In a nutshell:

An experience beyond imagination that wud leave foodies with an unforgettable memory – Cook ur own food at a restaurant after being taught the same by the Masterchef.

Address & other details: Blue Elephant

Description:

I walked into this place as a part of ‘surprise evening’ with a group of friends, only to realize that for the foodie in me it was beyond just surprise. We were at a top restaurant in Bangkok which serves super YUMM Thai food & is so famous that they sell their memorabilia – tee shirts, ‘blue elephant’ shaped piggy banks, candle stands etc & I was told people buy them as well. Thai Sauces, curry mixes etc were also being sold under the Blue Elephant Brand.

They have had famous people from around the world eat at their Restaurant including the senior George Bush – they had a picture of that event on the wall.

What differentiates them from the rest is that they impart classes to the guests on how to prepare a multi course Thai lunch or dinner post which the guests can enjoy the meal. Of course one can just walk in, order, eat & leave as well, like in all other restaurants.
For enrolling into the cooking class, one has to seek pre appointment. Post successful completion of the course they award ‘certificates’ as well. They give a ‘blue Elephant’ branded apron during the class which one can take back home as a memory.

The classroom was big enough to accommodate about 20 people. The Masterchef & her assistants were standing facing the audience, across a slab that had both a cutting area & an oven.

A live movie camera was broadcasting the top-view details of the activities of the Chef e.g. From the audience it was not possible to see what is in the pot but the movie was shot in an angle that one cud see what’s cooking.

The MasterChef was very animated in her presentation, encouraged questions, had an excellent sense of humour & made the full experience memorable.

We were given the recipe in a paper folder but she chose to demonstrate an alternative method so that we cud not use the recipe as a ‘cheat sheet’.

…………………….. & yes , we ended up making tom yam soup, glass noodles & green curry in 15 minutes time per group of 4!!!!!

Post those 15 minutes, another Chef walked in, tasted all dishes, ranked them & announced the ‘best team award’ for the groups. What came as an icing on the cake was that our group won the 1st prize in the contest & we won a Large Blue Elephant each.

They also gave a certificate of Blue elephant to all participants who were a part of the full process. We were also served the food that we made.

Of course we tried a whole lot of other food as well. Food at the Restaurant was, needless to say, par excellence. We stuck to Thai seafood preparations only.

I wud strongly recommend you not to miss this experience when u r next in Bangkok. Will look forward to ur stories till then.