Blackitch Artisan Kitchen, Chiang Mai

Blackitch Artisan Kitchen, Chiang Mai

Words: Monica Tindall
Photos: Han Sen Hau

Blackitch Artisan Kitchen in Chiang Mai is a restaurant where delicious food and sustainability go hand-in-hand. The team is committed to reducing food waste and using local ingredients to create unique dishes. Mixing science and traditional wisdom, it’s a restaurant that should be on every gourmet’s “must-eat” list.

Blackitch Artisan Kitchen, Chiang Mai

We pass by the dessert and pastry kitchen as we enter, starting with the beginning in mind. The dining area is on the first floor. Stone-grey walls are simply adorned with framed photos with a single window letting in natural light and warm spotlights illuminating the space at night. With only 16 diners accommodated for each seating, reservations are a must.

Chef Black and his life and business partner, Chef Beer, greet us upon arrival. They’re a personable pair, and we can’t help but be swept up in their dream. Shunning the term “authentic Thai” as being judgy and exclusive, they don’t work under such limitations. Instead, their menus are ingredient-driven, celebrating the grand biodiversity found in this blessed land. Sourcing produce nationwide, they cook based on intuition, blending Thai and Western influences using local wisdom. Childhood memories inspire diverse tastes that may appear non-traditional but evoke familiarity. 

Chef Black’s expertise turns underrated market finds into culinary treasures, transforming garnishes into valuable components. This innovative approach extends to making ingredients more enjoyable, aligning with seasons for both flavour and nutritional value. The result is a menu where creativity knows no bounds. The inherent qualities of ingredients are allowed to shine, making the dining experience not just about the cuisine but a celebration of nature’s bounty.

Blackitch Artisan Kitchen Drinks Menu 

The Blackitch Artisan Kitchen drinks menu offers a curated selection of wine, sake, and beer. Chef Black’s Signature Wheat Beer (THB 200) is unmissable with its playful cartoon label featuring the chef’s face and pairs beautifully with a variety of dishes. While I’m not typically a beer drinker, this craft brew, infused with wild honey and Makwean pepper (similar to Sichuan peppercorns), is mildly sweet and refreshing. Its versatility makes it a perfect match for the diverse spices and subtle heat in recipes here.

Monsoon Harvest Delights Menu

As the rainy season fades and the cool season draws near, Blackitch Artisan Kitchen’s Monsoon Harvest Delights Menu celebrates the season’s dividends. From October to December, the menu highlights diverse rice and ingredients from across Thailand, sourced from sustainable farms and communities. 

Bread & Wild Mushrooms

To begin, Bread & Wild Mushrooms, a meat-free course, features a triangle of a toastie complemented by an assortment of four condiments inspired by the forest floor and the river. The milk bread is filled with black pepper and river seaweed, offering a unique blend of savoury and umami flavours. The first condiment, a cashew paste, ingeniously mimics the seasonal delicacy of wasp worms, while the next, a small, sweet piece of marinated and baked mountain pumpkin, is sourced from an indigenous farmer’s rotational plantation in Chiang Mai. To counterbalance the earthy notes of the wild mushrooms, Chef employs a smoking technique using rice hay, imparting a subtle smoky aroma. The final touch arrives in the form of snow lotus, pickled with beetroot, adding a contrasting crunch and a hint of sweetness to the dish.

Shrimp & Green Mustard

The second course, Shrimp & Green Mustard, reminiscent of a mini taco, utilizes every component of the banana shrimp caught by the Blackitch Artisan Kitchen team. The compressed shrimp shell holds a mixture of the flesh, insides of the head, shrimp paste, ginger, radish, and local green mustard. The mustard, normally used for pickles, is bitter and spicy when eaten raw, earning the chef’s nickname of “fake wasabi.” Powdered shrimp head fat is sprinkled on top with a yellow emulsion made from shrimp shell oil. Sour leaves, often used with pork belly in the south, serve as the base for the “taco.” Eat it in one bite to appreciate the flavour extravaganza.

Crab & Young Jack Fruit

Chef Black describes the third dish, Crab & Young Jack Fruit, as northern food – young jackfruit with fermented dried soybean. He says crab is often replaced by jackfruit for vegetarians, so the two naturally go together. In this recipe, the meatiness comes from jackfruit, while the creaminess comes from rice paddy crabs. Garlic, tomatoes marinated in soy sauce, crispy pork and puffed rice scattered on top add crunch and balance the flavours.

Ocean Fish & Ginger Torch Flower

Long-tail mackerel is warm inside a croquette base in the fourth course, Ocean Fish & Ginger Torch Flower. Cream cheese with ginger torch, rose jam and pickled big-eye mackerel crown the croquette. Lastly, Laotian coriander and ginger torch flower brighten the crest. It’s a warm and comforting mouthful, with the light crunch of the croquette shell pleasantly interrupting the smooth cheese.

Cuttlefish & Wild Yam

Cuttlefish and Wild Yam features yam pickled for tanginess, black sauce from fermented fish entrails infused with shrimp paste for Southern Thai flavour, and deep-fried cuttlefish tentacles. Peanuts, long beans, lemongrass, stinky beans, ginger, sour fruit, and garlic are added for depth and complexity. Served like a rice salad, the dish showcases Thai ingenuity and resourcefulness.

Fresh Water Fish & Sweet Potatoes

Freshwater Fish & Sweet Potatoes entwine the meat and skin of the local pangasius fish in a single roll. The grill brings out natural fish flavours, and the crunchy fried leftovers are sprinkled around the edges. Roasted water spinach in tangy kang som sauce sits in the middle of the plate, and the tail-end concludes with sweet potatoes pickled in vinegar.

Local Chicken & Native Vegetables

Local Chicken & Native Vegetables marries tradition with flavour in a nod to the practice of praying to the ancestor ghosts and offering chicken for a good harvest. Paired with Makwaen pepper, tender chicken meatballs are served alongside a medley of native vegetables, all enveloped in a rich Makwaen pepper emulsion.

Mushrooms & Bacon

A single, plump ravioli, crafted from house-made flour, envelops a savoury filling of stir-fried mushrooms infused with the tang of red wine vinegar and the richness of salted egg yolk, in the Mushrooms & Bacon. It reminds us of Chinese bao. An enticing blend of bacon oil and slow-cooked mushrooms makes a delicious jus, adding depth and complexity to the dish.

Rice & Fish

Rice & Fish is a comforting dish of wild hill tribe rice, succulent grilled trevally fish, and a medley of pickled vegetables, dried galangal seasoning, and fish maw. The accompanying fish broth, enriched with eggs, offers an agreeable partner to the rice and fish. It’s another bowl that returns scraped clean.

Himawari Beef & Curry

The Himawari Beef & Curry showcases tender beef from Himawari Farm in Thailand. It’s rolled together with cha plu leaves and kale, forming a scroll, and simmered in an aromatic green curry. Tempura flowers add a crispiness to the top, and to counter the richness of the beef, a refreshing pickled hairy eggplant salad is served alongside. In a final gesture before serving, a fragrant spring onion oil is poured over the top.

Dessert

Roots Shoots Fruits – Cacao/ Vanilla/ Beet/Tea 

In the dessert, Roots Shoots Fruits, whole beetroots are transformed into crispy chips, their juice infused into a delicate sponge cake, and the leftover skin further juiced to create a vibrant splash of colour across the plate. A velvety vanilla semifreddo sits beneath a shimmering sheet of palm sugar, crowned with a sprinkle of cacao nibs and crumble. Finally, a rich chocolate cacao mousse completes the tasty ensemble.

Fruits & Straws – Quince/ Sappan

The sweet conclusion, Fruits & Straws, showcases the versatility of quince, a tart fruit brimming with vitamin C, in a palate-cleansing and invigorating finale. The sorbet effectively cleanses and revitalizes the senses. At the same time, the sappan wood, traditionally used in Thai medicine, lends a touch of earthy elegance. The sprinkle of rice tea powder adds textural contrast and a subtle hint of roasted grains, leaving a lasting impression and topping up our satisfaction metre to 100%.

Blackitch Artisan Kitchen Review

Blackitch Artisan Kitchen stands out for its innovative approach to recipe creation, its commitment to sustainability, and its unique dining experience. Chef Black and Chef Beer’s passion for food shines through in every dish. The Monsoon Harvest Delights Menu is a testament to their ability to transform ordinary ingredients into extraordinary culinary creations. Blackitch Artisan Kitchen is not just a place to eat; it’s an experience that left us feeling inspired, nourished, and satisfied.

Reasons to visit Blackitch Artisan Kitchen, Chiang Mai: an innovative menu, guaranteed to be quite unlike anything you have ever tried before.

Blackitch Artisan Kitchen, Chiang Mai
27/1 Nimmanhemin Soi 7, Suthep
Mueang Chiang Mai District, Chiang Mai 50200, Thailand
+66 093-6956464
[email protected]
www.blackitch.com
* Reservations are essential, with a maximum of 16 diners accommodated for each seating.

Blackitch Artisan Kitchen, Chiang Mai Opening Hours
Lunch: 11 am – 2 pm
Dinner: 5 pm – 10 pm
Closed Sunday & Tuesday
*Reservations required

Find more recommendations for gourmet travel in Thailand here and stay up-to-date with our latest gourmet travel finds here and here.