From New York:
Sexy Kittichai
Chef Chalermkittichai Re(de)fines Thai Food in the City
by John Mariani

Kittichai is one of the sexiest restaurants in New York, which is obvious the moment you walk in, greeted by model hostesses (meaning they are very good at what they do and are possibly models as well) and shown past well-dressed people who have, overnight, made this one of the big deal hot spots in Greenwich Village for cocktails or dinner. Since it's in a hotel, 60 Thompson, Kittichai is also open for breakfast and lunch.

You sashay past teak cabanas with ottoman seating and black bamboo screens; goldfish swim in a gorgeous aquarium, and the walls are cut by laser to form a poem about the restaurant.The shimmering, shadowy, aqueous dining room features candles moving on water, like little bumper cars. It's an enchanting effect, one of many in the design, which apparently has a whole lot of feng shui going on.

The owners, Robin Leigh, Michael Callahan, Jean-Marc Houmard and Huy Chi Le, are no strangers to Asian motifs, having opened Indochine, BondSt and Republic, but this is something far more seductive—unless you don't find loud restaurants seductive. Then again, the nice American boys waiting tables don't look too convincing or comfortable in their tidy little Mandarin collared shirts; the waitresses are just darling in their black sleeveless tunics and Thai fisherman trousers. One other oddity: the bare tables are set with chopsticks, even though Thais eat with forks and spoons.

The chef at Kittichai is Ian Chalermkittichai of Bangkok, who had cooked at Darley Street in Sydney, then headed the Four Seasons Bangkok and was brought to NYC by the partners, who have taken an enormous gamble tying into the chef's name on the assumption that he will stick around forever. I hope he does, for he brings a refinement to Thai food that has largely been absent in New York, comparing favorably to the cooking at Jean-Georges Vongerichten's Vong, before it became a chain. Still, those expecting the fiery blasts of the kind of food you actually find in Thailand or even in the storefront Thai eateries that dot American cities, will not find much of it here. Only one of the dozen or so savory dishes I tried had all that much chile-spiked heat.

Nevertheless, most of the food was delicious, starting with a cute little tartlet with minced chicken, dried chili and coriander, a tantalizer my guests and I could have gorged on. Very good and a lot of fun to eat were Siamese spiced crispy chicken lollipops marinated in tamarind-palm sugar. These two fall under the category of "Thai Tapas," so we moved on to a superb galangal and coconut soup with chicken, lemongrass and kaffir lime—one of the finest renditions of the classic tom kha kai I've ever had.

Clay steamed mussels, the one dish with lots of chile here, lost in the bargain, because the heat and spices overpowered the delicate shellfish. I passed on Hudson Valley foie gras with pineapple marmalade as something that sounded like a reach for a Thai kitchen. Pork ribs marinated in Thai spices with a dousing of chocolate was nothing special.

Among the entrées to recommend are prawns cooked in a clay pot with glass vermicelli, scallion and bits of prosciutto; and marinated loin of lamb with a trio of eggplants, Thai basil pesto and some foie gras snuck into it that was much better and balanced than a lackluster, too-sweet, honey-glazed duck with a Champagne-mango and micro bok choy accompaniment. Crispy whole fish with ginger and Thai hot basil was all right but only as good as I've had it in a million other Thai restaurants around town. Monkfish with hearts of palm in a chile-ginger curry was a nice dish you certainly don't see anywhere else.

I'm afraid none of the desserts roused much interest at our table. Flourless chocolate cake was supposedly steamed for three hours in a banana leaf, which didn't seem to add much that the cherry compote and Thai red wine syrup couldn't. Tapioca with passion fruit sorbet was goop, and I didn't care for the ice creams and sorbets here, which lacked intensity.

The wine list is serviceable, though it's very difficult to match wines with Thai food. The red wines, unfortunately, come to the table at dining room temperature, which at 78 degrees is much too warm.

There is a lot of conceptualizing here, from the front door to the last sip of tea, and it's all very appealing. Whether that appeal will hold up for those seeking more traditional Thai food, and for those who only visit a hot spot once before moving on to the next, remains to be seen (the previous restaurant in this spot flared brightly for a couple of months then faded fast). I'd like to see the place gather a following, and I really, really hope the chef likes New York enough to stay put.

Kittichai, 60 Thompson St., 212-219-2000, www.kittichairestaurant.com

John Mariani is well known for his frank and poignant writing in Esquire, Wine Spectator, Diversion and the Harper Collection. He is author of The Encyclopedia of American Food & Drink, The Dictionary of Italian Food and Drink and co-author, with his wife, of the Italian-American Cookbook.