To infinity - and beyond

FURTHER EVIDENCE that Bangkok folks (at least some of them) have plenty of money to toss around is the opening of a second branch of the posh Japanese restaurant Mugendai, where eight slices off a Penthouse Roll will set you back Bt4,000.

The original outlet on the roof of the Glass Suite on Soi Thonglor remains popular enough that a second was deemed justified. The new Mugendai Penthouse is also fairly high up, on the top floor of the Helix Building at EmQuartier.

With the ceiling vaulting eight metres above, the restaurant is decked out in luxurious trappings and yet somehow still feels like a comfy Japanese home. Part of the illusion is due to the Old Edo-style roofing tiles, which here are embossed with the symbol for “infinity” (the restaurant’s name in English). The main dining area has room for about 50 people and there are also two private rooms and outdoor terraces.

Those without infinite time and with limited patience head straight to the long wooden sushi bar, whose 13 seats offer a fine voyeur’s view of sushi and sashimi getting dressed. Adjacent is the dessert bar (six seats), where the sweet dreams extend to home-made souffle, pancakes, apple crumble and soft milk-and-chocolate ice cream from Hokkaido.

“About 20 new dishes, both savoury and sweet, have been added to the existing 200 items on the menu,” says founder Kamolsut Dabbaransi. “We have the traditional sushi and sashimi made with fresh ingredients, as well as creative fusion offerings like deep-fried rice topped with spicy tuna and deep-fried maki rolls stuffed with minced scallop in mayo cream.”

No fretting over the competition here because few if any other Japanese restaurants in Bangkok can match the Mugendai in terms of top-cost ingredients. The seafood is flown direct from Tokyo’s big Tsukiji Market five times a week, and the A5 and A4-grade wagyu beef arrives fresh every two weeks. 

“Premium ingredients always come at high prices, but people today are willing to pay if what they get warrants the price,” says Kamolsut. “A lot of Thais travel to Japan and enjoy the good food there, so they know exactly what to expect here. About 90 per cent of our customers are Thai, and they spend on average about Bt2,500 each.”

That much is gone in minutes when you order the Penthouse Roll (Bt4,000), which is actually eight roll-ups. It has rice, sweet jumbo-shrimp tempura and grilled freshwater eel wrapped in seaweed and topped with sea urchin and caviar. Pickled and fresh wasabi wait to one side in a sort of awe.

Also new to the menu is Tennen Unagi Foie Gras Mille Feuille (Bt1,500). Layers of rice, pan-fried foie gras and more of that grilled wild eel are dressed in a sweet sauce of sake, mirin and soy sauce. The balance is exquisite. 

Salmon Confit (Bt800) has the fish cooked “sous-vide” and stretched out on a bed of pickled radish, carrot and cucumber alongside salmon roe with ponzu sauce. Shredded shiso leaves and shiso kombu are draped on top, and miso flakes rim the platter.

The signature dishes at both Mugendai branches include Uni Hotate Tempura (Bt900, fried scallop and sea urchin wrapped in seaweed and shiso leaves), Wagyu and Yasai Seiro Mushi (Bt1,800, A5-grade beef on mixed vegetables and ponzu sauce), and Tarabagani Yaki (Bt2,000, grilled king-crab legs).

A counter bar serves aperitifs and digestifs, among them Champagne, wine, sake, beer and home-made umeshu (plum liqueur), and there are plans for a DJ to add house and jazz music to the dining mood.

 

 

TOP-FLOOR DINING

>>The Mugendai Penthouse is on the ninth floor of the Helix Building at EmQuartier on Sukhumvit Road. 

>>It’s open daily from 11 to 11. 

>>Make reservations at (02) 003 6333 or via www.MugendaiBkk.com.

>>The original Mugendai on Soi Thonglor is closing in mid-June, but another branch is scheduled to open by the end of the year at Siam Paragon.