POTONG

POTONG, high-end Thai and Chinese fine dining in a century-old shophouse in Bangkok

POTONG is a high-end Thai and Chinese fine dining restaurant located in a Sino-Portuguese shophouse in Yaowarat, Bangkok's Chinatown. The building was raised around 1910 by Chef Pam's family and for more than a century housed four generations who lived and worked in it, with a Chinese medicine shop on the ground floor. The name POTONG (普通) means "ordinary" in Chinese.

The recovery of the property preceded any renovation: for months the family gathered objects scattered throughout the rooms, including a complete set of drawings by K. Vichai, the elder brother of Chef Pam's grandfather. 2019 was dedicated to design, articulated around the idea of juxtaposition — the old beside the new, East beside West — and the subsequent construction brought together more than seventy specialists, including engineers, interior designers, artists, craftsmen and kitchen specialists, in a 500 m² space. The restaurant opened in September 2021, after Thailand's third lockdown, with guests who had booked three to four months in advance.

Culinary offering and venue spaces

The offering is articulated around a progressive Thai-Chinese tasting menu. The site details several distinct spaces: the main dining room, a fermentation room, a wine selection under the name Wine Odyssey and the Opium Bar. Duck is one of the most praised dishes by guests, according to the restaurant's own timeline.

Restaurant accolades

POTONG has accumulated distinctions since opening. In 2021 it received the World's Best New Restaurant award on Condé Nast Traveller's Hot List and Prestige's Best Chinese Restaurant. In 2022 it earned one Michelin star, the MICHELIN Thailand Opening of the Year award, Time Out's Best New Restaurant, the Best Heritage Restaurant & Bar Design Award, KOKTAIL Magazine's Top 30, TOP25 Restaurants' Rising Star and Chope's Restaurant & Bar of the Year.

In 2023 it entered Asia's 50 Best Restaurants for the first time (No. 35) and World's 50 Best Restaurants (No. 88), as well as achieving No. 5 in TOP25 Restaurants, the Most Innovative Restaurant award at the International Dining Awards, KOKTAIL Magazine's Restaurant of the Year, Thailand Favourite Restaurants' Best in Thailand, Luxury Lifestyle Award's Top 100 of the World, Word of Mouth's Top 10 Most Recommended, Thailand and the Platinum Medal from CTRIP Gourmet. In 2024 it climbed to No. 17 on Asia's 50 Best and No. 57 on World's 50 Best, and was No. 1 in Bangkok on TOP25 Restaurants. In 2025 it reached No. 13 on Asia's 50 Best — the highest new entry of the year — and entered World's 50 Best.

Chef Pam and her international projection

Chef Pam was named Asia's Best Female Chef in 2024 and World's Best Female Chef in 2025, being the first Asian chef to receive the latter recognition. That same year she founded the Women for Women (WFW) scholarship, which funds full culinary training for young Thai women from the provinces who could not otherwise afford it. Among her individual distinctions are Prestige's 40 Under 40 and KOKTAIL Magazine's Chef of the Year in 2022, Chope Diner Choices' Chef of the Year, Inspiring Women in Travel Asia's Woman Foodpreneur, No. 95 in the World's Best Chef Award and Tatler Asia's Asia's Most Influential in 2023, and three knives — the highest status — from the World's Best Chef Award in 2024.

Connection with the Songwat neighbourhood

Chef Pam and her husband are part of the Songwat committee, the area of historic shophouses surrounding the restaurant, where they participate in initiatives to strengthen the neighbourhood community. The restaurant presents itself as part of that revitalisation of the Vanich 1 and Songwat surroundings.

Renovation planned for 2026

The site announces that, from May to mid-June 2026, POTONG will close to undertake its most ambitious renovation to date: fewer seats, more space, and a redesigned kitchen and cellar. The venue also offers reservations, private events and parking, according to the sections on its website.

Location and contact

Phone: +66 82 979 3950 · Email: office@thexprojectbkk.com · Hours: Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday: 15:30-23:00