KIIN - Experience a New Side of Thai Food

KIINis the new Thai restaurant of Chef Nuit and Jeff Regular, owner’s of Pai,Sabai Sabi, and Sukhothai. They had their soft opening on Friday May 19 and we were graciously invited to try out their menu.

It didn’t take us long to realize how much thought and consideration had been put into every detail of KIIN, making their new restaurant completely stand out from the crowd.

Welcome Cocktail

Colada (j wray, galliano, coconut cream, edible flower) $15

We were greeted with a deliciously creamy cocktail garnished with a coconut jelly and an edible flower - a dessert in itself!

First Course

Root vegetable chips with Tom Yum seasoning (Mun Tawt Ruammit) $9

Our first course was a bowl of incredibly flavourful root vegetable chips - an absolute must have for sharing.

Second Course

Roy Thai (Royal Thai platter with Mha Hor, Chor Ladda, Rhoom, and Thoong Thong) $12

Our second course started with a beautifully displayed platter of dumpling-like shareables. One of them garnished with the tiniest slice of chilli I’ve ever seen - one of the many details we found throughout their dishes.

Khao Tung Nah Tang (Shrimp, crab, peanut, tamarind and coconut spread with rice crackers) $12

Next was a classic - rice crackers with a savoury and surprisingly warm spread.

At this point in the evening, Chef Nuit and Jeff came by to see how we were enjoying our meals. They sat down to chat with us and showed us what a raw wing bean looked like.

Yum Tua Plu (Wing beans with chilli shrimp paste, toasted coconut, peanut, and soft boiled egg) $15

Khao Yum (Jasmine rice with white turmeric, long beans, lemongrass, sawtooth coriander, kaffir lime leaves, cucumber, toasted coconut, pomelo, fried chilli, sunflower sprouts, edible flowers, and tamarind and soybean paste) $24

The “Most Instagrammable” dish, the Khao Yum was a beautiful mixture of colourful rice plated in a gold wok, mixed for us by our server (after we finished taking photos, of course)

Third Course

MiengPla (Sea salt-crusted whole sea bream with Thai garlic, Thai basil, finger mint, peanut, ginger, shallot, and lime in Thai kale leaves) $32

To start off our third course, a whole sea bream was brought to our table and deboned by our server.

Gaeng Boombai Nua (Braised AAA Wellington country beef short rib with tamarind, field cucumber, and pearl onions) $32

Next, we had one of the standouts mains: the delicious Gaeng Boombai Nua (Braised AAA Wellington Country beef short rib). It was made with a curry that Chef Nuit describes as “if yellow curry and panang curry had a baby”. I was surprised with the flavour - a curry flavour that was light and delicate.

Kua Hang Gai (Stir-fried chicken with buffalo basil and Thai garlic) $26

Close to the end of our meal, Chef Nuit and Jeff came by again to chat and show us some fresh buffalo basil. It turned out to be a much milder version of the common basil and was used in the Kua Hang Gai.

Chuchee Tofu and Mushroom (Dry style mushroom and tofu curry) $24

Our final dish before dessert was a vegetarian dish full of flavour!

Dessert

Chef Nuit’s Choice

Dessert was a gorgeous platter of tropical fruit consisting of guava, pomelo, mangosteen, and rambutan - recommended to be eaten in that order. Chef Nuit told us that much of the restaurant’s colour palette was inspired by the “Queen of Fruit” - mangosteen, a favourite of hers (as well as my own!). Her other favourite being the “King of Fruit” - durian, which she hopes to bring to her restaurant one day.

“Royal Style” Cooking is how Chef Nuit and Jeff Regular describe their food - and we certainly felt like royalty, not only having the pleasure of tasting their diverse menu but also having Chef Nuit and Jeff sit with us to chat about their food and their restaurant.

Chef Nuit explained that “royal style” of cooking involves a more balanced flavour - gentle, and not too overwhelming with one flavour or another. This was definitely reflected in the dishes.

After the tasting, a friend asked me what they served us at KIIN and I had some trouble answering her. KIIN’s menu is still traditionally Thai, but offers a lot of dishes I’ve never had before and haven’t seen in other Thai restaurants, making KIIN’s food and my evening there a stand-out experience!

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KIIN is open for a soft launch with a limited number of dishes from the menu.