Make way foodies, because a new restaurant has just brought a whole new Thai cuisine experience to Toronto and they’re calling it ARTisan gastronomy — named for the Iron Chef who runs the kitchen.
Savor was created by Chef Art – Prasopchok Trakulphat, the former Iron Chef of Thailand known for adding a modern twist on traditional Thai cuisine. That’s exactly what he brings to his new location, using 13th century traditions and flavours and blending it with Western techniques to bring it to his new Toronto audience.
Savor — pronounced more like “savoey” in Thai — comes from a Thai word meaning “to eat in a higher form for royal families.” And that’s exactly what the chef and his team are trying to do at Savor.
The restaurant’s design body reflects its aspiration for a regal dining experience, featuring emerald walls that complement the dramatic, golden fixtures. And, the chef explains, this deliberate choice is intricately connected to the Feng shui principles guiding the space.
“We serve our creations in a welcome, an elegant atmosphere so the flow from the good energy from the moment that you walk into the restaurant carries you through sitting down, enjoying the interior, enjoying the beverages and food, dessert, and service.”
To decorate the interior, Savor has additionally imported 1000 handmade bells from Thailand. Culturally significant to the country, the bells symbolize tranquility and bring a calming tone to the space.
Chef Art explains that, like most cultures, there are many different aspects to Thailand gastronomy from street food to home cooking and royal cooking.
“Thai food is all about composing a harmoniously complex dish,” explains the chef. “We have to have sweet, and we have to have salty, sour and spicy at the same time. But then how do we complement those flavours in one bite, in one dish — not too sour, not too spicy, not too salty, not too sweet? That’s basically what Thai food is considered at least to me.”
The chef explains that the food at Savor is a “well-balanced mixture of other cuisines” using Savor’s own special touches. For example, the curry dishes on the menu all take root with spices from Indian and Persian cuisines and then adding Chef Art’s own flavours.
The pad thai dish, too, Chef Art explains, comes from Chinese cuisine rather than Thai. To make it their own, Savor adds tamarind sauce and palm sugar.
“We keep that concept of mixing and incorporating,” he explains. “So, we’re making Thai food with local ingredients that make sense to Thai flavours in a way that is natural to me?. We want to offer Thai food in my way here in Toronto.”
The beverage menu elegantly marries tradition with innovation, evident with the carefully crafted Nappokao cocktail selection — also knows as the nine gem cocktail menu. Each of the name drinks represent — through colour and feel — a different gem, like amber, syphon, diamond, ruby, cat’s eye.
The drinks on the non-alcoholic mocktail menu includes beverages inspired by festivals across regions of Thailand. For example, the Songkran is named for the Thai new year and represents the water that gets thrown around during this natural celebration.
From the thoughtfully designed space to the meticulously curated food and drink menu, every element at Savor is infused with purpose and intention.
“I do appreciate the enjoyment that Torontonians have for Thai food,” says the chef. “But I think right now it’s time to enjoy it a bit differently, with really playful twists and well-thought-out beverages that are Thai-inspired combined with Thai food and Thai desserts.”