Manachai Konkangplu, Executive Sous Chef, Sheraton Grande Sukhumvit Hotel

March 22, 2014

No matter how grand and elegant a restaurant is decorated, without an able, passionate chef, it may be out of business within three months. It is especially true if you understand how competitive restaurant industry is in Asia. To attract returning diners, it is crucial for any restaurateurs to find a skillful chef who is willing to devote his passion and love to the restaurant, and to the food he cooks. Mr. Manachai Konkangplu, the Executive Sous Chef of Sheraton Grande Sukhumvit Hotel, is exactly the kind of chef that all restaurateurs would love to hire.
When chatting with Chef Manachai, I could immediately feel his passion in cooking, and his profound devotion to his profession. He started out his career as an apprentice at Sheraton Grande Sukhumvit. He was then appointed to work in basil Thai Restaurant and Rossini’s Italian Restaurant, where he has gained extensive exposure to different professional culinary skills. During his 12-year tenure at Rossini’s, Chef Manachai has further confirmed his talent when he has won the second place in an Italian cuisine competition with his signature dish – Italian risotto. Now, after 18 years and 5 months (I found it amazing that Chef Manachai could remember exactly how many years and months he has been working for Sheraton Grande Suhumvit), he is the Executive Sous Chef responsible for the Banquet Department, where he has a chance to experiment East-meets-West culinary skills in all the dishes he cooks. I can verify, with confidence, that Chef Manachai does make amazingly delicious East-meets-West dishes. I am really thankful that Chef Manachai made me a yummy dish – Thai green curry with grilled lamb rack, which fully exemplified what an East-meets-West dish should be. I could imagine the difficulty in making this dish. To keep the lamb tender, it should not be overcooked. Therefore, time for grilling the lamb rack and cooking it in the green curry have to be carefully controlled. The most difficult part is to allow the lamb to absorb the essence of green curry while being careful with not overcooking it.
If you would like to try his wonderful dishes and experience his passion in cooking, you may wish to visit the appetizers and desserts buffet at Orchid Cafe of Sheraton Grande Sukhumvit Hotel. This newly introduced buffet experience is carefully designed by Chef Manachai, who put into consideration a lot of factors to make it a tempting quality buffet, while catering the needs of different diners at the same time. I have experienced the buffet, and I am really impressed with the quality! I am sure you will like it too!

From an apprentice to an Executive Sous Chef now, I believe Chef Manachai has devoted a lot to his profession. With his determination to do better and better, he has finally developed his successful career. To foodies like us, Chef Manachai has contributed to create a wonderful gourmet world for us.

To see Chef Manachai’s talent in designing the appetizers and desserts buffet at Orchid Cafe, don’t forget to follow the link to read our review on it: Link to the review.

Like Gourmet Bangkok on Facebook: Gourmet Bangkok
Follow us on Twitter: Follow @Gourmet_Bangkok