After years of uncertainty and speculation, husband and wife team John and Desiree Chantarasak have finally found a permanent home for their much-loved restaurant concept AngloThai.
Come the autumn, the Chantarasaks are to open their first bricks and mortar site on Seymour Place in Marylebone, bringing their Thai-British cuisine to customers in a 50-cover dining room. The pair will open in partnership with restaurant group MJMK, who also operate Mexican hit Kol, which is just around the corner.
The opening has been a long time coming: since founding the restaurant brand in 2018, numerous pop-ups, residencies, and talk of locations have come and gone; the duo first announced plans to open a permanent restaurant in 2021, but challenges have hindered progress up until now.
In Marylebone, chef and co-founder John will serve his personal interpretation of Thai cuisine, drawing inspiration from both his Thai and British heritage and marrying flavours and ingredients from both countries.
À la carte dishes have been designed to share, while the couple will champion British meat such as Hebridean sheep from Ryall Farm in Dorset — owned and farmed by Desiree’s family — line-caught seafood, Devon caviar, and Carlingford oysters.
Fruit and vegetables will be seasonal, while British-grown Asian produce such as holy basil, ginger root, makrut citrus and chillies will also feature.
Wines, meanwhile, will be mostly European, and interiors have been created alongside Thai-American designer May Redding.
John said of the news: “We're incredibly excited to be opening AngloThai after a nearly four-year journey to find a site that truly felt like home to us both. In that time, we have not only grown as people, but AngloThai has blossomed into a restaurant concept we are proud to share with the city we live in and love.
“We feel the restaurant embodies the work we have done over the last decade to create a unique dining experience for our guests in a beautiful and contemporary space.”
