Dining on the river
If you would like to explore the best of Thailand and especially Bangkok, longing to have a tasteful dinner on a beautifully remodeled teakwood rice barge gliding along the river Chao Phraya, I have the optimal solution.
Make a reservation for a luxury dinner cruise with newly launched cruiser “Baan Khanitha”.
This cruiser is the Queen of Chao Phraya. She is a beauty, designed and built by the young architect Khun Narin Lerrtasavathikul and the first boat belonging to Khun Khanitha Akaranithikul, owner of 4 well known restaurants in Bangkok.
Khun Khanitha, was for many years, the leading fashion lady in Bangkok. She made her own collection of exclusive, Thai silk garments and had 7 boutiques in Bangkok and one in New York. Agents in several countries both Europe and South America represented her collection. I had, at that time, the pleasure to import her garments to Switzerland. We are talking 1989 and Khanitha was on the top. I remember well, how my husband and I admired a dress in the window at her shop at the legendary Oriental Hotel. My husband persuaded me to go and try it on; I was very skeptical, as I thought the cut was made for the slim Thai women. I was surprised to find that the dress fit and my husband was delighted!
It didn’t take long before my husband found out who the owner was of this elegant shop. Before I even blinked, we were visiting Khun Khanitha in her flagship store, located at Suriwong Street.
To walk inside this store and meet the woman behindthose elegant outfits is a memory I will treasure forever. I was deeply impressed by the designed wall to wall carpet, looked almost like an Aubusson carpet. The woman greeting us was elegant and fluent in English. It didn’t take long for me to choose a small collection; I was impressed by the fabrics and how well the garments were made.
Khun Khanitha told me that I could expect the delivery at a certain date with flight so and so and I could hardly avoid laughing. I was, at that time, importing garments from
Sweden to Switzerland and I was happy when the collections arrived before we had a timed sale. I shouldn’t have laughed, she was right; I received the delivery on the exact date she had mentioned. For 10 years, I had the pleasure of selling this fabulous collection.
Due to personal reasons, Khun Khanitha decided to walk out of the fashion business, but that didn’t mean she was going to lay back and do nothing.
She decided to do something completely different. She discovered a love of the restaurant business. She, had probably never put a foot in a kitchen, but suddenly was starting a restaurant. She collected old recipes from her grandmothers, found an old barn on Sukhumvit soi 23, redecorate it and went to the north of Thailand to pick up some antiques for decor.
In 1993 the first restaurant Baan Khanitha opened. Almost overnight it became a very popular place to go for genuine Thai cuisine and it didn’t take long before Khun Khanitha was given an award for best Thai kitchen.
Today in 2017, there are 4 restaurants named Baan Khanitha and one newly launched cruiser, the second is soon to come.
On Sukhumvit soi 53, you’ll find the popular Glass Moon bar, next to the traditional restaurant. This bar is built on a swimming pool and is two storeys. From the upper floor you can look down and see what the guests on the first floor are up to. Here you will find the best red and white Sangria in town. International cuisine is also offered.
Baan Khanitha at Sathorn is the largest of her restaurants. Here you will find an exclusive collection of paintings done by a monk. You can sit inside, or outside in a small garden area, similar to a European winter garden.
At Asiatique, you’ll find the latest restaurant right next to the Chao Phraya river. You can have a table on the terrace or inside. The restaurant is beautifully decorated and chairs and sofas are covered with Jim Thompson fabrics. Here you also book your dinner cruise.
We were a small click of friends, enjoying a delicious and very elegant dinner on board Friday April 28, 2017 with Khun Khanitha along with us. The set menu gives you a taste of all Thailand’s spices and fragrances, starting with a complimentary with wine and to be followed by some specialties. We were enjoying duck, a prawn from Ayutthaya and fish. Khun Khanitha changes the menu monthly.
The wine list offers you whatever you ask for, a chilled Sancerre, a Penfold special edition, you name it. All the food is prepared from scratch onboard in the ultra-modern kitchen. The interior design is elegant Thai style and even a visit to the bathroom is a pleasure, pure luxury.During the 2½ hour cruise up the river and back; you can enjoy food, wine and the magnificent scenery along the river with a spectacular view of the Grand Palace. The staff are efficient and polite.
This is a perfect place to knot the bonds of love, celebrate a birthday, have a business meeting, seminar or just a tête à tête.
I don’t think I exaggerate if I say my friends and I were all overwhelmed. I can warmly recommend you to book this cruise. I am 100% sure, you will not regret it.This is an adorable memory for visitors to take back home. I have done the cruise 3 times already and I’m already longing for the next one.Sail along…because you are worth it!
