Ian Kittichai

Ian Kittichai
Born (1968-01-27) January 27, 1968
Bangkok, Thailand
Educationapprenticeship, Sydney Technical College
SpouseSarah Chang
Culinary career
Cooking styleThai
Current restaurant(s)
Websitewww.iankittichai.com

Pongtawat "Ian" Chalermkittichai (Thai: พงษ์ธวัช เฉลิมกิตติชัย), known in English as Ian Kittichai (born 27 January 1968), is a chef, restaurateur, television personality and cookbook writer. He is credited with being instrumental in changing predominant perceptions of Thai cuisine and one of the earliest proponents of the modernisation of Thai cuisine.[1] He and his restaurants have earned acclaim from the New York Times, Food & Wine, Travel + Leisure and other publications. One of his restaurants, Issaya Siamese Club, has been listed on Asia's 50 Best Restaurants, a division of The World's 50 Best Restaurants, and ranked number 39 in 2018.[2] Australian Traveller magazine listed Issaya Siamese Club as one of the world’s hottest restaurants in 2018.[3]

Kittichai’s cookbook Issaya Siamese Club: Innovative Thai Cuisine by Chef Ian Kittichai, released in April 2013, placed first in the Best Authors and Chefs category for Thailand, and third for the Best Cookbook of The Year in the Gourmand World Cookbook Awards 2014 held in Beijing in May 2014.

In 2006 and 2012 Kittichai appeared on the television show Iron Chef America to compete with Mario Batali and Marc Forgione respectively. Since 2012 he also appears regularly on Iron Chef Thailand as Iron Chef Innovative Western Cuisine as well as the Lead Judge on MasterChef Thailand and MasterChef Junior Thailand; Co-Host of Bid Coin Chef and judge of Hell's Kitchen Thailand.

Early life

As a child growing up in Bangkok, Kittichai accompanied his mother on daily trips to local markets before school, and then sold her curry rice from a cart after school.[4]

While a student in London, Kittichai worked part-time at London's Waldorf Hotel, whose management paid for him to attend cooking school at Southeast London Colleges for two years. He then moved to Sydney, where he apprenticed at Claude’s French restaurant in the mid-1980s and attended culinary school at Sydney Technical College.[4]

Career

After returning to his home in Bangkok, Kittichai was hired at the Four Seasons Bangkok (now Anantara Siam Bangkok Hotel), where he eventually became the world’s first Thai to be named Executive Chef of an international five-star hotel, in charge of the Four Seasons’ Thai, Italian, and Japanese dining outlets.[5]

In 2003, Kittichai opened Kittichai, a modern Thai restaurant in New York's SIXTY Soho (formerly 60 Thompson) which earned a listing in Travel + Leisure magazine’s Best New American Restaurants 2004.[6] The following year, Food & Wine called Kittichai the best Thai restaurant in America, praising the elegant décor as well as the cuisine.

In 2011, Kittichai established Issaya Siamese Club, a contemporary Thai restaurant in a 100-year-old villa in Bangkok. The restaurant has made Asia's 50 Best Restaurants, a list produced by UK media company William Reed Business Media, based on a poll of international chefs, restaurateurs, gourmands and restaurant critics. Most recently the restaurant was ranked number 39 in 2018.[7] Traveller magazine in Australia also listed Issaya Siamese Club as one of the world’s hottest restaurants in 2018.[8]

In 2011, Kittichai also joined Spot Dessert Bar, an Asian-American dessert bar group founded in New York City.[9]

To coordinate Kittichai’s restaurant interests and consultative contracts around the globe, the chef and his wife Sarah Chang operate Cuisine Concept Co. Ltd., an international food and beverage industry consulting and management firm based in Bangkok.[10]

Restaurants

In 2003, Kittichai opened Kittichai, a modern Thai restaurant in New York's SIXTY Soho (formerly 60 Thompson) which earned a listing in Travel + Leisure magazine’s Best New American Restaurants 2004.[6] The following year, Food & Wine called Kittichai the best Thai restaurant in America, praising the elegant décor as well as the cuisine.

In 2011, Kittichai became the Culinary Director and a Partner in New York eatery, Spot Dessert Bar, where the chef’s skill with pastries and desserts is showcased. Among the dessert “tapas” at Spot Dessert Bar is “The Harvest”, a combination of crumbled cookie and cake layered with fruits and cream to resemble a potted house plant. Locations for Spot Dessert Bar in New York are St. Marks Place, Flushing, Long Island Cityand Astoria. A Cherry Hill location in New Jersey opened in 2024.

In Bangkok, Kittichai joined Thai chef Arisara Chongphanitkul, who had been his pastry chef at Issaya Siamese Club, to open Issaya La Patisserie at Central Embassy mall in 2014. Dedicated to pastry, dessert, and sweet creations blending Thai and international influences, the patisserie was later located in EmQuartier mall’s Helix Tower then closed in 2020.

The same year, the chef took over the cuisine at Tangerine restaurant at Resorts World Sentosa, Singapore, focusing on a farm-to-table menu featuring both classic and contemporary Thai flavors. Tangerine closed in 2020.

Also in 2014, Kittichai established Issaya Cooking Studio in Bangkok’s Central Embassy mall. Courses at the 170-square-meter cooking school facility range from classical and basic Thai cuisine to molecular and modern culinary technique, and from beginner to professional chef levels. The school is aimed at clients who are already familiar with Thai cooking. The Studio closed in 2020 at the start of the covid-19 pandemic.

In 2022 Chef Kittichai opened Soi Social, a Thai brasserie, with Resorts World Sentosa in Singapore. The menu features dishes such as Chiang Mai duck sausage perfumed by wild betel leaf, ginger, peanuts and chillies; seared scallop in “Nam-Tok” E-sarn style in a saw leaf coriander dressing; and a roasted marinated duck served with Thai red curry sauce.[11]

The same year, Kittichai partnered with Mövenpick BDMS Wellness Resort Bangkok[12] to open Khum Hom, a restaurant centered on regional Thai cuisine. According to the Bangkok Post, the restaurant uses local ingredients in dishes based on recipes from Thailand's four main regions: North, Northeast, Central, and South.[12] Khum Hom was included in the Michelin Guide Thailand's restaurant selections for 2025.[13]

Anaalā, a restaurant at Iniala Beach House on Natai Beach in Phang Nga, Thailand, opened in December 2024.[14][15] The restaurant's name derives from a Sanskrit word for fire, referencing its live-fire beach barbecue concept.[15] The restaurant's menu rotates on an eight-day cycle and is based on daily-caught fish and seasonal ingredients from Thailand's four regions, with some dishes grilled over an open beach barbecue.[14]

Anaalā opened alongside The Campana Lounge, another new restaurant at the property, and joins Aulis Phuket, a Michelin-starred restaurant at Iniala Beach House overseen by chef Simon Rogan.[14]

In May 2025, Kittichai opened Kò Sà-Wăn, a Thai dining pop-up at Perch restaurant at The Cove, Atlantis Paradise Island, in the Bahamas.[16][17] The restaurant served Thai dishes incorporating some Bahamian ingredients.[16]

In March 2026, Kittichai made his debut at the Nassau Paradise Island Wine & Food Festival, an annual culinary event at Atlantis Paradise Island, alongside chefs including José Andrés, Tom Colicchio, and Rachael Ray.[18][19] The festival's programming included a Kò Sà-Wăn dinner party.[18]

Filmography

Year Show Role Season and Episode
2007 Iron Chef America Challenger S3 EP.22
2001-2011 Chef Mue Thong Host -
2012 Iron Chef Japan Challenger New Year’s Eve Special
2012–present Iron Chef Thailand Iron Chef: Western-Innovative Cuisine -
2013 Iron Chef America Challenger S11 EP.4
2014 Nat Geo People: Chef to Chef with Ian Kittichai Guest -
2015 Food Reporter: Ian Kittichai Issaya Bangkok: Kijkje in de keuken Guest -
2016 Life Inspired (LITV ASIA): Taste Bangkok: Issaya Siamese Club I Chef Ian Kittichai Guest -
Asian Food Network: “Inspired with Anna Olsen” with Chef Ian Chalermkittichai Guest EP.3
2017–present MasterChef Thailand Judge S1–6
2018–present MasterChef Junior Thailand Judge S1–2
2018 Somebody Feed Phil Guest S1 EP.1
The Culinary Institute of America: A Food Tour of Thailand Guest -
The Big Kitchen Co-host -
2019 The Next Iron Chef Thailand Judge S1
2020 MasterChef Thailand All-Stars Judge S1
2022-2023 Bid Coin Chef Co-host & judge S1–2
2023 Top Chef Thailand Guest judge S4 EP.6
2024 Hell's Kitchen Thailand Judge S1
2025 MasterChef The Professionals Thailand Judge S1
Hell's Kitchen Thailand season 2 Judge S2
Iron Chef VS Asia Iron Chef Thailand S1
Dish It Out (Tilly Ramsay) Guest S1
2026 MasterChef Thailand Judge S7
Bid Coin Chef Co-host & judge S3

Works

  • Kittichai, Ian. Issaya Siamese Club Cookbook: Innovative Thai Cuisine by Chef Ian Kittichai Avril Production, 2013 ISBN 9786169162902
  • Kittichai, Ian and Chongphanitkul Apisara. La Patisserie Issaya Pastry Cookbook Avril Production, 2016. ISBN 9786169162926
  • Kittichai, Ian. Chef Ian’s Kitchen Revealed Amarin Cuisine, 2011 ISBN 9786162071294

References

  1. ↑ Yeung, Gavin. "Why these two celebrity chefs believe Thai cuisine is having its moment now". Tatler Asia. Retrieved 2024-07-25.
  2. ↑ Dwyer, Tamara Hardingham-Gill, Chris (2018-03-27). "Asia's 50 best restaurants in 2018". CNN. Retrieved 2024-07-25.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  3. ↑ "World's best restaurants: Hottest restaurants of 2018 named". The Sydney Morning Herald. 2018-11-26. Retrieved 2024-07-25.
  4. 1 2 "Issaya Cooking Studio, Bangkok". Gourmet Traveller. 2014-12-16. Retrieved 2024-07-25.
  5. ↑ Bruni, Frank (2004-08-11). "RESTAURANTS; Thai as Theater, Restaurant as Stage". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2024-07-25.
  6. 1 2 "World's Best Restaurants". Travel + Leisure. Retrieved 2024-07-25.
  7. ↑ Dwyer, Tamara Hardingham-Gill, Chris (2018-03-27). "Asia's 50 best restaurants in 2018". CNN. Retrieved 2024-07-25.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  8. ↑ "World's best restaurants: Hottest restaurants of 2018 named". The Sydney Morning Herald. 2018-11-26. Retrieved 2024-07-25.
  9. ↑ "SPOT DESSERT BAR | ABOUT US". Spotdessertbar. Retrieved 2024-07-25.
  10. ↑ "Cuisine Concept | International full-service food & beverage consulting by Chef Ian Kittichai". www.cuisineconceptltd.com. Retrieved 2024-07-25.
  11. ↑ "The best contemporary Thai restaurants in Singapore". The Peak Magazine. 15 February 2023. Retrieved 2024-07-25.
  12. 1 2 "Chef Ian Kittichai launches a wholesome restaurant specialising in contemporary regional Thai cuisine".
  13. ↑ "October 2025: 18 New Additions to the MICHELIN Guide Thailand". guide.michelin.com. Retrieved 2026-06-30.
  14. 1 2 3 Hendricks, Nianne-Lynn (2025-02-05). "Anaalā Thailand opens in Phuket". Bangkok Post. Retrieved 2026-06-30.
  15. 1 2 Junniper (2024-12-04). "Iniala Beach House launches brand-new restaurant concept: Anaalā, alongside six luxurious suites & The Campana Lounge - Robb Report Thailand". Robb Report Thailand. Archived from the original on 2025-12-06. Retrieved 2026-06-30.
  16. 1 2 Sullivan, Caitlin (2025-05-12). "Atlantis Paradise Island Just Unveiled a Wave of New Eateries, Including a Thai Pop-Up by a Global Star Chef". Caribbean Journal. Retrieved 2026-06-30.
  17. ↑ "Atlantis Paradise Island Announces New Restaurants, Pop-Ups and Culinary Experiences".
  18. 1 2 "Atlantis Paradise Island Announces 2026 Nassau Paradise Island Wine & Food Festival".
  19. ↑ Fisher, Kimberly. "How the Nassau Paradise Island Wine & Food Festival Redefines Authentic Island Life".
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