hong Kong Wine & Dine Festival 2018.[5] Currently, Paste holds the 70th rank on Asia's 50 Best Restaurants 2021.[6]

Early life and career

Prior to the opening of Paste, Satongun spent years researching the history of Thai cuisine, re-creating ancient recipes and culinary techniques alongside chef, husband and business partner, Jason Bailey.[7]

Both Satongun and Bailey had humble beginnings, from Satongun's childhood memories of pounding herbs with pestle on mortar to assist her mother's street food stall business in Bangkok,[8] to Bailey's experiences growing up in the Southern Highlands of Australia.[9] She met her husband on one of his earlier research trips to Thailand.[9]

Paste Bangkok

In 2012, Satongun and Bailey opened their first Paste restaurant in the neighborhood of Thonglor. In 2015, they opened a new iteration of Paste in Gaysorn shopping mall, located in Bangkok's Ratchaprasong district adjacent to the Intercontinental Hotel.[10] At Paste, dishes represent regional Thai cuisine, taking inspiration from ancient Thai recipes and royal family cookbooks.[7] Chef Bee hopes to do away with the notion of Thai food as 'cheap takeaway', and re-frame the cuisine in the minds of her diners.[11]

In 2018, Paste Bangkok was awarded its first Michelin star in the inaugural Michelin Guide Bangkok.[12] Paste Bangkok retained its one-Michelin-star rating in 2019.[12] As of 2021, it retains its one Michelin star.[12]

Other restaurants and pursuits

In 2018, Satongun and Bailey opened their first overseas branch of Paste, Paste Laos at the Apsara in the UNESCO World Heritage-listed ancient town of Luang Prabang.[13] Currently, Bailey is working on the development of Paste in Australia.[9]

List of awards
  • Winner of Most-Loved Thai Fine Dining Restaurant by Time Out, 2016[14]
  • 10 Best Michelin-rated Restaurants in Bangkok by The Guardian, 2017[15]
  • Tatler Thailand's Top 20 Best Restaurants, 2017, 2018,[16] 2019,[17] 2020,[18] 2021[19]
  • elit Vodka's Asia's Best Female Chef by World's 50 Best Restaurants, 2018[20]
  • One Michelin star, Michelin Guide Bangkok, 2018,[12] 2019,[12] 2020,[21] 2021[22]
  • #31 on Asia's 50 Best Restaurants, 2018[23]
  • Best Thai Fine Dining by Top Tables Bangkok, 2018[24]
  • Leading Woman in Hospitality by Tourism Authority of Thailand, 2018
  • Thailand Chef Ambassador by Gault&Millau Guide, 2018[25]
  • #28 on Asia's 50 Best Restaurants, 2019[26]
  • #29 on OAD Asia's Top 100 Restaurants, 2020[27]
  • #38 on Asia's 50 Best Restaurants 2020[28]
  • #70 on Asia's 50 Best Restaurants, 2021[6]

References
  1. Irvine, Oliver (2017). "Bangkok's first Michelin-star restaurants have been announced". BK. Retrieved 2019-06-11.
  2. Hayes, Helen (August 5, 2020). "The secret restaurant with Michelin cred in Mittagong, NSW". South China Morning Post.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  3. "Traditional Thai food is at risk of getting lost". The World's 50 Best Restaurants. Retrieved 2019-06-11.
  4. Kalmykova, Elena (2018-05-17). "Elena Kalmykova : 5 expat chefs to discover at Taste of Paris this weekend". Dispatches Europe. Retrieved 2019-06-11.
  5. "Hong Kong Wine & Dine Festival celebrates 10th birthday in largest scale ever and with limited-run fine wines and delicacies". Media Outreach. Retrieved 2019-06-11.
  6. Sgarbi, Giulia (22 March 2021). "Asia's 50 Best Restaurants 1-50". ASIA'S 50 BEST RESTAURANTS 2021. Retrieved 2019-06-11.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  7. "5 Questions With Bee Satongun On Bangkok's Culinary Scene". Michelin Guide. Retrieved 2019-06-11.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  8. Chan, Bernice (13 June 2019). "More than pad thai and tom yum soup: Thai chef's real food quest, and why it's hard to find the right recipes". South China Morning Post.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  9. "Why Paste Bangkok's 'Chef Bee' aims to save food's 'soul'". South China Morning Post. 2019-06-01. Retrieved 2019-06-11.
  10. "Best Thai Fine Dining Restaurant in Bangkok - Paste Bangkok at Gaysorn". Thai Street Food, Restaurants, and Recipes | Eating Thai Food. 2017-01-25. Retrieved 2019-06-11.
  11. Aureus, Dudi. "Chef Bongkoch 'Bee' Satongun Of Paste In Bangkok On Preserving Thailand's Traditional Cuisine".{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  12. Cole, Holly. "Paste – a MICHELIN Guide Restaurant in Thailand". Fine Dining Lovers. Retrieved 2021-02-19.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  13. "About - Paste Laos Restaurants in Luang Prabang". Paste Laos. Retrieved 2019-06-11.
  14. "Chang Live Park presents Time Out Bangkok Love Awards 2016 | The Winners". Time Out Bangkok. Retrieved 2019-06-11.
  15. Vichit-Vadakan, Vincent (2017-12-18). "10 of the best Michelin-rated restaurants in Bangkok". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 2019-06-11.
  16. "Thailand Tatler's 2018 Top 20 Best Restaurants Revealed".{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  17. "Here Are Thailand Tatler's 20 Best Restaurants Of 2019".{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  18. "Tatler Thailand's Top 20 Best Restaurants of 2020".{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  19. "Tatler Thailand's Top 20 Best Restaurants of 2020".{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  20. Sgarbi, Giulia (2018-06-02). ""Traditional Thai food is at risk of getting lost" – elit Vodka Asia's Best Female Chef Bee Satongun". The World's 50 Best. Retrieved 2021-02-19.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  21. Wichiantanon, Kankanit (12 November 2019). "The winners of The Michelin Guide 2020 Bangkok, Chiang Mai, Phuket and Phang-Nga".{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  22. "Paste in MICHELIN Guide 2020".{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  23. http://theworlds50best.asia. "Paste". ASIA EN. Retrieved 2019-06-11. {{cite web}}: External link in |last= (help)
  24. "Here they are, all the big Top Tables 2018 special awards". toptables.asia-city.com. 2018-03-20. Retrieved 2019-06-11.
  25. "Bee Satongun, ambassadrice dans le guide Tasty Thailand du Gault&Millau, également élue meilleure cheffe d'Asie".{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  26. http://theworlds50best.asia. "Asia's 50 Best Restaurants 1-50". ASIA EN. Retrieved 2019-06-11. {{cite web}}: External link in |last= (help)
  27. "2020 Asia Top 100+".{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  28. "Asia's 50 Best Restaurants 2020".{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
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