The Oriental, Bangkok’s Le Normandie French Restaurant was the venue for one of the year’s most eagerly awaited culinary events in Thailand. Claude Terrail, the proprietor of La Tour d’Argent in Paris sent a team of chefs, headed by famed maitre d’ Carlo Bellamo, to Bangkok to recreate the historic meal that King Chulalongkorn enjoyed 97 years ago.

In 1907, His Majesty King Chulalongkorn (King Rama V) journeyed to France to defend Siam’s sovereignty. He triumphed at the bargaining table but surrendered at the dinner table when he ate at La Tour d’Argent—the finest restaurant in Paris. The Thai monarch was presented with a gilded certificate inscribed with the date, June 20, 1907, and a number 28,348, which was the number of the duck he had been served.

Her Majesty Queen Sirikit also dined at La Tour d’Argent on April 7, 1992 during her official visit to Paris and was served duck number 772,301. It was therefore with great pride and honour, that the management of The Oriental, Bangkok welcomed Her Majesty and her entourage to Le Normandie for a repeat of this splendid repast.

La Tour d’Argent culinary promotion at Le Normandie was part of the first ever-French cultural festival in Thailand, to celebrate the 72nd birthday of Her Majesty Queen Sirikit. The festival was jointly organised, by the French Embassy and the Alliance Francaise in Bangkok, in collaboration with the Ministries of Culture and Foreign Affairs, and showcased various activities that reflect the close ties between France and Thailand over the last 300 years.
——-