Small Dinner Club — Restaurant in Si Phraya Subdistrict

My anticipation for dining at SDC in Bangkok was immense, having eagerly awaited the experience and booked well in advance for a celebratory trip with friends. Regrettably, despite high expectations, the evening fell short in ways that left us disheartened, particularly given the premium price point.

To begin with the positives, the ambiance was undeniably inviting, with a thoughtfully designed interior that exuded sophistication. The service staff was attentive and professional, deserving commendation for their efforts in enhancing the dining experience despite the main chef’s minimal engagement.

However, several aspects of the evening detracted from its potential. SDC recommends arriving between 6:00 and 6:30 PM for its seating, and while my husband and I were slightly delayed by 10 minutes, our friends, who arrived promptly, had already begun. This was understandable, yet the chef’s demeanor upon our arrival felt noticeably reserved, perhaps due to our “tardiness”, which set an unwelcoming tone.

The dining experience itself, priced at 5,000 THB per person (excluding drinks), promised a fine and creative journey but failed to deliver commensurate value. The chef introduced each dish by name alone, offering no insight into its inspiration or composition. This left us reliant on the small “menu” and post-course explanations from the service staff, which felt disconnected in a counter-style setting designed to foster interaction with the chef. The absence of personal engagement from the chef, whose creations presumably reflect their vision and experiences, rendered the experience impersonal and surprisingly cold. But then again, maybe we’re not “cultured” enough to understand the full concept?

The menu itself, while ambitious, often felt overly complex and pretentious, with dishes that confused rather than captivated. The progression from a modest chicken wing to a small prawn and a notably undersized duck main course left us still visibly unsatisfied . Portion sizes were strikingly minimal for a premium establishment charging this price and while the staff graciously accommodated our request for additional small bites, the necessity to ask was unexpected and disappointing, especially given my extensive experience at fine dining venues where satisfaction is typically assured by the main course.

The desserts, though visually appealing, were similarly diminutive, and the “surprise” box, intended as a highlight, was perplexing and visually unappealing, falling short of the finesse expected of petite fours in such a setting.

Ultimately, SDC left us with a sense of unfulfilled promise. While the restaurant enjoys a strong reputation and positive reviews on Google review, our experience suggests room for huge improvement in guest engagement, portion generosity, and overall value. The fact that the chef did not even come over to ask how our experience was or even waited to say goodbye (despite us being the biggest group of diners that night) and the fact that he just disappeared from the counter area really left a bad taste in my mouth.

I share this feedback not to diminish SDC’s accomplishments but to offer perspective for future diners. I sincerely hope others have a more rewarding experience than we did. I am absolutely disappointed and regretted my choice of dining here especially involving my friends and the opportunity cost as we only had limited 2 dinners together...

In another concept, perhaps this would have been a great meal. Tldr, Great ideas and personality in the menu, but held back in flavors.

2 of my favorites.. the chicken wing stuffed with quail egg and the icy raw fish salad thing. The chicken wing was cooked perfectly and had a very pleasant strong wine marinate which punched through. The raw fish salad, to me, was a very interesting take on the classic lo hei or yu sheng served during CNY in Msia and Sg. Even after finishing the dish, the familiar after taste of lime, pickled fruits and sesame seed remained.

The prawn and duck were cooked perfectly but lacked in flavor. The sweetness of the prawns were not brought out by the other components, which were bland themselves. I had to taste each layer separately to know what they were. The duck was okay, but they said they wanted a salty duck with a sweet banana and pink guava combination. The duck needed much more seasoning. Doneness perfectly pink though, best part was the duck tongue. Great flavours.

Other dishes such as the pasta made from green papaya came across as bland and too oily. The main ingredients green papaya and stink bean needed lots of flavor to accompany them. The final chilli dish which is actually chocolate mousse tasted flat too. Menu described it as a small bite to summarized my dinner… it sure did.

Other desserts such as a rice waffle and ice cream made from all rice components was decent. I wished there was more fermented rice for the kick. The 2nd dessert made from sweet potato and coconut potato was also great. 3rd dessert of coriander granita with a sugar marinated quail egg yolk was ok when cold. But the smell from the quail egg yolk was overpowering in my mouth when I finished the dish and the temperature rose.

As for service, great attentive sincere service. Until the billing. I was charged my home currency instead of the local currency Thai baht before being asked. Frequent travelers would know that the exchange rates horrendous for such transactions. They did rectify after I voiced out but it gave the meal a bad ending.

The small piece of cake, supposedly for breakfast tomorrow, that I finished then, was the best of the night. Buttery, intense flavours.

There were 2 groups of non Asians there which were raving about the food. Perhaps I’m not their target...

tl;dr SDC is worth booking in advance, and the price you are paying for it. Don’t try and do extensive research on the menu, part of Chef Sareen’s experience is the discovery of re-created cuisine and ingredients through the exploration of various flavors, sensations and textures.

An experience in SDC with Chef Sareen is a night that I will remember for a long time. I managed to score a last minute booking for one by contacting the restaurant directly. 30 minutes out of the city, the restaurant is carefully hidden in the mix of shop houses on the street.

Chef Sareen’s chef’s table is well lit, and although it mentions come with whatever you feel like wearing, it does have an slightly intimidating feel of dark wooden tables - the table itself is well lit so you can visually appreciate the food (and take photos of it)

Out of respect for Chef Sareen’s Menu, and his idea of bringing every customer through a gastronomic journey over the course of dinner, I will not discuss in depth what elements contribute to the delivery of his dishes.

What I will say is that this lives up to the first and last line of his menu: “Thai cuisine, pulled apart, questioned, and reimagined” and “A study on perspective”. Although not big on the study of Thai cuisine foods and flavor elements, a night here at SDC will teach you more about Thai food than a weeks worth at named restaurant around the city.

A quick shout out to the service staff that evening, who took the experience to the next level by helping us question what elements we were tasting in the dishes, and what we were able to imagine what Chef Sareen was referencing.

Although pretty pricey if you are only considering a dollar value, every dish had elements that thought provoked, questioned on elements, explored textures and on top of that, tasted above par in...