Karmakamet’s 2nd Reincarnation Crosses Line Between Food and Art

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3 February 2020, 13:44

BANGKOK — Dining 13 courses at Karmakamet Conveyance is like viewing a modern art exhibition with no museum labels – one chats about pleasant-enough topics while sipping bubbly, nodding along to to mask one’s slight perplexity.

Karmakamet Conveyance’s first opening was in 2018 at riverside complex Lhong 1919 before closing down in 2019. Their new location on real estate gold between BTS Phrom Phong and Thong Lor, which opened in November, hopes to gain more of their preferred foot traffic.

“From my perception, food is art. What’s the difference? And what’s the difference between music and food?” Chef Jutamas “Som” Theantae said. “We’ve come to the point where it’s past just filling our stomach.”

“This menu is more like me. The last one was realism, this one is like symbolism or expressionism,” she said.

Read: Chef Som Elevates Familiar to Fantasy at Riverside Karmakamet

Find the Karmakamet on Sukhumvit Soi 49, but go into the golden-lit stairwell instead of the aromatherapy/bath products shop that Jutamas is also one of the founders of. Diners are greeted with a shard of a kintsugi plate and eviscerated fork.

Unlike other fine dining where each menu is laden with description and probably a story of how the chef had this dish somewhere in Phuket but wanted to make a fancy version of it due to a bet with another chef, blah blah blah, each course is described in a word or two, and none of the words are about the ingredients.

On top of that, the restaurant does not subscribe to any cuisine labels – merely “modern.”

“It’s about using food as a medium. Some people might not like Indian or Thai food, but if they approach dishes without judgement, then they might eat it and go, wow, I can eat this,” Jutamas said.

This is a relief, but also confusing. A lack of backstory is rare in fine dining – but without one, it’s like being in a gallery with only a few words on the museum pamphlet.

Down the amuse-bouche of a mini shot of 40-year-old moonshine (“Miracle Water”) before being greeted with three fried doughy balls very similar to the kanom kai nok kata street snack that include cheese and banana stalk curry fillings (“1st Grains”).

Okay, so it’s like being slightly buzzed at a street food fair where each of the spherical kanom are meticulously made, while sipping on a cup of chicken consomme (“2nd Warmth”).

“Luxury does not always mean from distant places,” reads the description for 1st Grains.

Take the next salad dish for example. I wish I knew more about the mossy “3rd Rainforest” other than that it’s supposed to represent after-rain lushness. It has green beans, Indian pennywort, and some dots of chlorophyll.

Chef Som’s signature oyster hoi tod reappears in “4th Street,” her classic since her Karmakamet Diner days. It’s served with a 50-spices curry similar to green curry crossed with massaman, eaten with a few noodles, fried egg, and pomelo.

The strongest course by far is a cup of Japanese amberjack fish, crab, squid, and bajang (Zongzi sticky rice), all topped with a translucent coconut water jelly. Everything in the bowl of larb-like seafood has fun, bouncy textures. The jelly lightly flavors all the fish with coconut in a far more delicate way than coconut milk. I found myself picking up the bowl from the metal stand it was served in to scrape “5th Village” clean.

Jellified vinegar is the sauce for beef tongue, a mantou, and fried shrimp in “6th Life” – an improved version over her Lhong version which had jellified vinegar as well, but served with the fragments of a noodle bowl. Samut Songkhram sea salt ice cream made a return in the refreshing palate cleanser.

A sushi of smoked black cod served on a piece of curved metal (“7th Pre Motion”) passes by without fanfare, but a tucked roll of Dover sole fish in champagne sauce with a fried zucchini next to it is delicately executed (“8th Motion”).

Of course, it’s followed by a dish that even the chef herself called unnecessary (“9th Wealth”), a rack of lamb with biryani rice, fried corn, and coriander chutney, made to meet a red meat criteria. Not that it’s badly cooked, but one is still thinking of the supple sole.

The meal ends with “10th Celebration,” or a ice dessert with jujube and fried taro that makes one think of Chinatown sweets carts, and “Farewell,” a gulab jamun in silver leaf more succulent and texture-varied than the regular pound cake variety served at the previous branch.

The 13-course menu costs 2,940 baht – double it for a champagne pairing.

“We really don’t earn anything from the champagne pairing, or even the menu,” Jutamas said.

Karmakamet Conveyance’s second reincarnation sees technical culinary improvements as Jutamas played into her strengths of adapting Thai and Indian street food into abstract fine dining – but is a jellified this-and-that and quota red meat dish really staying true to the artist spirit?

The menu will change in March. This review was based on a hosted visit.

Karmakamet Conveyance is open 6pm to 11pm every day except Sunday, a short walking distance from BTS Thong Lo. Reservations preferred.

Take a Break from PM2.5 at Bangkok Design Week 2020 (Photos)

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Asaree Thaitrakulpanich, Staff Reporter

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3 February 2020, 13:13

"Everlasting Forest by GC" exhibition in front of the Grand Postal Building.

BANGKOK — A dome of anti-pollution plants downtown is part of an annual showcase of Thailand’s creative minds.

The third edition of Bangkok Design Week, which began Saturday and runs till Feb. 9, is an amalgam of dozens of exhibitions across the city, including in the Charoen Krung, Ari, and Thonglor areas.

The organizer’s headquarters at Grand Postal Building has several large-scale exhibitions in the front square, such as a dome filled with air-cleansing plants as well as a PM2.5 monitor to show that the air is cleaner inside. Jot down the names of houseplants you might be interested in buying later at a plant market.

"Bangkok #Safezone Shelter" — “Bangkok #Safezone Shelter”

Other highlight exhibitions in the square include a structure of reinforced fiberglass, made of environmentally-friendly materials, with a mini-jungle and a mock supermarket where you can pick up a reusable paper bag for free for your next grocery shopping trip.

At Talat Noi, the “Bangkok Sealandia” exhibition (inside Realrare Taladnoi) shows the artist’s conception of Bangkok in 2050, where nearly “40 million” Bangkokians are predicted to live in water [sic]. One of the innovations include a bug house, which crickets, roaches, and flies are farmed for household consumption in event of being stranded in flood waters.

A bug house concept for stranded Bangkokians.

The “Portrait of Charoenkrung” photo exhibition (down the road in Soi Phanu Rangsi) encourages visitors to check family-run establishments in the area, such as Wuatong Pochana shop which serves Qingdao food. Different facets of the neighborhood, from run-down historic buildings to futuristic skyscrapers, are also shown in portraits lining along the soi.

At Warehouse 30 down the street, shop for crafts by Asian artists at Pinkoi Market until Tuesday. Not all the listed vendors have set up shop, however – all four of the Chinese vendors pulled out at the last minute due to coronavirus travel concerns. One Japanese shop only sells patterned face masks. The market also has several hands-on workshops for the craft-thumbs.

Patterned face masks on sale at Pinkoi Market inside Warehouse 30.

Other exhibitions at the warehouse include the Design Plant exhibition which shows prototypes of new product designs by Thai artists and a light-and-silhouette display of a the sun setting and rising on a wolf-filled savannah.

Bangkok Design Week runs until Feb. 9 at venues across the city. Visit their official website for more information.

Additional reporting Tappanai Boonbandit

Anutin’s Pledge to Evac Thais Tomorrow is Still Unconfirmed

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Tappanai Boonbandit, Staff Reporter

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3 February 2020, 12:56

A file photo of tourists wearing face masks at Suvarnabhumi Airport.

BANGKOK — Thai evacuees from China’s Wuhan city are expected to land and be quarantined at a naval base outside Bangkok, navy chief said Monday.

Adm. Luechai Rutdit said the navy-owned U-Tapao Airport and the adjacent Satthahip Naval Base in Chonburi are ready to host the returnees upon their arrival from Wuhan, which has been put on lockdown due to the coronavirus outbreak. The government has made contradicting statements when the 160 Thais living in Wuhan would be evacuated.

“Everything is all set should the government decide to use our facilities to quarantine Thai evacuees,” Luechai said. “We expect to accommodate them at the base’s lodges. If any of them get ill, we can also send them to the base’s hospital.”

The timeline for the evacuation itself remains in doubt.

Health minister Anutin Charnvirakul on Sunday told reporters the Chinese authorities had allowed Thailand to fly its plane to Wuhan and begin the evacuation on Tuesday.

But officials now said his statement is yet to be confirmed by Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha, who is due to finalize the plan at a meeting later this afternoon.

Earlier on Friday morning, deputy PM Prawit Wongsuwan said the flight would arrive in Wuhan on the following day, only to be disputed by fellow deputy PM Anutin later that same day. Anutin said the Chinese authorities had yet to grant Thailand permission to land.

U-Tapao Airport, about 40 kilometers from the resort town of Pattaya, is one of the three landing sites the government is considering for the evacuation from Wuhan. The other two options are Suvarnabhumi Airport and Don Mueang Airport, which are closer to the capital.

A number of countries have retrieved their citizens from Wuhan including South Korea, Japan, Turkey, the European Union, the United Kingdom, the United States, Australia, India, and most recently Myanmar and Indonesia.

About 160 Thai evacuees will be put on isolation for 14 days, Anutin said.

Chiang Mai Restaurant Told to Remove ‘No Chinese Allowed’ Sign

By

Teeranai Charuvastra, News Chief

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3 February 2020, 10:50

Image: กลุ่ม "จังหวัดเชียงใหม่ CM108.com" / Facebook

CHIANG MAI — A restaurant owner in the northern province of Chiang Mai said on Sunday he was instructed by Tourist Police to remove a sign barring Chinese customers from eating there.

Waraphat Thapiang, the owner of Kloijai Khaosoi in Mae On district, said she put up the notice out of fear of coronavirus last week, but photos of the sign soon went viral on the internet and prompted the police to visit her business.

The Tourist Police informed her the sign might “affect national security,” and told her to change the words to read “We run out of food” in Chinese instead, which she complied, though Waraphat said the change made her “uncomfortable.”

“I feel very uncomfortable,” the 33-year-old businesswoman said. “I wrote that sign in the first place because I don’t know which one of the Chinese customers who [ate] at my restaurant was infected.”

The sign appeared to be first posted on a Facebook group about news and happenings in Chiang Mai, where the user asked, “Is this the right thing to do?” The photo was soon widely shared, drawing both agreement and disagreement with the Waraphat ’s action.

Speaking to reporters on Sunday, the restaurant owner said she posted the notice after a group of Thai customers left her restaurant when they heard that Chinese tourists were eating in the same establishment.

Thailand counts 14 cases of confirmed coronavirus infection so far, all but two of them tourists from mainland China. Despite calls on social media, the government has declined to suspend visas for Chinese tourists entering the kingdom so far.

The incident also came at a time of rising racist sentiments against Chinese nationals and Asians worldwide.

China Brings Home 89 Stranded Citizens From Phuket

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Xinhua News Agency

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3 February 2020, 10:00

Passengers arrive at Krabi airport on Jan. 27, 2020.

GUANGZHOU (Xinhua) — A charter flight has brought back 89 stranded Hubei residents from Thai resort of Phuket following the novel coronavirus epidemic in China, according to an airline.

The 89 travelers, including three infants, arrived in Wuhan, the capital of epidemic-hit Hubei Province, on Saturday evening via the charter flight operated by China Southern Airlines, the airline said.

Medical personnel from Guangdong Province also boarded the plane to help with the preventative anti-epidemic measures before and during the flight. Due to the epidemic caused by the novel coronavirus, some Chinese citizens from Hubei, especially those from Wuhan, have encountered difficulties coming back home from overseas.

The Chinese government on Friday announced that it would send charter flights to bring these residents directly back home as soon as possible.

Man Wearing Fake Bomb Stabs 2 in London, Shot to Death

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Associated Press

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3 February 2020, 09:02

Police attend the scene after an incident in Streatham, London, Sunday Feb. 2, 2020. London police say officers shot a man during a “terrorism-related incident” that involved the stabbings of “a number of people.” (Victoria Jones/PA via AP)

LONDON (AP) — A man recently released from prison after serving time for terrorism-related offenses strapped on a fake bomb and stabbed two people on a busy London street Sunday before being shot to death by police, officials said.

Deputy Assistant Commissioner Lucy D’Orsi said police identified the attacker as 20-year-old Sudesh Amman. He had been convicted for publishing graphic terrorist videos online and had stockpiled instructions on bomb making and knife attacks, according to police.

Officers had been trailing Amman at the time of Sunday’s attack, D’Orsi said, but were unable to head off the bloodshed in the commercial and residential south London neighborhood of Streatham, where Amman struck outside a major pharmacy on a busy shopping afternoon.

The incident in London recalled a November stabbing attack carried out by another man who had served prison time for terrorism offense. Two were killed in that attack.

Prime Minister Boris Johnson said measures will be introduced Monday to bring “fundamental” change to the way people convicted of terrorism offenses are handled in prison and afterward.

“The suspect had been recently released from prison where he had been serving a sentence for Islamist-related terrorism offences,” D’Orsi said of Sunday’s attacker.

It seems likely the victims will survive Sunday’s attack. D’Orsi said a stabbing victim in his 40s thought to be in life-threatening condition has improved. She said the victim is no longer in danger and that a woman who had been hospitalized has been released.

One other female victim is still in the hospital with lesser injuries police believe were caused by flying glass after the attacker was shot dead.

D’Orsi said the incident started at 2 p.m. “Armed officers, who were part of a proactive counterterrorism operation and were following the suspect on foot, were in immediate attendance and shot a male suspect dead at the scene,” she said.

She said police saw a device strapped to the attacker’s body and called in specialist officers who quickly determined the purported explosive device was a hoax.

Officials praised the police action but questions are likely to be raised about why the officers trailing Amman could not prevent his attack.

Video from the scene appeared to show three undercover police officers in an unmarked car making a quick stop just after the attack.

Bell Reberio-Addy, a member of Parliament who represents Streatham, said the attacker had been under surveillance “for some time.”

D’Orsi said there was no “continuing danger” to the public, but the area remained cordoned off as the investigation continued. The usually busy area was deserted as the public heeded police requests to stay away.

The drama about 5 miles (8 kilometers) south of central London marked a departure from recent terror attacks in the British capital that took place near landmarks such as London Bridge and the Houses of Parliament.

The attack caused chaos and panic on what had been a typical Sunday afternoon, with the streets filled wish shoppers.

Karker Tahir said he was at work when he saw police chasing a man down Streatham High Road, the area’s main shopping district.

“They kept telling him, ’Stop! Stop!″ Tahir said. “But he didn’t stop, and then I saw that they shot him three times. It was horrible seeing it. The man was on the floor and it looked like he had something, which police said may be a device. Police came to us and said, ‘You have to leave the shop because he has a bomb in his bag.’”

Images shared on social media showed a man lying on the sidewalk outside a pharmacy.

Stephen Roberts, a former deputy commissioner for the Metropolitan Police, said if the stabbings were carried out by a “self-starter” — someone acting alone — it means any city in the country is vulnerable to a similar sort of low-tech attack.

In November, British authorities lowered the national terror threat level to “substantial,″ meaning an attack is considered likely. That is the third-highest rung in a five-step system used by British authorities and marked the first time since August 2014 that the threat level had been so low.

It was lowered because of the belief that the threat of British jihadis returning to the country from Syria had been reduced by events there, including the Islamic State group’s loss of territory.

It is not clear if the two attacks since then will lead the independent analysts who make recommendation to the government to suggest raising the level.

London Mayor Sadiq Khan urged community resolve in the face of another attack.

“Terrorists seek to divide us and to destroy our way of life,″ he said. “Here in London we will never let them succeed.”

Also Sunday, police in Belgium shot a woman who stabbed and wounded passersby in the city of Ghent, but prosecutors said there was no suspicion of terrorism or a link to what happened in London.

Associated Press journalist Jill Lawless contributed to this report.

Chinese City Fires 2 Officials Over Coronavirus Negligence

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Xinhua News Agency

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3 February 2020, 09:01

A medical staff member measures the temperature of his colleague at the First Affiliated Hospital of Zhejiang University's School of Medicine in Hangzhou, east China's Zhejiang Province, Jan. 27, 2020. (Xinhua/Huang Zongzhi)

HANGZHOU (Xinhua) — The eastern Chinese city of Yueqing has fired two health officials and punished its vice mayor over dereliction of duty in the effort to contain the spread of the novel coronavirus epidemic, local authorities said.

Ni Chengjian, head of Yueqing’s center for disease control, was fired on Sunday because the center failed to take good account of the close contacts of infected patients of the coronavirus, input the information about such contacts into the system, and report an incident that caused seven cases of infection, according to a statement issued by the anti-graft body in Zhejiang Province.

Xie Mingrong, head of Yueqing’s health commission, was also fired, and Yueqing’s vice mayor Chen Weiyan has received a disciplinary penalty, both for their conduct as officials in charge of the local anti-epidemic effort.

In the statement, the anti-graft body urged officials at various levels in Zhejiang to take on their full responsibilities in the fight against the epidemic.

Harry Potter Theme Park Set to Cast Spell in Tokyo

By

Kyodo News

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3 February 2020, 09:01

A screenshot from Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire

TOKYO (Kyodo) — A park based on the Harry Potter film franchise is expected to open in Tokyo around spring 2023, replacing 94-year-old amusement park Toshimaen, a source close to the matter said Monday.

Seibu Holdings Inc., the parent company of Toshimaen’s operator, is considering closing the park in stages from this year, and is in talks with Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc., founder of the franchise based on the children’s novels written by British author J. K. Rowling, the source said.

Continue reading the story here.

Wuhan’s New Hospital to Combat Coronavirus Completed After 10 Days

By

Xinhua News Agency

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3 February 2020, 09:01

WUHAN (Xinhua) — China has built a makeshift hospital in 10 days to battle against the novel strain of coronavirus in Wuhan, the epicenter of the virus outbreak in central China’s Hubei Province.

Huoshenshan (Fire God Mountain) Hospital was delivered Sunday in Wuhan. It is dedicated to treating patients infected with the virus.

A total of 1,400 medical staff from the armed forces are tasked with treating patients in Huoshenshan Hospital starting from Monday. The medics consist of 950 people from hospitals affiliated to the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) Joint Logistic Support Force, and 450 from medical universities of the army, navy and air force of the PLA who were sent to Wuhan earlier.

Replicating Beijing’s SARS treatment model in 2003, Wuhan started building two makeshift hospitals: Leishenshan (Thunder God Mountain) and Huoshenshan. On Jan. 23, workers broke ground on Huoshenshan Hospital, with a capacity of 1,000 beds.

“Mission Impossible” Made Possible

Chinese health authorities Sunday said it received reports of 2,590 new confirmed cases of novel coronavirus infection and 45 deaths on Saturday from 31 provincial-level regions and the Xinjiang Production and Construction Corps. All the deaths are in Hubei Province, according to China’s National Health Commission.

138740970 15802684908551n — Combo photo shows an aerial view of the Huoshenshan Hospital during the past 10 days from Jan. 24 to Feb. 2, 2020 in Wuhan. (Xinhua/Xiao Yijiu)

As China feels the pinch of the outbreak, authorities have decided to replicate Xiaotangshan Hospital, a temporary medical center in the northern suburb of Beijing built in 2003. Beijing built Xiaotangshan Hospital in just a week in the treatment and control of SARS, or Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome.

When Fang Xiang knew he and his team had to finish the hospital in Wuhan in 10 days, he thought it was “mission impossible.”

“For a project of this scale, it usually takes at least two years,” said Fang, project manager of the Third Construction Co. Ltd of China Construction Third Engineering Bureau. “It takes at least a month to construct a temporary building, not to mention a new hospital for infectious diseases.”

In addition, with a big number of migrant workers partaking, it is difficult to provide adequate food and shelter on-site, according to a staff member of Wuhan Urban and Rural Construction Bureau.

But the “mission impossible” had to be implemented under severe circumstances.

From Jan. 23 to Feb. 1, Wuhan’s confirmed cases of infection rose from 495 to a staggering 4,109. This has put huge pressure on local medical facilities, which failed to supply enough beds. A good many patients had to stay home for quarantine and treatment. If not handled properly, the epidemic could exacerbate.

photo l — Staff members use a mechanical vehicle to transfer medical equipment at the Huoshenshan Hospital in Wuhan, the epicenter of the virus outbreak in central China’s Hubei Province, Feb. 2, 2020. (Xinhua/Li He)

Located in a sanatorium near Zhiyin Lake in southwestern Wuhan, the hospital is far away from downtown areas where people converge. The area has sufficient transportation and pipeline systems, and existing dining halls and dormitories are ready to provide services.

Authorities spent five hours on the designing plan and created a designing draft within 24 hours. Three companies received an order to build the “Fire God Mountain” under the Third Construction Co., Ltd. of China Construction Third Engineering Bureau.

“I have never participated in such an urgent task, and I have never seen so many companies involved in a single project,” said Fang Xiang’s colleague Shen Kai. “It is a tough job, but we need to give it our best shot.”

S 13746485 1 — Photo taken on Feb. 2, 2020 shows the interior view of a ward of Huoshenshan Hospital in Wuhan, the epicenter of the virus outbreak in central China’s Hubei Province. (Xinhua/Chen Yehua)

Thousands of workers were operating more than 800 equipment simultaneously as they rushed against time to save lives. They vowed to fight against the virus and worked in shifts to complete the construction. Some people only slept for four hours a day, Shen said.

Ma Jiaqiang, 47, volunteered for the project when he read about the recruitment ad for Huoshenshan Hospital on social media.

“I have been working in Wuhan. It is my home,” Ma said. “I just had to take part.”

Ma operated a digging machine for eight hours a day at the construction site.

“I feel honored to be able to part of this,” Ma said.

Cheer up China!

After the hospital work began, the Chinese public went out of their way to supervise the construction of Huoshenshan.

China’s state broadcaster has been live-streaming the around-the-clock construction progress, which instantly went viral online. With no narration or background music, the livestream videos provide audiences a real-time bird’s-eye view of the construction site.

83522285 474304419920981 623990801726177280 n 1 — Aerial photo taken on Feb. 2, 2020 shows the Huoshenshan (Fire God Mountain) Hospital in Wuhan, the epicenter of the virus outbreak in central China’s Hubei Province. (Xinhua/Cheng Min)

Calling themselves “online supervisors,” Chinese citizens have been keeping a close eye on the projects and exchanging their ideas and feelings in the comment section. They cheered when the hospital was delivered.

“Cheer up, China! I believe we can curb the epidemic,” read a typical online comment.

“Salute to the workers working around the clock,” read another comment.

The project is bringing hope to patients like Zhang Yue, a Wuhan resident, who has been suffering from fever for days.

“It feels like seeing the sunlight shining through the dark clouds,” Zhang said.

(Reporting by Zhong Qun, Li Jinfeng, Jia Qilong, Li Yun, Wang Zuokui, Cheng Lu, Cheng Min, Xiao Yijiu, Li He and Chen Yehua; Video reporters: Yu Guoqing, Xu Yang, Rao Rao, Jia Qilong and Pan Zhiwei; Video editor: Liu Yuting.)

Japan, WHO to Mitigate Coronavirus Impact on Olympics

By

Kyodo News

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3 February 2020, 09:00

img_20200127_184610_1 — Kyodo file photo

TOKYO (Kyodo) — Prime Minister Shinzo Abe said Monday Japan will coordinate closely with the World Health Organization to keep the recent outbreak of a new coronavirus from impacting the Tokyo Olympics and Paralympics this summer.

Japan is stepping up efforts to stem the spread of the deadly pneumonia-causing virus, originating in China’s Wuhan, at home as 20 cases of infection have been confirmed so far. Abe said the development of a rapid test kit for the virus is under way so more institutions, including private ones, can conduct screening.

Continue reading the story here.

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